Intellectual Property Law

US Patent 7341498 - Laser irradiation of CNT field emitters

Posted on March 11, 2008
http://www.freepatentsonline.com/7341498.htmlHyperion Catalysis was one of the early companies experimenting with carbon nanotubes (which they call "fibrils"). This patent teaches using laser radiation to treat carbon nanotubes so as to create more emission sites when used in field emission applications...

US Patent 7341222 - Microfabricated insect sensor swarms

Posted on March 11, 2008
http://www.freepatentsonline.com/7341222.htmlThis is a fairly interesting patent from the U.S. Department of Energy that teaches a method for making microscale winged flying machines. A swarm of such machines are taught to be useful in remote sensing applications and are taught to be powered by solar or rf energy...

US Patent 7340956 - Built-in self test of MEMS

Posted on March 11, 2008
http://www.freepatentsonline.com/7340956.htmlA variety of self-testing methods and systems exist for MEMS sensors including piezoresistive and capacitive diagnostic elements built into the MEMS structure. This patent from Carnegie Mellon teaches using dual sensing elements for generating a differential signal to detect asymmetries of the MEMS sensor...

US Patent 7340356 - Nanowire crossbar readout using resistance enhancing biasing

Posted on March 10, 2008
http://www.freepatentsonline.com/7340356.htmlRRAM is a non-volatile memory type that works based on the storage of data in the form of high or low resistance states instead of by storing charge as in flash memory. Hewlett-Packard is using rotaxane molecules between intersecting nanowires to form a nanowire crossbar RRAM memory however one of the problems is that the high or low resistance states of different crosspoints can be inconsistent during a read out operation...

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US Patent 7339446 - Dual wafer MEMS resonator

Posted on March 10, 2008
http://www.freepatentsonline.com/7339446.htmlOne of the popular applications of MEMS devices is in tuning resonant circuits. This patent from Intel teaches forming the tuning MEMS portion on one substrate and the resonant circuitry on an opposite substrate which provides a reduction in the total lateral dimensions required for MEMS-based tunable filters...

US Patent 7339401 - Boolean logic with CNT switches

Posted on March 06, 2008
http://www.freepatentsonline.com/7339401.htmlThis is yet another basic patent to Nantero for carbon nanotube electronics which lays claim to basic Boolean logic circuits such as NOT, NOR, and NAND which is a sufficient basis to establish any conceivable logic function...

US Patnet 7339244 - 3D MEMS lattice structure

Posted on March 06, 2008
http://www.freepatentsonline.com/7339244.htmlThis patent from Cornell Research Foundation included some basic claims to treelike silicon structures formed so as to create a 3D structure useful as a filter for nanofluidics or in optical sensors/amplifiers...

US Patent 7339186 - IC chip with dummy nanowires

Posted on March 06, 2008
http://www.freepatentsonline.com/7339186.htmlThis patent from Infineon teaches a memory device that uses nanowires in an interesting way. The doping of the nanowires is changed to make nonfunctional areas of the memory which makes the content of the memory more difficult to determine by covert observation...

US Patent 7339184 - Metal/oxide/semiconductor nanowire

Posted on March 05, 2008
http://www.freepatentsonline.com/7339184.htmlThis appears to be a fairly fundamental patent for Nanosys which claims a basic metal oxide semiconductor (MOS) nanowire structure. Most electronics commonly used are MOSFETs and if nanowires become an active part of electronics devices this patent will likely become important to industry...

US Patent 7338915 - Conductive SWNT rope

Posted on March 05, 2008
http://www.freepatentsonline.com/7338915.htmlThis is one of a series of basic SWNT patents from Rice (with priority going back to 1995) and focuses on the metallic variety of single walled carbon nanotubes formed in relative abundance using a dual laser pulse method...

US Patent 7338812 - Nanoparticle biolabel material formed by imprinting

Posted on March 04, 2008
http://www.freepatentsonline.com/7338812.htmlIn order to make nanoparticles sensitive to particular molecule a functionalization procedure is necessary to create a binding site for the molecule. This patent from Industrial Technology Research Institute teaches an interesting method for developing such binding sites by applying molecular imprinting to a plurality of semiconductor nanoparticles (quantum dots)...

US Patent 7338711 - Explosive organic molecular coated nanoparticle

Posted on March 04, 2008
http://www.freepatentsonline.com/7338711.htmlDue to their high surface-to-volume ratios providing certain metal nanoparticles are very effective for catalytic and explosives applications. Oxides have been used as a protective coating for such nanoparticles but this often leads to uneven distribution of the particles in a fuel...

US Patent 7335983 - CNT microchimney for IC cooling

Posted on March 03, 2008
http://www.freepatentsonline.com/7335983.htmlAs more and more circuits are crammed into smaller and smaller spaces for processor designs heat generation is becoming a dominating issue. This patent from Intel uses carbon nanotubes which are whimsically referred to as "micro-chimneys" to facilitate heat removal from ICs...

US Patent 7336412 - Micromirror adaptive optics using piezoelectric actuation

Posted on March 03, 2008
http://www.freepatentsonline.com/7336412.htmlMicromirrors have found numerous applications in displays, fiber optic switching, and 3D imaging. Typically the micromirrors are electrostatically actuated but this patent proposes a piezoelectric actuator for driving the micromirror in adaptive optics applications to generate a higher actuation stroke with smaller voltage...

US Patent 7335882 - Electron beam nanofabrication

Posted on February 28, 2008
http://www.freepatentsonline.com/7335882.htmlManipulation of individual atoms and molecules has been achieved via scanning tunneling and atomic force microscopy in the 1980's and similar manipulation has been performed with lasers in so-called "optical tweezers"...

US Patent 7335603 - Vertical CNT array formed in silicon porous layer

Posted on February 28, 2008
http://www.freepatentsonline.com/7335603.htmlIn order to effectively use carbon nanotube arrays in a variety of applications such as flat panel displays or heat sinks it is necessary to vertically align the nanotubes on a substrate. Porous aluminum templates are the most common approach I have seen but this patent teaches a porous silicon template as an alternative...

US Patent 7335408 - CNT with magnetic or metal inner coating

Posted on February 27, 2008
http://www.freepatentsonline.com/7335408.htmlThere is an interest in nanoscale magnetic media for high density data storage devices. This patent from Fujitsu and Tohoku University teaches a method for coating the inner surfaces of nanotubes with magnetic or metal material for information storage and other purposes...

US Patent 7335395 - Selective etching of CNT fabric

Posted on February 27, 2008
http://www.freepatentsonline.com/7335395.htmlNantero continues to lead the pack in patents related to carbon nanotube electronics. This patent includes some basic claims to patterning nanotube fabric on a substrate. Claim 1 reads:1. A method of making an article, comprising: providing a substrate; applying preformed nanotubes to a surface of the substrate to create a non-woven fabric of carbon nanotubes; selectively removing portions of the non-woven fabric by etching the fabric according to a defined pattern to create the article.

US Patent 7335259 - Si nanowire growth using supercritical fluid

Posted on February 26, 2008
http://www.freepatentsonline.com/7335259.htmlCommon nanowire growth methodologies include a vapor-liquid-solid (VLS) processes in growth occurs due to condensation followed by precipitation. This process teaches an alternative approach for producing straighter and more uniform nanowires which uses a supercritical fluid in which the fluid which is above a critical point so that it has both both liquid and vapor properties...

US Patent 7334965 - Treating polluted medium using iron nanoparticles

Posted on February 26, 2008
http://www.freepatentsonline.com/7334965.htmlIron nanoparticles have been found to degrade contaminants in soil and this patent from National Sun Yat-Sen University teaches using an electric field to facilitate the transport of the nanoparticles in the soil...

US Patent 7332769 - NOR type non-volatile memory having nanocrystalline charge storage

Posted on February 25, 2008
http://www.freepatentsonline.com/7332769.htmlThis patent from Gregorio Spaden (unassigned) teaches a NOR type non-volatile memory configuration which uses nanocrystals to enhance charge trapping. Claim 1 reads:1. A memory block of a semiconductor memory array of a NOR type, comprising a bit line...

US Patent 7332740 - CNT memory with molecular adsorption layer

Posted on February 25, 2008
http://www.freepatentsonline.com/7332740.htmlAccording to the 2007 International Technology Roadmap for Semiconductors 2011-2013 is the time frame for nanowires and nanotubes to move from the experimental to the development stage in FET design. The basic patents for nanotube channel FETs belong to Infineon and this patent to Samsung teaches a configuration of a CNT memory cell...

US Patent 7332738 - Phase shift coupling for quantum state readout

Posted on February 21, 2008
http://www.freepatentsonline.com/7332738.htmlQuantum computing depends on the entangling of states such as spin or polarization of fundamental particles such that there is a certain degree of information sharing between physically separated particles...

US Patent 7332736 - Sharpened nanowire electron emission arrays

Posted on February 21, 2008
http://www.freepatentsonline.com/7332736.htmlOne important consideration for nanowire/nanotube electron emission devices is the density of the nanowires used for emission. If the emitters are too close a field screening effect can reduce the efficiency of emission...

US Patent 7332533 - Golf ball with evenly distributed nanofiller

Posted on February 20, 2008
http://www.freepatentsonline.com/7332533.htmlThis patent discloses evenly dispersed nanoparticles to optimize the controllability as well as other parameters of a golf ball. Claim 1 reads:1. A golf ball comprising: 1) a core; a 2) an intermediate layer; and 3) a cover layer; wherein the core comprises: a) a matrix polymer selected from the group consisting of thermoplastics, thermosets and combinations thereof, b) particles of one or more nanofillers, and c) a compatibilizing agent coated on the surfaces of the nanofiller particles, selected to ensure that the nanofiller particles are substantially evenly dispersed in said matrix polymer.

US Patent 7332222 - Carbon nanotube peapod

Posted on February 20, 2008
http://www.freepatentsonline.com/7332222.htmlFilling the cavities (i.e. lumens) of SWNTs is used as a method to functionalize or dope nanotubes for specific applications. Metal is often used as such a dopant creating metallofullerenes but this patent focuses on an alternative using fullerene as interior material for the SWNTs creating a structure similar to a peapod (with fullerene buckyballs forming the "peas" and the SWNT forming the "pod")...

US Patent 7332211 - Phase separated nanoparticle matrix

Posted on February 20, 2008
http://www.freepatentsonline.com/7332211.htmlThis patent from M.I.T. includes some broad claims to a nanoparticle composite formed via phase separation from an organic binding matrix such as NPD or TPD to form a layered structure useful for optical, electronic, magnetic, or catalytic devices...

US Patent 7330369 - Molecular magnetic nanolayer memory

Posted on February 19, 2008
http://www.freepatentsonline.com/7330369.htmlThis patent from Bao Tran (assumedly an independent inventor) claims a molecular memory system similar to that suggested by Hewlett-Packard's QSR group but which uses single molecular magnets (SMMs) instead of the rotaxane molecular switches used by HP...

US Patent 7330299 - CNT heterodyned optical amplifier

Posted on February 19, 2008
http://www.freepatentsonline.com/7330299.htmlThis patent from Ambit Corp. is fairly fundamental to the use of carbon nanotubes in optical heterodyning which is important for modulation and demodulation in communication applications. Ambit Corp. actually has a fairly impressive patent portfolio for basic optical applications of CNTs with priority going back to 1997...

US Patent 7329931 - Nanotube mechanical switch for differential receiver circuit

Posted on February 19, 2008
http://www.freepatentsonline.com/7329931.htmlThis patent from Nantero applies their carbon nanotube switching devices toward the creation of a differential pair receiver circuit. Claim 1 reads:1. A receiver circuit, comprising:a differential input having a first and second input link;a differential output having a first and second output link;first and second switching elements in electrical communication with the input links and the output links, each switching element having an input node, an output node, a nanotube channel element, and a control structure disposed in relation to the nanotube channel element to controllably form and unform an electrically conductive channel between said input node and said output node; andfirst and second MOS transistors, each in electrical communication with a reference signal and with the output node of a corresponding one of the first and second switching elements.

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