Fine featured devices are produced by a series of fabrication steps including exposing selective surface regions to irradiation, e.g. to an ion beam, generally to result in removal of masking material within irradiated regions. In most instances, subsequent etching is under conditions such that bared material is preferentially removed. Etch-removal and irradiation are such that overgrown material is of device quality at least in etched regions. The inventive process is of particular value in the...

A process for producing air bearing sliders for thin film magnetic heads, one at a time from a strip of material having the thin film heads aligned in a column. The thin film heads are aligned within the column such that the slider processing is performed in a direction substantially parallel to the orientation of the column. In one embodiment, a mechanical backing, fixture or substrate provides structural rigidity to the strip of material having the sliders while undergoing mechanical processin...

Expedient fabrication of fine-featured integrated circuits entails aperture pattern delineation to produce a masking layer atop a semiconductor body followed by insertion within a controlled atmosphere chamber within which device-functional layered material is epitaxially grown within apertures. Critical, device-consequential properties of epitaxial material is assured by removal of a thin surface layer of material revealed during delineation. Such removal, sufficient to eliminate meaningful con...

Method and apparatus are set forth for providing a reactive radical species at a substrate surface. A wall structure defines an interior chamber. A substrate is mounted in the chamber at a target position therein with a surface region of the substrate oriented in a selected direction. A first vaporous chemical is introduced to the chamber with the first vaporous chemical flowing toward the surface region of the substrate. A first radical species is generated from the first vaporous chemical inte...

A fabrication chuck for applying a thin membrane to the irregularly-shaped surface of a workpiece includes a foundation adapted to hold the workpiece in a selected fabrication position and an upper chuck assembly adapted to be fastened to the foundation. The upper chuck assembly includes an applicator that is moveably mounted so that it can be displaced towards the workpiece in the assembly chamber. The applicator has a mating surface and is adapted to selectively retain the thin membrane on the...

A durable photoreceptor having improved flexibility comprising a metal- or metal-coated flexible substrate and an inorganic photoconductor layer in charge blocking contact, the photoreceptor being obtained by initially bombarding the metal substrate, as cathode, with positive ions of an inert gas of low ionization potential under glow discharge in the presence of oxygen; and exposing the resulting oxide-coated substrate to a vapor cloud of photoconductor material consisting essentially of charge...

Methods and apparatus for forming honeycomb structure from a plurality of substrate layers. The layers are bonded together by spaced, parallel, solid node strips of thermoplastic material pressed and heated above the softening temperature to bond to the substrate surfaces and form a block. After cooling, the block is expanded into a honeycomb structure. Alternatively, the solid node strips can be placed on the spaced raised crests of corrugated layers of substrate, and successive layers bonded t...

Methods and apparatus for forming honeycomb structure from a plurality of substrate layers. The layers are bonded together by spaced, parallel, solid node strips of thermoplastic material pressed and heated above the softening temperature to bond to the substrate surfaces and form a block. After cooling, the block is expanded into a honeycomb structure. Alternatively, the solid node strips can be placed on the spaced raised crests of corrugated layers of substrate, and successive layers bonded t...

A thermoelectric module is formed with a solder joint, the solder containing about 50 to 99 weight percent bismuth and about 50 to 1 weight percent antimony, between the thermoelectric elements and the connecting conductors. Also provided is a thermoelectric module having bismuth telluride elements coated with a conductive material that does not require a nickel or other diffusion barrier. Further provided are modules having conductors with a phosphorus-nickel surface. Methods of manufacturing a...

A method of producing a fiberizing unit for use in producing glass fibers is shown which involves forming a sheet of metal in the form of a cylinder and providing projections on the underside on a section of said cylinder. Holes are provided through the projections to the center of the cylinder for fluid communication from the center of the cylinder to the exterior thereof through the projections.