In a new paper, IBM researchers are detailing what IBM calls a significant breakthrough in the field of nanotechnology that could lead to new developments in processor technology and the field of photonics. The IBM researchers are detailing how they were able to control light emissions from carbon nanotube transistors, which could lead to new ways to develop and power new processors. In the field of nanotechnology, IBM, HP and Intel are all working on new techniques to develop processors through their research divisions.IBM researchers are claiming
a significant breakthrough in the emerging field of nanotechnology that could
change the way engineers and the IT industry think about the development of
microprocessors.
In a paper published in the Nature Nanotechnology journal
Aug. 25, IBM researchers describe how they integrated
and controlled an electrically driven, nanoscale light emitter that engineers built
around a single carbon nanotube.
A
carbon nanotube is a series of tiny tubes
of rolled-up
carbon hexagons. Carbon nanotubes could be used in new types of
transistorsthe tiny on/off switches used to transmit electrical
signals inside processors.
The IBM paper describes
this development as a critical first step in the future development of
nanotube-based integrated electronic and nanophotonic devices. These
developments in nanotechnology have the potential to change the way companies
such as IBM and Intel boost the performance
of future generations of microprocessors and computer memory.
Nanotechnology is an emerging field of research that looks
to shrink already small components to an even small size. The field of
nanotechnology involves working with materials that are 100 nanometers or
smaller, or just a fraction of the width of a human hair.
The ability to decrease the size of silicon-based
transistors, which in turn allows chip makers to boost their chips' performance
by packing more transistors into each processor, will eventually end. When this
happens, IBM, Intel and other chip makers will
have to invest in new technologies. This is where carbon nanotubes, nanowires
or other materials and technologies could make a difference.
In the new IBM research
paper, scientists describe how they were able to combine a single
nanotube-based field effect transistor, or FET, with a pair of tiny, nanomirrors
on one chip. This type of integration allowed researchers to control the
optical emissions from a nanotube. In turn, IBM
researchers were able to control the wavelength of the optical emissions, the
spectral and spatial distributions of the emitted light and the efficiency of
the emissions.
While lasers have been used before in new types of chip
development, the IBM research showed that
lasers can also be used at the nanolevel, which could pave the way toward
nanophotonics. The goal of nanophotonics is to build integrated circuits that
manipulate light signals to transmit data the same way electrical signals
transmit data in traditional silicon-based microprocessors.
The developments that IBM
describes in the Nature Nanotechnology article builds on several other
breakthroughs the companys researchers have announced this year. In March, engineers
detailed a new nanophotonic silicon broadband switch that will route
optical pulse signals within a microprocessor from a transmitting core to a
receiving core.
While IBM has published several
papers this year in the field of nanotechnology, its not the only IT company
studying ways to create new processors from the technology.
In addition to IBM, HP
Labsthe research division of Hewlett-Packardis working on ways to create new
types of nanoscale devices. In
April, HP researchers detailed their work into finding the fourth fundamental
circuit element within electrical engineering, called a memristor, short for
memory resistor. This is expected to give researchers new
insight in the development of different types of computer memory.
At the recent Intel Developer Forum in San Francisco,
Intel CTO Justin Rattner detailed his companys work in the field of photonicsthe ability to send data across pulses of light that will eventually replace
copper wiring. This research, and Intels investment in funding new
developments, also has the potential to make nanoscale devices possible.
While processors that use light to transmit
data from one point to another have applications in the world of
high-performance computing and large-scale data centers, Rattner said that
Intel wants to first put the technology in desktops, which will show the practical
side of the technology and also help bring the price down to a reasonable
level.
If Intel succeeds, then it could mean that photonics and
nanophotonics could lead to whole new ways of creating chips that are powerful
but offer better battery life for small devices, such as notebook PCs, and wireless
and mobile devices, such as cell phones.
It is important to keep in the mind that while all these
developments are ongoing, nanotechnology will probably not replace traditional
silicon in chip development anytime soon. Intel and IBM
are each still using more traditional silicon
technology to build the next generation of both 32-nm and 22-nm microprocessors.
Besides IBM, HP and
Intel, the field of nanotechnology has garnered attention from the United
States government. In June, the U.S. House
of Representatives approved new legislation to reauthorize federal
nanotechnology research programs.