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IBM Demos New Nanotechnology
Method to Build Chip Components
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Creates nanocrystal memory devices using self assembly
technique compatible with conventional semiconductor processing
ARMONK, N.Y. -- December 8, 2003 -- IBM today announced it is
the first to successfully apply a novel approach in
nanotechnology to aid conventional semiconductor processing,
potentially enabling continued device miniaturization and chip
performance improvements. IBM used a "molecular self assembly"
technique that is compatible with existing chip-making tools,
making it attractive for applications in future microelectronics
technologies because it avoids the high cost of tooling changes
and the risks associated with major process changes.
IBM's self-assembly technique leverages the tendency of
certain types of polymer molecules to organize themselves. The
polymer molecules pattern critical device features that are
smaller, denser, more precise, and more uniform than can be
achieved using conventional methods like lithography. The use of
techniques such as self assembly could ultimately lead to more
powerful electronic devices such as microprocessors used in the
growing array of computer systems, communications devices, and
consumer electronics. IBM expects self-assembly techniques could
be used in pilot phases 3-5 years from now.
"Self assembly opens up new opportunities for patterning at
dimensions smaller than those in current technologies," said Dr.
T.C. Chen, vice president of science and technology at IBM
Research. "As components in information technology products
continue to shrink toward the molecular scale, self-assembly
techniques could be used to enhance lithographic methods."
Nanotechnology is a broad field of science in which materials
are manipulated at dimensions which approach the size of
individual atoms or molecules. Self assembly is a subset of
nanotech that refers to the natural tendency of certain
individual elements to arrange themselves into regular nanoscale
patterns.
In this instance, IBM researchers used self assembly to form
critical features of a semiconductor memory device. The polymer
patterns the formation of a dense silicon nanocrystal array
which becomes the basis for a variant of conventional FLASH
memory. Nanocrystal memories are difficult to fabricate using
conventional methods; by using self-assembly, IBM has discovered
a much easier method to build conventional semiconductor devices
such as FLASH memories. Device processing, including self
assembly, was performed on 200 mm diameter silicon wafers using
methods fully compatible with existing chip-making tools.
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