Browse Topic: Transistors

Items (253)
Find
Transistors Both Process and Store InformationTBMG-359602/1/2020
A computer chip can process and store information using two different devices. If these devices could be combined into one or put next to each other, there would be more space on a chip, making it faster and more powerful. Engineers have developed a way that the millions of tiny switches used to process information (transistors) could also store that information as one device.
Software-Defined Analog Filters: A Paradigm Shift in Radio Filter Performance and Capability19AERP12_0512/1/2019
Among the most abundant components in all wireless system designs, analog RF filters are used to block interference from various internal and external sources. Limited spectrum divided among an ever-increasing number of users is further driving the need for these ubiquitous but in some ways anachronistic devices. Currently, interference is quite common among cellular base stations, satellite systems, radar installations, and other types of access and backhaul communications systems. Traditional filters are unable to cope with the requirements; in many cases, most often due to insufficient guard bandf. For example, in some international locales, LTE base stations and satellite receivers share the L-band frequencies. At around 3.5 GHz, 5G operators, CBRS radios, and military radars are trying to co-exist. To address this in-band interference, a new, tunable filtering technology is entering the marketplace, uniquely blending the best of both analog and digital technologies.
Software-Defined Analog Filters: A Paradigm Shift in Radio Filter Performance and CapabilityTBMG-3566512/1/2019
Among the most abundant components in all wireless system designs, analog RF filters are used to block interference from various internal and external sources. Limited spectrum divided among an ever-increasing number of users is further driving the need for these ubiquitous but in some ways anachronistic devices. Currently, interference is quite common among cellular base stations, satellite systems, radar installations, and other types of access and backhaul communications systems. Traditional filters are unable to cope with the requirements; in many cases, most often due to insufficient guard bandf. For example, in some international locales, LTE base stations and satellite receivers share the L-band frequencies. At around 3.5 GHz, 5G operators, CBRS radios, and military radars are trying to co-exist. To address this in-band interference, a new, tunable filtering technology is entering the marketplace, uniquely blending the best of both analog and digital technologies.
Technique Uses X-Rays to Detect Defective Computer ChipsTBMG-3570912/1/2019
Guaranteeing that computer chips — which can consist of billions of interconnected transistors — are manufactured without defects is a challenge. It’s also a challenge to determine if a chip is compromised. A new technique would allow companies and other organizations to non-destructively scan chips to ensure that they haven’t been altered and that they are manufactured to design specifications without error.
Method Manipulates Electrons and Transmits Information Quantum-MechanicallyTBMG-3571812/1/2019
A quantum computer operates on the principles of quantum mechanics, a unique set of rules that governs at the extremely small scale of atoms and subatomic particles. When dealing with particles at these scales, many of the rules that govern classical physics no longer apply and quantum effects emerge. A quantum computer is able to perform complex calculations, factor extremely large numbers, and simulate the behaviors of atoms and particles at levels that classical computers cannot.
Printed Electronics for Electrified Tattoos and Personalized BiosensorsTBMG-3545811/1/2019
A fully print-in-place technique for electronics could enable technologies such as high-adhesion, embedded electronic tattoos and bandages with patient-specific biosensors.
Method Makes Transistors and Electronic Devices from ThreadTBMG-3546711/1/2019
A transistor has been made from linen thread, enabling the creation of electronic devices made entirely of thin threads that could be woven into fabric, worn on the skin, or implanted surgically for diagnostic monitoring. The flexible electronic devices could enable a range of applications that conform to different shapes and allow free movement without compromising function.
Ultrathin Transistors for Faster Computer ChipsTBMG-3528310/1/2019
For decades, microchip transistors have become smaller, faster, and cheaper; however, miniaturization has reached a natural limit, as completely new problems arise when a length scale of only a few nanometers is approached.
Graphene Field Effect Transistors for Radiation Detection (GFET-RS)TBMG-351489/1/2019
NASA Goddard Space Flight Center developed novel transistor technology based on a single graphene layer coupled to a radiation absorber substrate. Unlike conventional charge-sensing detectors, the GFET-RS utilizes the sensitive dependence of graphene conductance on local change of the electric field, which can be induced by interaction of radiation with the underlying absorber substrate.
Ultra-Clean Fabrication Platform for 2D TransistorsTBMG-351299/1/2019
Recently discovered two-dimensional (2D) materials with superlative properties have the potential to advance semiconductors but creating 2D devices with both good electrical contacts and stable performance has proved challenging.
Technology Produces Unclonable Digital Fingerprints for Internet of Things DevicesTBMG-349328/1/2019
Researchers have created technology that is 10 times more reliable than current methods of producing unclonable digital fingerprints that can be used to authenticate devices linked to the Internet of Things (IoT).
Products of Tomorrow: July 2019TBMG-347577/1/2019
This column presents technologies that have applications in commercial areas, possibly creating the products of tomorrow. To learn more about each technology, see the contact information provided for that innovation.
Direct-Write Quantum Calligraphy in Monolayer SemiconductorsTBMG-346216/1/2019
In contrast with conventional light-emitting diodes (LEDs) that emit billions of photons simultaneously to form a steady stream of light, a single photon emitter (SPE) generates exactly one photon on demand, with each photon indistinguishable from another. These characteristics are essential for photon-based quantum technologies under development. In addition, such capabilities should be realized in a material platform that enables precise, repeatable placement of SPEs in a fully scalable fashion compatible with existing semiconductor chip manufacturing.
High-Performance, Current-Steering Digital-to-Analog ConverterTBMG-343955/1/2019
A current-steering digital-to-analog converter (DAC) was developed that achieves improved switching times (up to 75% faster) in high-speed (gigahertz), high-resolution (8-14 bits) applications resulting in improvement of spurious free dynamic range (SFDR).
Fast, Flexible Ionic Transistors for Bioelectronic DevicesTBMG-342664/1/2019
Many major advances in medicine, especially in neurology, have been sparked by recent advances in electronic systems that can acquire, process, and interact with biological substrates. These bioelectronic systems, which are increasingly used to understand dynamic living organisms and to treat human disease, require devices that can record body signals, process them, detect patterns, and deliver electrical or chemical stimulation to address problems.
Microfabrication Technique Modifies Semiconductor Material Atom-by-AtomTBMG-339053/1/2019
To keep up with Moore's Law — an observation made in the 1960s that the number of transistors on an integrated circuit doubles about every two years — researchers are finding ways to cram as many transistors as possible onto microchips. The newest trend is 3D transistors that stand vertically, like fins, and measure about 7 nanometers across — tens of thousands of times thinner than a human hair. Tens of billions of these transistors can fit on a single microchip, which is about the size of a fingernail.
Gated Chopper Integrator (GCI)TBMG-3339212/1/2018
Microvolt-level signals require gains of at least a thousand. Offsets and noise in the amplifier chain will be amplified by the same amount, which can saturate the amplifier or swamp the signal so it is not resolvable. Other methods use chopping and/or autozero techniques to lower the offset and noise. The key disadvantages of these methods are they require filters before and/or after demodulation of the amplified signal and delay equalization to account for the delay through the amplifier(s) prior to the demodulator. The gain of these circuits is generally limited to fixed values determined by resistors. These methods are also susceptible to transient noise associated with the switching action of the modulator.
One-Dimensional Material with High Current DensityTBMG-3323511/1/2018
Current density is the amount of electrical current per cross-sectional area at a given point. As transistors in integrated circuits become smaller and smaller, they need higher and higher current densities to perform at the desired level. Most conventional electrical conductors, such as copper, tend to break due to overheating or other factors at high current densities, presenting a barrier to creating increasingly small components.
Q&A: Dr. Sheng Xu, Department of NanoEngineering and the Center for Wearable Sensors, Jacobs School of Engineering, University of California San DiegoTBMG-3309210/1/2018
A team led by UCSD has built a stretchable electronic patch that can be worn on the skin like a bandage and used to wirelessly monitor a variety of physical and electrical signals, from respiration and body motion, to temperature and eye movement, to heart and brain activity. The device is as small and thick as a U.S. dollar coin.
Efficient Semiconductor Material for Thermal ManagementTBMG-3311410/1/2018
Computer processors have continued to shrink down to nanometer sizes where there can be billions of transistors on a single chip. This phenomenon is described under Moore's Law, which predicts that the number of transistors on a chip will double about every two years. Each generation of smaller chips helps make computers faster, more powerful, and able to do more work. But that means they're generating more heat.
Switch Controls Light on a Nanoscale for Faster Information ProcessingTBMG-3311110/1/2018
Photons, or units of light, are faster than electrons and could, therefore, process information faster from smaller chip structures. A switch was designed that bypasses a tendency for the unwanted absorption of light when using surface plasmons, or light coupled to oscillations of free electron clouds, to help confine light to a nanoscale. Even though plasmonics downsizes light, photons also get lost, or absorbed, rather than transferred to other parts of the computer chip when they interact with plasmons.
Merging Antenna and Electronics Boosts Energy and Spectrum Efficiency18AERP09_069/1/2018
By integrating the design of antennas and electronics, researchers from the Georgia Institute of Technology have boosted the energy and spectrum efficiency for a new class of millimeter-wave transmitters, allowing improved modulation and reduced generation of waste heat. The new co-design technique - achieved through research sponsored by the U.S. Army Research Laboratory and Intel Corp. - allows simultaneous optimization of the millimeter-wave antennas and electronics. The hybrid devices use conventional materials and integrated circuit (IC) technology, meaning no changes would be required to manufacture and package them. The co-design scheme allows fabrication of multiple transmitters and receivers on the same IC chip or the same package, potentially enabling multiple-input-multiple-output (MIMO) systems as well as boosting data rates and link diversity.
Toon, John
Merging Antenna and Electronics Boosts Energy and Spectrum EfficiencyTBMG-329109/1/2018
By integrating the design of antennas and electronics, researchers from the Georgia Institute of Technology have boosted the energy and spectrum efficiency for a new class of millimeter-wave transmitters, allowing improved modulation and reduced generation of waste heat.
Faster, More Efficient Information ProcessingTBMG-328609/1/2018
For decades, computer chips have been shrinking thanks to a steady stream of technological improvements in processing density. Experts have, however, been warning that we'll soon reach the end of the trend known as Moore's Law, in which the number of transistors per square inch on integrated circuits doubles every year. In order to continue improving chip performance, either the material the transistors are made of — from silicon, to carbon nanotubes or graphene — or how current materials store and process information would need to change.
Advances in Spintronic DevicesTBMG-325038/1/2018
Spintronic devices promise to solve major problems in today's computers, which use massive amounts of electricity to generate heat. This requires expending even more energy for cooling. By contrast, spintronic devices generate little heat and use relatively minuscule amounts of electricity. Spintronic computers would require no energy to maintain data in memory. They would also start instantly and have the potential to be far more powerful than today's computers.
Transistor Material Provides Additional Computing Degrees of FreedomTBMG-290286/1/2018
For several decades, improvements in conventional transistor materials have been sufficient to sustain Moore’s Law — the historical pattern of microchip manufacturers packing more transistors (and thus more information storage and handling capacity) into a given volume of silicon. Today, however, chipmakers are concerned that they might soon reach the fundamental limits of conventional materials. If they cannot continue to pack more transistors into smaller spaces, they worry that Moore’s Law would break down, preventing future circuits from becoming smaller and more powerful than their predecessors. Researchers worldwide are seeking new materials that can compute in smaller spaces, primarily by taking advantage of the additional degrees of freedom that the materials offer — using a material’s unique properties to perform more computations in the same space.
Integrating Optical Components into Existing Chip DesignsTBMG-290566/1/2018
Moving from electrical communication to optical communication is attractive to chip manufacturers because it could significantly increase chips’ speed and reduce power consumption, an advantage that will grow in importance as chips’ transistor count continues to rise.
5Ws of the Ultra-Thin Memory Storage DeviceTBMG-285413/1/2018
Manufacturers of smaller and smarter computer chips for consumer electronics such as smartphones and tablets, and 3D chips for brain-inspired computing applications.
Laser Direct Structuring for Sensor ManufacturingTBMG-283622/1/2018
Every day the world’s leading medical device companies rely upon laser direct structuring (LDS) to meet their most demanding design and performance requirements. Millions of electronic components with complex geometries are cost-effectively manufactured each year through the use of LDS to create circuit traces on three-dimensional molded interconnect devices (3D-MID).
Method of Fabricating Ultra-Short-Gate-Length Thin-Film Transistors Using Optical LithographyTBMG-283102/1/2018
The speed of thin-film transistors (TFTs) relates directly to their gate length, which must be kept as short as possible to lower electron transport time between electrodes, and improve its high-frequency response characteristics. Since current density is proportional to W/L, where W is the gate width and L is the gate length, reduced gate length improves device current capability. Photolithography, which is the main technology used in defining electrode dimensions for TFTs, is limited in scope to fabrication line widths larger than 1 micrometer.
Silicon Carbide High-Voltage SwitchTBMG-281801/1/2018
High-voltage wide bandgap (WBG) semiconductor devices like 15-kV silicon carbide (SiC) MOSFETs have attracted attention because of potential applications in high-voltage and high-frequency power converters. These devices, however, are not commercially available, and their high cost due to expensive material growth and fabrication may limit their widespread adoption in the future.
Ultrathin Semiconductor Materials “Rust” to Insulate CircuitryTBMG-2798212/1/2017
Silicon has several qualities that have led it to become the bedrock of electronics. One is that it features a very good “native” insulator — silicon dioxide, or silicon rust. Exposing silicon to oxygen during manufacturing gives chip makers a way to isolate their circuitry. Other semiconductors do not “rust” into good insulators when exposed to oxygen, so they must be layered with additional insulators — a step that introduces engineering challenges. Two new ultrathin materials share that trait, making them promising materials for electronics of the future.
Flexible, Printable Electronics for Sensor ArraysTBMG-2778911/1/2017
Printable electronics — flexible circuitry that is deposited on some type of plastic substrate — has been a major area of research for decades. But the ability to print the substrate itself greatly increases the range of devices the technique can yield.
Reconfigurable Chaos-Based MicrochipsTBMG-265093/1/2017
Researchers at North Carolina State University have developed nonlinear chaos-based integrated circuits that enable computer chips to perform multiple functions with fewer transistors. These integrated circuits can be manufactured with off-the-shelf fabrication processes, and could lead to novel computer architectures that do more with less circuitry and fewer transistors.
Material Combination Enables Transistor Gate Length of 1 NanometerTBMG-265253/1/2017
The laws of physics have set a 5-nanometer threshold on the size of transistor gates among conventional semiconductors, about one-quarter the size of high-end, 20-nanometer-gate transistors now on the market. Researchers from the Department of Energy's Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory have created a transistor with a working 1-nanometer gate.
Aerospace & Defense Technology: February 201717AERP022/2/2017
Open Standard Middleware Enables New HPEC Solutions Cooling Your Embedded System What Can Your Open Standard Architecture Handle? Evaluating Key Certification Aspects of Multicore Platforms for Safety Critical Avionics Applications Simulating and Analyzing Flow for an Air-to-Air Refueling System The Ins and Outs of Spaceflight Passive Components and Assemblies Development of High Quality 4H-SiC Thick Epitaxy for Reliable High Power Electronics Using Halogenated Precursors Silicon Based Mid-Infrared SiGeSn Heterostructure Emitters and Detectors Reconfigurable Electronics and Non-Volatile Memory Research Energy-Filtered Tunnel Transistor: A New Device Concept Toward Extremely Low Energy Consumption Electronics
Energy-Filtered Tunnel Transistor: A New Device Concept Toward Extremely Low Energy Consumption ElectronicsTBMG-263912/1/2017
Silicon Based Mid-Infrared SiGeSn Heterostructure Emitters and DetectorsTBMG-263892/1/2017
Silicon Based Mid-Infrared SiGeSn Heterostructure Emitters and Detectors17AERP02_072/1/2017
Enhancing the performance of GeSn p-i-n photodiodes using gold metal nanostructures. Air Force Research Laboratory, Arlington, Virginia The goal of this research project was to advance the science and technology of silicon-based photonic devices using SiGeSn heterostructures. Such devices work in mid-IR spectral range and form the foundation for mid-IR photonics that enable on-chip systems for applications ranging from vibrational spectroscopy, chem/bio sensing, medical/health uses, to environmental monitoring. This project was mostly directed toward improving GeSn detectors with the use of surface plasmons induced by carefully designed metal nanostructures. The goal was to replace the current mid-IR detectors that are usually photodiodes made from narrow bandgap III-V or II-VI semiconductor compounds such as InGaAs, InSb, HgCdTe (MCT) or type-II InGaAs/InGaSb superlattice. These photodiodes are incompatible with the CMOS process and cannot be easily integrated with Si electronics. The GeSn mid-IR detectors developed in this project are fully compatible with the CMOS process. Beginning with GeSn-based p-i-n photodiodes with an active GeSn layer that is almost fully strained, the strategy is to use the surface plasmon effect to enhance the optical field in the GeSn active region, which leads to increased absorption of incident photons and creates electron-hole pairs that contribute to the electric current that can be detected. Specifically, the use of a gold metal film perforated with a two-dimensional subwavelength hole array as the plasmonic structure to be deposited on top of the GeSn p-i-n photodetector was considered. Such structures are capable of producing enhanced optical fields under the illumination of some wavelengths residing in its surface plasmon resonance range. They have been used to improve the performance of quantum dot infrared photodetectors (QDIPs). Increased photocurrent and detection wavelength selection have been demonstrated.
Energy-Filtered Tunnel Transistor: A New Device Concept Toward Extremely Low Energy Consumption Electronics17AERP02_092/1/2017
Altering the thermal characteristics of semiconductors can prolong battery life. Office of Naval Research, Arlington, Virginia Excessive heat dissipation (or power consumption) of modem integrated circuits is an undesirable effect that imposes substantial limitations on the performance of many electronic devices. For example, the level of heat dissipation /power consumption of smart phones, tablets, and laptops is such that it prohibits a continuous and prolonged operation of these devices, requiring frequent recharging. Large power consumption of electronic devices requires large energy storage in batteries, increasing the battery weights that soldiers carry in their missions or the weights of remote controlled equipment such as unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs). Therefore, technology that enables electronic devices to operate with extremely small energy consumption promises a broad range of commercial, military and space applications. The root cause of heat dissipation of current metal-oxide-semiconductor field effect transistors (MOSFETs) is the thermal excitation of electrons that obeys thermodynamics, i.e., the Fenni-Dirac energy distribution of electrons. The thermally excited electrons at the tail of the Fenni-Dirac distribution can overcome the energy barrier set in the OFF state of the MOSFETs. This causes substantial OFF state leakage currents even after the gate voltage is reduced below the threshold voltage, resulting in large heat dissipation or energy consumption for integrated circuits. The challenge for this large heat dissipation is that its root cause is an intrinsic phenomenon of thermodynamics (Fermi-Dirac distribution) that cannot be directly manipulated.
Addendum of Self-Aligned Ion Implant to Design and Processing of SiC High-Temperature Transistors for Durable Operation Above 400 °CTBMG-2550610/1/2016
Researchers at NASA’s Glenn Research Center have developed a revolutionary new generation of silicon carbide (SiC) integrated circuit (IC) chips, setting an unprecedented benchmark in the field of high-temperature electronics. In the past, SiC ICs could not withstand more than a few hours of 500 °C temperatures before degrading or failing. Now, Glenn has successfully fabricated prototype chips that can exceed 10,000 hours of continuous operation at 500 °C. The advanced performance stems in part from the development of Glenn’s patented iridium interfacial stack (IrIS), a bondable metallization stack that prevents diffusion of oxygen and gold into silicon carbide (SiC) integrated circuits operating above 500 °C. The enhanced reliability of these components (and the transistors and logic boards they support) will enable important improvements in the control and operation of combustion engines, well-drilling, and other harsh environment systems, thereby greatly impacting operational efficiency and environmental quality. This advance in the manufacture of SiC-based electronics also fundamentally revolutionizes the opportunities for intelligent systems operating in high-temperature environments.
Fast, Stretchy Circuits Could Yield New Wearable ElectronicsTBMG-247836/14/2016
The consumer marketplace is flooded with a lively assortment of smart wearable electronics that do everything from monitor vital signs, fitness or sun exposure to play music, charge other electronics or even purify the air around you — all wirelessly. Now, a team of University of Wisconsin—Madison engineers led by Zhenqiang “Jack” Ma, the Lynn H. Matthias Professor in Engineering and Vilas Distinguished Achievement Professor in electrical and computer engineering, has created the world’s fastest stretchable, wearable integrated circuits, an advance that could drive the Internet of Things and a much more connected, high-speed wireless world.
Current Source Logic GateTBMG-248296/1/2016
High-temperature electronic integrated circuits have been demonstrated in silicon carbide (SiC) depletion mode MESFETs. This process is only capable of producing depletion mode n-channel MESFET transistors. With only this type of transistor, designing a logic gate is a challenge. A previous logic gate design that can be constructed in the current process has performed well. This invention improves upon the previous design by increasing output voltage range and decreasing the physical layout size of a logic gate. This logic gate circuit consists of depletion mode MESFET/JFET transistors and resistors that can be constructed with SiC depletion mode n-channel MESFETs.
Engineers Fabricate Flexible Silicon TransistorTBMG-245584/26/2016
University of Wisconsin—Madison engineers fabricated a transistor that operates at a record 38 gigahertz. The team built the high-performance device using huge rolls of flexible plastic.
Transmission-Mounted Power Control Unit with High Power Density for Two-Motor Hybrid System2016-01-12234/5/2016
A second-generation power control unit (PCU) for a two-motor hybrid system is proposed. An optimally designed power module, which is a key component of the PCU, is applied to increase heat-resistant temperature, while the basic structure of the first generation is retained and the power semiconductor chip is directly cooled from the single side. In addition to the optimum design, by decreasing the power loss as well as increasing the heat-resistant temperature of the power semiconductors (IGBT: Insulated Gate Bipolar Transistor and FWD: Free Wheeling Diode), the proposed PCU has attained 25% higher power density and 23% smaller size compared to first-generation units, maintaining PCU efficiency (fuel economy). To achieve a high yield rate in the power module assembly process, a new screening technology is adopted at the initial stage of power module manufacturing. In the proposed technology, the maximum current required by hybrid systems can be applied to the component power semiconductor chips at high temperatures before power module assembly. The proposed PCU is directly mounted on the transmission case in the engine compartment of the vehicle and connected to the motor using three-phase connectors. Since conventional three-phase AC cables are eliminated in the layout, space saving and flexibility in the engine compartment layout are provided, simplifying the process of vehicle assembly.
Kashimura, Yukiya, Negoro, Yuki
IGBT Gate Control Methods to Reduce Electrical Power Losses of Hybrid Vehicles2016-01-12244/5/2016
Reducing the loss of the power control unit (PCU) in a hybrid vehicle (HV) is an important part of improving HV fuel efficiency. Furthermore the loss of power devices (insulated gate bipolar transistors (IGBTs) and diodes) used in the PCU must be reduced since this amounts to approximately 20% of the total electrical loss in an HV. One of the issues for reducing loss is the trade-off relationship with reducing voltage surge. To restrict voltage surge, it is necessary to slow down the switching speed of the IGBT. In contrast, the loss reduction requires the high speed switching. One widely known method to improve this trade-off relationship is to increase the gate voltage in two stages. However, accurate and high-speed operation of the IGBT gate control circuit is difficult to accomplish. This research clarifies a better condition of the two-stage control and designed a circuit that improves this trade-off relationship by increasing the speed of feedback control. Combining two-stage control with this new feedback method reduced loss by approximately 4%, helping to improve vehicle fuel efficiency. In addition to reducing loss, this development also improved the trade-off relationship between reducing loss and voltage surge. This is also regarded as a promising gate control method for potential next-generation devices such as reverse conducting IGBTs (RC-IGBTs) and silicon carbide metal-oxide-semiconductor field-effect transistors (SiC MOSFETs).
Osanai, Yosuke, Wasekura, Masaki, Yamawaki, Hideo, Shindo, Yusuke
Seamless Automotive Instrument Cluster2016-01-00844/5/2016
An optical configuration has been developed which offers a seamless appearance where the display aperture is less visible in the “off” condition and is minimized in the “on” condition.
Weindorf, Paul, Krier, James, Evans, Carl
Newly Discovered Property Could Help Keep Computer Chips CoolTBMG-227518/14/2015
The heat that builds up in the shuttling of current in electronics is an important obstacle to packing more computing power into ever-smaller devices; excess heat can cause them to fail or sap their efficiency. Now, X-ray studies at the Department of Energy's SLAC National Accelerator Laboratory have for the first time observed an exotic property that could warp the electronic structure of a material in a way that reduces heat buildup and improves performance in ever-smaller computer components.
Could Black Phosphorus be the Next Silicon?TBMG-227488/14/2015
As scientists continue to hunt for a material that will make it possible to pack more transistors on a chip, new research from McGill University and Université de Montréal adds to evidence that black phosphorus could emerge as a strong candidate. In a recent study, researchers reported that when electrons move in a phosphorus transistor, they do so only in two dimensions. This finding suggests that black phosphorus could help engineers surmount one of the big challenges for future electronics – designing energy-efficient transistors.
Researchers Develop Biodegradable Wooden Computer ChipsTBMG-223596/17/2015
Portable electronics — typically made of non-renewable, non-biodegradable and potentially toxic materials — are discarded at an alarming rate in consumers' pursuit of the next best electronic gadget. In an effort to alleviate the environmental burden of electronic devices, a team of University of Wisconsin-Madison researchers has collaborated with researchers in the Madison-based U.S. Department of Agriculture Forest Products Laboratory (FPL) to develop a surprising solution: a semiconductor chip made almost entirely of wood.
Items per page:
1 – 50 of 253