Researchers from three universities are jointly the world’s smallest transistor built. The risk that title to lose it seems to be low, since the transistor consists of only a single atom; smaller will be hard.
The cooperation between researchers of the universities of Melbourne, New South Wales and Purdue led to a transistor that is only one atom exists, so they publish in Nature. The group of researchers is already longer busy with atomic structures; rather, they developed a line of four atoms of phosphorus and silicon, which are as a copper wire exposed. Also for their atomic transistor convert the researchers a phosphorus atom to which is, that as the gate in a siliciumtransistor.
The term ‘transistor from a single atom’ is a bit exaggerated, but it’s going the researchers to the very precise placing of a single atom in a siliciumondergrond. In addition, the researchers for the first time in their phosphorus atom to which is with atomic precision in the siliciumkristal, with a deviation of only one atom. This is one siliciumatoom in a clip of two to three atoms is replaced by a phosphorus atom to which is, with use of a scanning electron microscope and high temperatures for the atom.
The operation of the atomic transistor can only take place at low temperatures, where the transistor by liquid helium cooling. The technique could be used to make transistors to make it smaller, by very precise placement of ‘impurities’ in silicon, the so-called doteren. Even before the physical limits of transistors to be reached, it would be the inaccuracy of current doteringstechnieken to unpredictability in transistors lead. With the new, precise doping would smaller transistors are possible.
