Nanoelectronics

Often referred to as molecular electronics, nanoelectronics is one of the most exciting technology areas for those anticipating the end of traditional silicon integrated circuits. Experts predict that within a decade, the level to which siliconbased circuitry physically can be shrunk will be reached, and a means to further miniaturize electronics will be needed.

Nanoelectronics is the development of circuitry that is composed of nanometer sized electronic components. To illustrate the impact of this development, a nanometer is equivalent to a billionth of a meter — a molecule of DNA is 2.5 nanometers. So, nanoscale electronics have the potential to reduce components to single-molecule sizes, enabling electronic devices smaller than anyone could ever have imagined.

More than 30 years ago, it was discovered that individual organic molecules, under the right conditions, could function as simple electronic devices. One of those materials, naturally occurring carbon — and in particular, graphite — is conducting. Carbon nanotubes, which retain some of the properties of graphite such as conductivity, are being developed as possible building blocks for nanoelectronics.

IBM’s Thomas J. Watson Research Center in Yorktown Heights, NY, is known for its nanoscale science and technology research. The facility has achieved major developments in the use of carbon nanotubes as field-effect transistors (FETs), which are a type of switch in which a semiconducting channel bridges two electrodes. Current flow between the electrodes is controlled by a third “gate,” or bridge, which usually is made of silicon. In nanotube FETs, the channel is a single carbon nanotube. FETs enable manufacturers to pack millions of transistors onto a single chip — by using carbon nanotubes, that number could be increased significantly.

Optoelectronics

An important area of the electronics field is optoelectronics, which combines the physics of light with electricity. It is based on the quantum mechanical effects of light on semiconducting materials. Optoelectronic devices convert electrical signals into photon signals, and vice versa, and are used for fiber optic communication, laser systems, remote sensing, medical diagnostic systems, and optical information systems.

The field of optoelectronics provides the ideal union between electronics and optics in everything from actually providing light, to transmitting information. The Optical Industry Development Association predicts that the market for optoelectronics components and their applications will exceed $1 trillion by 2015. The key to this growth is the applications for optoelectronics — specifically in areas such as flat-panel displays, signs, signals, automotive, and mobile appliances. The incorporation of flatpanel displays in many more diverse applications and devices — including increasingly smaller computers, PDAs, and cell phones — will make optoelectronics an even more important field in the future.