Posted on 8-7-2004
General
Electric unveils nanotech device
08.07.2004
1.00pm
NEW YORK - Scientists at General Electric unveiled one of the
smallest functioning devices ever made on Wednesday, a carbon
tube about 10 atoms wide that could one day shrink computer
chip technology.
Researchers at GE's central lab in Niskayuna, New York, hope
that their new device, which is a rolled-up sheet of carbon
atoms resembling chicken wire, will one day operate as the standard
semiconductor in computers and other electronics.
The device -- a nanotube -- is part of a developing field of
technology in which devices are designed on the scale of a "nano,"
or a billionth of a meter. That translates to about the size
of 10 hydrogen atoms, or 1/80,000 the diameter of a human hair.
Semiconductors are the core of electronic equipment, acting
as valves for electrons to pass through and which run everything
from cell phones to lap tops.
Other companies have done work on nanotubes, including International
Business Machines.
GE's device has potential, according to Paul McEuen, a physics
professor at Cornell University in New York state. He said the
company's work is a step forward for the science and shows that
nanotubes have qualities that could allow them form smaller
chips than those made of silicon, the most common material for
computer chips.
That is crucial because scientists say silicon chips will reach
their minimum size in the next decade. After that, they will
be unable to get smaller without losing their ability to function.
However, McEuen says the nanotube still faces major technical
hurdles. One challenge is getting millions of stitched-together
nanotubes to work in coordination.
"As a field, we can make the smallest of electronic devices
and have them perform very well. Now the big question is --
what are they good for?" said McEuen.
Unlike earlier designs, GE's nanotube can both emit and detect
light, GE said. That means it has potential to perform tasks
like shining small amounts of light on molecules, a possible
application in medicine, or security, McEuen said.
The next generation of security sensors could be made from
such nanotubes, helping detect minuscule amounts of chemical
or biological toxins, GE said.
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