Future Materials for ‘The Shrinking Chip’
computation speed of
Abstract
Imagine a 90 % reduction in energy
consumption from millions of television
sets; imagine that there’s no need to wait for
the computer to boot once switched on;
imagine storage of 10 hours of finest quality
uncompressed video on an area of the size of
a stamp; imagine that PCs are replaced by
quantum computers which are more secure.
All of the above may sound like science
fiction; but these are some applications
where Nanoelectronics can be of great
importance and value.
Nanoelectronics, indicates use of
nanotechnology on electronic components
particularly transistors. Although the term
nanotechnology is generally defined as
utilizing technology less than 100nm in size;
it often refers to nanomaterial transistor
devices whose inter-atomic interactions and
quantum mechanical properties need to be
studied extensively. The objective of the
paper is to present information with regard
to the new materials (nanomaterials) that
may replace the existing ones in near
future; and also provide insights into
present manufacturing processes and
applications of these materials.
1. Introduction
Conventional electronic devices are built
using inorganic semiconductors, with silicon
being the most prominent example. However,
there are two major inherent problems that the
silicon industry faces today
 Conventional silicon based transistors
will be reaching their theoretical
limits in terms of ‘Operation Speed’,
within one to two decades and
 Conventional inorganic
semiconductor based electronics,
though suitable for many applications,
has certain limitations like
accommodating over a billion
transistors in a very small area; part of
a trend of increasing transistor density
conforming to “Moore's Law”.
Moore's Law predicts that the
microprocessors doubles every 18
months. This has been achieved in the
past 30 years or so primarily by
shrinking the sizes of the silicon
based transistors in the
microprocessors. With reduced sizes,
electrons can pass through the
components faster, and hence
contributing to a much enhanced
operating speed. However, the
scheme of shrinking conventional
transistors cannot go on forever.
Nanoelectronics is therefore an emerging area
which seeks to address the above two issues.
2. Future materials
Some of the possible materials that are being
explored are
2.1 Carbon nanotube
Carbon nanotubes (CNT) are
allotropes of carbon. A single-walled carbon
nanotube (SWNT) is a one-atom thick sheet of
graphite (called graphene) rolled up into a
cylinder with diameter of the order of a
nanometer. This results in a nanostructure
where the length-to-diameter ratio exceeds
1,000,000. They exhibit extraordinary strength
and unique electrical properties, and are
efficient conductors of heat. Inorganic
nanotubes have also been synthesized.
Nanotubes are members of the
fullerene structural family, which also includes
buckyballs. Whereas buckyballs are spherical
in shape, a nanotube is cylindrical, with at least
one end typically capped with a hemisphere of
the buckyball structure. Their name is derived
from their size, since the diameter of a
nanotube is in the order of a few nanometers
(approximately 1/50,000th of the width of a
human hair), while they can be up to several
millimeters in length. Nanotubes are
categorized as single-walled nanotubes
(SWNT) and multi-walled nanotubes
(MWNT).
The nature of the bonding of a
nanotube is described by applied quantum
chemistry, specifically, orbital hybridization.
The chemical bonding of nanotubes are
composed entirely of sp2 bonds, similar to
those of graphite. This bonding structure,
which is stronger than the sp3 bonds found in
diamond, provides the molecules with their
unique strength. Nanotubes naturally align
themselves into "ropes" held together by Van
der Waals forces. Under high pressure,
nanotubes fuse together by converting some
sp² bonds to sp³ bonds, and thereby imparting
possibility of producing strong unlimited
length of wires.

Fig.2 Single Walled Nano tube

Single-walled nanotubes are an

important spectrum of carbon nanotubes,
because they exhibit special electric properties
that are not shared by the multi-walled carbon
nanotube (MWNT) variants.

Single-walled nanotubes are the most

Fig.1 3D model of three types of single-
likely candidate for miniaturizing electronics
walled carbon nanotubes
beyond the micro electromechanical scale that
is currently the basis of modern electronics.
The basic building block of these systems is
2.1.1 Types of carbon nanotubes and the electric wire, and SWNTs can be excellent
related structures conductors. One useful application of SWNTs
is in the development of the first intra-
molecular field effect transistors (FET). To
Single-walled
create a logic gate you must have both a p-FET
The ordered pair (n, m) can be
and an n-FET. Because SWNTs are p-FETs
thought of as a vector (Ch) in an infinite
when exposed to oxygen and n-FETs when
graphene sheet that describes how to "roll up"
unexposed to oxygen, it is possible to protect
the graphene sheet to make the nanotube. T
half of a SWNT from oxygen exposure, while
denotes the tube axis and a1 and a2 are the unit
exposing the other half to oxygen. These
vectors of graphene in real space.
results of single SWNT, act as a NOT logic
gate with both p and n-type FETs within the
Most single-walled nanotubes
same molecule.
(SWNT) have diameter close to 1 nanometer,
with tube length that can be many thousands of
Single-walled nanotubes are still very
times longer. The way the graphene sheet is
expensive to produce, around $1500 per gram
wrapped is represented by a pair of indices (n,
as of 2000, and the development of more
m) called the chiral vector. The integers n and
affordable synthesis techniques is vital to the
m denote the number of unit vectors along the
future of carbon nanotechnology. If cheaper
two directions in a honeycomb like crystal
means of synthesis cannot be discovered, it
lattice of graphene. If m=0, the nanotubes are
would make it financially impossible to apply
called ‘zigzag’. If n=m, the nanotubes are
this technology to commercial-scale
called ‘armchair’ else named as ‘chiral’.
applications. Several suppliers offer as-
produced arc discharge SWNTs for ~$50–100
per gram as of 2007.
 Table 1: Comparison of Mechanical
Properties
Young's Tensile Elongation
Material Modulus Strength at Break
(TPa) (GPa) (%)
~1 (from 1
SWNT 13-53E
to 5)
Armchair
0.94T 126.2T 23.1
SWNT
Fig.3. A stable nanobud structure
Zigzag
0.94T 94.5T 15.6-17.5
SWNT

2.1.2 Nanobud Chiral

0.92
SWNT
Carbon nanobuds are a newly MWNT 0.8-0.9E 150
discovered material combining two previously
discovered allotropes of carbon: carbon Stainless
~0.2 ~0.65-1 15-50
Steel
nanotubes and fullerenes. In this new material
fullerene-like "buds" are covalently bonded to Kevlar ~0.15 ~3.5 ~2
the outer sidewalls of the underlying carbon
Kevlar 0.25 29.6
nanotube. This hybrid material has useful
properties of both fullerenes and carbon
nanotubes. In particular, they have been found
to be exceptionally good field emitters.
Electrical
Because of the symmetry and unique
2.1.3 Properties of Nanotubes electronic structure of graphene, the structure
of a nanotube strongly affects its electrical
properties. For a given (n, m) nanotube, if n −
Strength
m is a multiple of 3, then the nanotube is
Carbon nanotubes are one of the
metallic, otherwise the nanotube is a
strongest and stiffest materials known, in terms
semiconductor. Thus all armchair (n=m)
of tensile strength and elastic modulus
nanotubes are metallic, and nanotubes (5, 0),
respectively. This strength results from the
(6, 4), (9, 1), etc. are semi conducting. In
covalent sp² bonds formed between the
theory, metallic nanotubes can have an
individual carbon atoms. A multi-walled
electrical current density more than 1,000
carbon nanotube was tested to have a tensile
times greater than metals such as silver and
strength of 63 GPa. Since carbon nanotubes
copper.
have a low density for a solid of 1.3-1.4 g/cm³,
its specific strength of up to 48,000 kN·m/kg is
the best of known materials, compared to high- One-Dimensional Transport
carbon steel's 154 kN·m/kg. Due to their nonsocial dimensions,
Under excessive tensile strain, the tubes will electron transport in carbon nanotubes will
undergo plastic deformation, which means the take place through quantum effects and will
deformation is permanent. This deformation only propagate along the axis of the tube.
begins at strains of approximately 5% and can Because of this special transport property,
increase the maximum strain the tube carbon nanotubes are frequently referred to as
undergoes before fracture by releasing strain “one-dimensional”.
energy.

CNTs are not nearly as strong under 2.1.4 Potential applications in

compression. Because of their hollow structure
and high aspect ratio, they tend to undergo
buckling when placed under compressive,
torsional or bending stress.
electrical circuits
Carbon nanotubes have many properties
that make them ideal components of electrical
circuits.
 Nanotube based transistors have been
made that operate at room
 temperature and that are capable of
digital switching using a single
electron.
Fig.4 The joining of two carbon
nanotubes with different electrical
properties to form a diode
 Nanotransistors: Transistors are the
active component of virtually all
electronic switching devices. In a
transistor an electrical signal can be
amplified by allowing a small current
or voltage to control the flow of a
much larger current. By suitably
connecting multiple transistors,
Boolean gates can be created, and
from these Boolean gates,
microprocessors for computers can be
built.
Nano-meter scale electronic devices can
be roughly divided into two broad classes:
• molecular electronics and
• solid-state quantum effect
devices.
Molecular electronics utilizes
individual molecules to serve as the active
components of the device e.g. single
molecule transistors, while solid-state
quantum effect devices harness quantum
mechanical phenomena for its operation.
Some examples of solid-state quantum
effect devices include resonant tunneling
diodes, single-electron transistors,
spintronic devices, quantum dots
(quantum cellular automata), carbon
nanotube (CNT) electronics and other
semiconductor nano-structures. However,
most research on these devices is still in
infancy, as relatively few research groups
in the world have the capabilities and
resources to fabricate and study these ultra
small devices.
Fig. 5 Single Molecule Transistors
One major obstacle to realization of
nanotubes has been the lack of technology for
mass production. However, in 2001 IBM
researchers demonstrated how nanotube
transistors can be grown in bulk, not very
differently from silicon transistors. The
process they used is called "constructive
destruction" which includes the automatic
destruction of defective nanotubes on the
wafer.
This has since then been developed
further and single-chip wafers with over ten
billion correctly aligned nanotube junctions
have been created. In addition it has been
demonstrated that incorrectly aligned
nanotubes can be removed automatically using
standard lithography equipment.
The first nanotube made integrated
memory circuit was made in 2004. One of the
main challenges has been regulating the
conductivity of nanotubes. Depending on
subtle surface features a nanotube may act as a
plain conductor or as a semiconductor. A fully
automated method has however been
developed to remove non-semiconductor
tubes.
 Other Viable Applications
The mainstream semiconductor industry
has been mostly concerned with silicon for the
past half-a century. However, in recent years,
silicon technology has been found to be
increasingly inadequate for some novel
applications that have been proposed for the
near future. For instance, some new integrated
circuit designs require light-emitting
components for optical signal processing;
however, light emission from silicon is highly
inefficient. On the other hand, other inorganic
efficient light-emitting semiconductors are
relatively expensive and difficult to process.
Inorganic semiconductors are also unsuitable
for other new applications such as flexible
electronic displays (inorganic semiconductors
being brittle and rigid) and printable
electronics. Although once thought as
insulators, organic materials have come to the
spotlight as they are now better understood,
and the discovery of more and more organic
semiconductors (such as buckyballs, or C60).
A lot of organic materials are relatively
flexible, cheap to produce, and easy to process.
Moreover, molecules and polymers can be
designed and synthesized to provide the
desired electronic/light emission properties for
particular opto-electronic applications. For
instance, the molecule Alq3 has been used
extensively for fabricating organic light
emitting diodes (OLED). Other examples
include printable electronic devices, thin-film
transistors, carbon nanotube field-emission
displays, and organic based solar cells. Most of
these applications are based on thin-film
techniques, in which the organic material layer
is only about 100nm thick. Although some of
these devices have already seen partial
commercialization (such as Kodak’s OLED
digital camera).
Fig.6 Organic LED
2.2 Quantum Dot
A quantum dot is made from a
semiconductor nanostructure that confines the
motion of conduction band electrons, valence
band holes, or excitons (bound pairs of
conduction band electrons and valence band
holes) in all three spatial directions. The
confinement can be due to electrostatic
potentials (generated by external electrodes,
doping, strain, impurities), the presence of an
interface between different semiconductor
materials (e.g. in core-shell nanocrystal
systems), the presence of the semiconductor
surface (e.g. semiconductor nanocrystal), or a
combination of these. A quantum dot has a
discrete quantized energy spectrum. The
corresponding wave functions are spatially
localized within the quantum dot, but extend
over many periods of the crystal lattice. A
quantum dot contains a small finite number (of
the order of 1–100) of conduction band
electrons, valence band holes, or excitons, i.e.,
a finite number of elementary electric charges.
Small quantum dots, such as colloidal
semiconductor nanocrystals, can be as small as
2 to 10 nanometers, corresponding to 10 to 50
atoms in diameter and a total of 100 to 100,000
atoms within the quantum dot volume. Self-
assembled quantum dots are typically between
10 and 50 nm in size. Quantum dots defined by
lithographically patterned gate electrodes or by
etching on two-dimensional electron gases in
semiconductor heterostructures can have
lateral dimensions exceeding 100 nm. At
10 nm in diameter, nearly 3 million quantum
dots could be lined up end to end and fit within
the width of a human thumb.
Quantum dots can be contrasted to other
semiconductor nanostructures:
1. Quantum wires, which confine the
motion of electrons or holes in two
spatial dimensions and allow free
propagation in the third.
2. Quantum wells, which confine the
motion of electrons or holes in one
dimension and allow free propagation
in two dimensions.
Quantum dots containing electrons can
also be compared to atoms: both have a
discrete energy spectrum and bind a small
number of electrons. In contrast to atoms, the
confinement potential in quantum dots does
not necessarily show spherical symmetry. In
addition, the confined electrons do not move in
free space, but in the semiconductor host
crystal. The quantum dot host material, in
particular its band structure, therefore plays an
important role for all quantum dot properties.
Typical energy scales, for example, are of the
order of ten electron volts in atoms, but only 1
milli-electron volt in quantum dots. Quantum
dots with a nearly spherical symmetry, or flat
quantum dots with nearly cylindrical
symmetry can show shell filling according to
the equivalent of Hund's rules for atoms. Such
dots are sometimes called "artificial atoms". In
contrast to atoms, the energy spectrum of a
quantum dot can be engineered by controlling
the geometrical size, shape, and the strength of
the confinement potential. Also in contrast to
atoms it is relatively easy to connect quantum
dots by tunnel barriers to conducting leads,
which allows the application of the techniques
of tunneling spectroscopy for their
investigation.
Like in atoms, the energy levels of small
quantum dots can be probed by optical
spectroscopy techniques. In quantum dots that
confine electrons and holes, the interband
absorption edge is blue shifted due to the
confinement compared to the bulk material of
the host semiconductor material. As a
consequence, quantum dots of the same
material, but with different sizes, can emit
light of different colors.
Quantum dots are particularly significant for
optical applications due to their theoretically
high quantum yield. In electronic applications
they have been proven to operate like a single-
electron transistor and show the Coulomb
blockade effect. Quantum dots have also been
suggested as implementations of qubits for
quantum information processing.
One of the optical features of small excitonic
quantum dots immediately noticeable to the
unaided eye is coloration. While the material
which makes up a quantum dot defines its
intrinsic energy signature, more significant in
terms of coloration is the size. The larger the
dots the red (the more towards the red end of
the spectrum) is the fluorescence. The smaller
the dot, the bluer (the more towards the blue
end) it is. The coloration is directly related to
the energy levels of the quantum dot.
Quantitatively speaking, the bandgap energy
that determines the energy (and hence color) of
the fluoresced light is inversely proportional to
the square of the size of the quantum dot.
Larger quantum dots have more energy levels
which are more closely spaced. This allows the
quantum dot to absorb photons containing less
energy, i.e. those closer to the red end of the
spectrum. The shape of the quantum dot may
well also be a factor in the coloration, but as
yet not enough information has become
available. Furthermore it was shown recently
that the lifetime of fluorescence is determined
by the size. Larger dots have more closely
spaced energy levels in which the electron-
hole pair can be trapped. Therefore, electron-
hole pairs in larger dots live longer and thus
these large dots show a larger lifetime.
The ability to tune the size of quantum dots is
advantageous for many applications. For
instance, larger quantum dots have spectra
shifted towards the red compared to smaller
dots, and exhibit less pronounced quantum
properties. Conversely the smaller particles
allow one to take advantage of quantum
properties.
2.2.1 Mass production
Quantum dots may be synthesized by
means of a ‘colloidal synthesis’. Colloidal
synthesis is by far the cheapest and has the
advantage of being able to occur at bench-top
conditions. It is acknowledged to be the least
toxic of all the different forms of synthesis.
Highly ordered arrays of quantum
dots may also be self assembled by
electrochemical techniques. A template
is created by causing an ionic reaction at an
electrolyte-metal interface which results in the
spontaneous assembly of nanostructures,
including quantum dots, on the metal which is
then used as a mask for mesa-etching these
nanostructures on a chosen substrate.
Another method is pyrolytic
synthesis, which produces large numbers of
quantum dots that self-assemble into
preferential crystal sizes.
2.2.2 Applications
 Being zero dimensional, quantum
dots have a sharper density of states
than higher-dimensional structures.
As a result, they have superior
transport and optical properties, and
are being researched for use in diode
lasers, amplifiers, and biological
sensors.
 Quantum dot technology is one of the
most promising candidates for use in
solid-state quantum computation. By
applying small voltages to the leads,
one can control the flow of electrons
through the quantum dot and thereby
make precise measurements of the
spin and other properties therein.
 With several entangled quantum dots,
or qubits, plus a way of performing
operations, quantum calculations
might be possible.
Fig.7 Logic Gates
 Another cutting edge application of
quantum dots is also being researched
as potential artificial fluorophore for
intra-operative detection of tumors
using fluorescence spectroscopy.
 In modern biological analysis, various
kinds of organic dyes are used.
However, with each passing year,
more flexibility is being required of
these dyes, and the traditional dyes
are often unable to meet the
expectations. To this end, quantum
dots have quickly filled in the role,
being found to be superior to
traditional organic dyes on several
counts, one of the most immediately
obvious being brightness (owing to
the high quantum yield) as well as
their stability (much less
photodestruction). For single-particle
tracking, the irregular blinking of
quantum dots is a minor drawback.
Currently under research as well is
tuning of the toxicity.
 Quantum dots may have the potential
to increase the efficiency and reduce
 the cost of today's typical silicon
photovoltaic cells. According to
experimental proof from 2006,
quantum dots of lead selenide can
produce as many as seven excitons
from one high energy photon of
sunlight (7.8 times the bandgap
energy). This compares favorably to
today's photovoltaic cells which can
only manage one exciton per high-
energy photon, with high kinetic
energy carriers losing their energy as
heat. This would not result in a 7-fold
increase in final output however, but
could boost the maximum theoretical
efficiency from 31% to 42%.
Quantum dot photovoltaics would
theoretically be cheaper to
manufacture, as they can be made
"using simple chemical reactions".
 There are several inquiries into using
quantum dots as light-emitting diodes
to make displays and other light
sources: "QD-LED" displays, and
"QD-WLED" (White LED). In June,
2006, QD Vision announced technical
success in making a proof-of-concept
quantum dot display. Quantum dots
are valued for displays, because they
emit light in very specific gaussian
distributions. This can result in a
display that can more accurately
render the colors that the human eye
can perceive. Quantum dots also
require very little power since they
are not color filtered. A LCD display,
for example, is powered by a single
fluorescent lamp that is color filtered
to produce red, green, and blue pixels.
Thus, when a LCD display shows a
fully white screen, two-thirds of the
light is absorbed by the filters.
Displays that intrinsically produce
monochromatic light can be more
efficient, since more of the light
produced reaches the eye.
Fig.8 QD LED Display
3.0 Conclusions
The paper discusses newer materials that can
be used in the area of nanoelectronics like
carbon nanotubes, quantum dots, buckyballs
etc. As there is no technology available
presently to produce these materials in a
massive scale, they are unable to find many
applications.
Nevertheless, with the speed with which the
research is carried out in this area, it is
believed that these materials might perhaps be
commercialized in the next decade or so.
Also, there is an urgent need of chemical
engineers to acquire basic knowledge in
nanoscience to provide a breakthrough.
References
1. Howard Lee, “Mighty Small Dots”,
Journal of Science and Technology
Review, August 2000
2. A. F. van Driel, G. Allan, C. Delerue,
P. Lodahl,W. L. Vos and D.
Vanmaekelbergh, Frequency-
dependent spontaneous emission rate
from CdSe and CdTe nanocrystals:
Influence of dark states, Physical
Review Letters, 95, 236804 (2005)
3. Reed MA (1993). "Quantum Dots"
(PDF). Scientific American 268 (1):
118
4. Collins, Philip G.; Phaedon Avouris
(December 2000). "Nanotubes for
Electronics". Scientific American: 67,
68, and 69.
Acknowledgement
We would like to express our sincere thanks to
Head, Chemical Engineering Department,
CBIT, Hyderabad, for the valuable suggestions
and guidance given to us in completion of the
paper.
Document By
SANTOSH BHARADWAJ REDDY
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