Australian scientists develop mono-atom transistors

Researchers at the University of New South Wales in Australia said on Sunday that they have developed a working monoatomic transistor. This device consists of a single phosphorus atom etched on a silicon substrate with gated current control and atomic metal contacts. This marks the important development of the next generation of computers.

Martin Fuechsle, a scientist led by the research team, said: "Our team has demonstrated that placing a single phosphorus atom in a silicon environment achieves quasi-atomic level accuracy and it is entirely possible to implement gate circuits. ”

Transistors can switch and amplify currents and are the most basic components in computer chips. Over the past 50 years, the development of the semiconductor industry follows Moore's Law, which means that the number of transistors integrated on a single chip doubles every 18 months. However, in the last 10 years, due to the lack of breakthroughs in transistor miniaturization, this law has been challenged.

The researchers used silicon crystals placed in a vacuum environment to make this single-atom transistor. In order to etch silicon crystals, they used a scanning tunneling microscope. Phosphorus atoms are placed in nanoscale grooves covered with a layer of hydrogen atoms, and unwanted phosphorus atoms are removed. Eventually, researchers implanted a single-atom transistor onto a silicon surface through a chemical reaction.

This miniaturized device needs to work at ultra-low temperatures formed by liquid helium. This is not a finished product, but it demonstrates the idea that a single atom device can be manufactured and controlled.

Michelle Simmons, director of the Quantum Computation and Communication Center at the University of New South Wales, said that scientists had previously created single-atom transistors, but they are largely based on luck rather than precise design. She said: "This device is perfect. This is the first time anyone has proven that it is feasible to control a single atom with such accuracy on the substrate."

The research results have been published in "Natural Nanotechnology" academic journals.