A chamber, for bounding a plasma generation area in a vacuum pressure sensor, includes an electrically conductive casing element located radially on an outside relative to a central axis. The chamber includes electrically conductive wall elements arranged substantially perpendicular to the central axis and connected to the electrically conductive casing element. At least one of the wall elements has a first opening, through which the central axis extends. The electrically conductive casing element comprises at least a first and a second region. The first region is located closer to the central axis than the second region. The electrically conductive casing element is conical at least in part.

A via hole is accurately formed in an interlayer insulating film over a metal wiring. Of emission spectra of plasma to be used for dry etching of the interlayer insulating film, the emission intensities of at least CO, CN, and AlF are monitored such that an end point of the dry etching of the interlayer insulating film is detected based on the emission intensities thereof.

An ionization gauge to measure pressure, while controlling the location of deposits resulting from sputtering when operating at high pressure, includes at least one electron source that emits electrons, and an anode that defines an ionization volume. The ionization gauge also includes a collector electrode that collects ions formed by collisions between the electrons and gas molecules and atoms in the ionization volume, to provide a gas pressure output. The electron source can be positioned at an end of the ionization volume, such that the exposure of the electron source to atom flux sputtered off the collector electrode and envelope surface is minimized. Alternatively, the ionization gauge can include a first shade outside of the ionization volume, the first shade being located between the electron source and the collector electrode, and, optionally, a second shade between the envelope and the electron source, such that atoms sputtered off the envelope are inhibited from depositing on the electron source.

An ionized gas detector includes at least a pair of ion detecting electrodes that detect ions of the ionized measuring-subject gas, an electrode-voltage applying unit that applies a given voltage to the ion detecting electrodes, the electrode-voltage applying unit being configured to be capable of reversing its voltage polarity, a charge amplifier circuit having a charge capacitor that accumulates electric charges generated by voltage application by the electrode-voltage applying unit, an ion current calculating unit that calculates the value of an ion current of ions of the measuring-subject gas, based on a time-dependent change of the volume of electric charges accumulated in the charge capacitor of the charge amplifier circuit, and a concentration determining unit that determines the concentration of the measuring-subject gas, based on an ion current value calculated by the ion current calculating unit.

An ionized gas detector includes at least a pair of ion detecting electrodes that detect ions of the ionized measuring-subject gas, an electrode-voltage applying unit that applies a given voltage to the ion detecting electrodes, the electrode-voltage applying unit being configured to be capable of reversing its voltage polarity, a charge amplifier circuit having a charge capacitor that accumulates electric charges generated by voltage application by the electrode-voltage applying unit, an ion current calculating unit that calculates the value of an ion current of ions of the measuring-subject gas, based on a time-dependent change of the volume of electric charges accumulated in the charge capacitor of the charge amplifier circuit, and a concentration determining unit that determines the concentration of the measuring-subject gas, based on an ion current value calculated by the ion current calculating unit.

Aspects of the present disclosure include a computer-implemented method for identifying an operating temperature of an integrated circuit (IC), the method including using a computing device for: applying a test voltage to a test circuit embedded within the IC, the test circuit including a phase shift memory (PSM) element therein, wherein the PSM element crystallizes at a crystallization temperature from an amorphous phase having a first electrical resistance into a crystalline phase having a second electrical resistance, the second electrical resistance being less than the first electrical resistance; and identifying the IC as having operated above the crystallization temperature in response to a resistance of the test circuit at the test voltage being outside of the target operating range.

Aspects of the present disclosure include a computer-implemented method for identifying an operating temperature of an integrated circuit (IC), the method including using a computing device for: applying a test voltage to a test circuit embedded within the IC, the test circuit including a phase shift memory (PSM) element therein, wherein the PSM element crystallizes at a crystallization temperature from an amorphous phase having a first electrical resistance into a crystalline phase having a second electrical resistance, the second electrical resistance being less than the first electrical resistance; and identifying the IC as having operated above the crystallization temperature in response to a resistance of the test circuit at the test voltage being outside of the target operating range.

In a method of forming a nanopore in a nanometric material, a nanopore nucleation site is formed at a location that is interior to lateral edges of the nanometric material by directing a first energetic beam, selected from the group of ion beam and neutral atom beam, at the interior location for a first time duration that imposes a first beam dose which causes removal of no more than five interior atoms from the interior location to produce at the interior location a nanopore nucleation site having a plurality of edge atoms. A nanopore is then formed at the nanopore nucleation site by directing a second energetic beam, selected from the group consisting of electron beam, ion beam, and neutral atom beam, at the nanopore nucleation site with a beam energy that removes edge atoms at the nanopore nucleation site but does not remove bulk atoms from the nanometric material.

An ionization gauge to measure pressure, while controlling the location of deposits resulting from sputtering when operating at high pressure, includes at least one electron source that emits electrons, and an anode that defines an ionization volume. The ionization gauge also includes a collector electrode that collects ions formed by collisions between the electrons and gas molecules and atoms in the ionization volume, to provide a gas pressure output. The electron source can be positioned at an end of the ionization volume, such that the exposure of the electron source to atom flux sputtered off the collector electrode and envelope surface is minimized. Alternatively, the ionization gauge can include a first shade outside of the ionization volume, the first shade being located between the electron source and the collector electrode, and, optionally, a second shade between the envelope and the electron source, such that atoms sputtered off the envelope are inhibited from depositing on the electron source.

An ionization gauge to measure pressure, while controlling the location of deposits resulting from sputtering when operating at high pressure, includes at least one electron source that emits electrons, and an anode that defines an ionization volume. The ionization gauge also includes a collector electrode that collects ions formed by collisions between the electrons and gas molecules and atoms in the ionization volume, to provide a gas pressure output. The electron source can be positioned at an end of the ionization volume, such that the exposure of the electron source to atom flux sputtered off the collector electrode and envelope surface is minimized. Alternatively, the ionization gauge can include a first shade outside of the ionization volume, the first shade being located between the electron source and the collector electrode, and, optionally, a second shade between the envelope and the electron source, such that atoms sputtered off the envelope are inhibited from depositing on the electron source.