Page 13 - Science at the nanoscale

RPS: PSP0007 - Science-at-Nanoscale
15:10
June 9, 2009
1.1. The Development of Nanoscale Science
transistors
10,000,000,000
Dual-Core Intel ® Itanium ® 2 Processor
1,000,000,000
Intel ® Itanium ® 2 Processor
MOORE’S LAW
Intel ® Itanium ® Processor
100,000,000
Intel ® Pentium ® 4 Processor
Intel ® Pentium ® III Processor
10,000,000
Intel ® Pentium ® II Processor
Intel ® Pentium ® Processor
Intel486 TM Processor
1,000,000
Intel386 TM Processor
286
100,000
8086
10,000
8080
8008
4004
1,000
1990
1980
1985
2000
2005
1995
1975
1970
2010
Moore’s law predicts rapid miniaturization of ICs. [Re-
Figure 1.1.
printed with permission from Intel Corporation c
Copyright Intel Cor-
poration.]
physical laws governing these techniques, such as the wavelength
of light and etch reaction chemistry.
Figure 1.1 shows that the trend in miniaturisation of ICs will
ultimately be limited by quantum mechanics, certainly at scales
larger than atoms and molecules. Gordon Moore, co-founder
of Intel, made the observation in 1965 (now known as “Moore’s
law”) that the number of transistors per square inch on integrated
circuits had doubled every year since the integrated circuit was
invented. Whilst this trend in IC miniaturisation has more or less
been obeyed until now, the current CMOS technology will hit a 3 ch01
“wall” soon as quantum and ballistic electron effects become dom-
inant. The most optimistic proponents of ICs believe that major
innovations will be required to reach the ultimate operating limit
of the silicon transistor: a length for functional features around 10
nm, or about 30 atoms long.
Bottom-up manufacturing, on the other hand, could provide
components made of single molecules, which are held together
by covalent forces that are far stronger than the forces that hold
together macro-scale components. Furthermore, the amount of
information that could be stored in devices built from the bottom-
up would be enormous.