A Hybrid Approach to Nanoelectronics

Gianfranco Cerofolini, Scientific Advisor for Post-Silicon Technology, STMicroelectronics, Milan, Italy

Abstract: Using single atoms for storing information, a planar arrangement would allow a maximum density of the order of 1015 cm-2. If the chemical composition of the surface is fixed and the information is stored simply as a conformation (between two possible ones) of any given surface atom, the maximum bit density would be on the peta scale integration (PSI). The manipulation of atoms, however, requires the use of macroscopic-scale apparatuses that may be operated at a negligible rate. Fundamental considerations show instead that electrons can be lodged in configurations with densities of the order of 1012 bit cm-2 (the tera scale integration, TSI), where they can be managed and felt by already existing mesoscopic-scale apparatuses in the giga scale integration (GSI). Even though there is no idea for the full exploitation of the performances of TSI devices, the density is at the reach of the present technology. Rather than scaling down conventional CMOS (complementary metal-oxide-semiconductor) circuits, the TSI may almost be achieved via a hybrid architecture where a silicon-based CMOS circuit controls a nanoscopic crossbar structure hosting in each cross-point a collection of functional molecules able to mimic by themselves the behaviour of a memory cell. Solutions to the severe problems posed by this hybrid architecture are proposed.

 

About the speaker: Gianfranco Cerofolini received with honors the degree in physics from the University of Milan in 1970. Soon after he joined Telettra where he remained 7 years mainly involved in thin film technology; he then moved to SGS (now STMicroelectronics) where he worked for 11 years, first involved in silicon device processing and then with the responsibility of the Physics and Material Characterization Laboratory; hence he joined EniChem as the director of the Functional Material Laboratory. In 1998 he returned to STMicroelectronics, first as scientific director of the Micro, Linear and Discrete Group and eventually as scientific advisor for the Post-Silicon Technology. His major areas of interest are physical chemistry of the silicon surface, molecular electronics, and the appearance of the macroscopic behavior from the underlying microscopic world. He is author of approximately 300 articles, a score of patents, and one book (with L. Meda) Physical Chemistry of, in and on Silicon.

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