Canadian physicists stumble upon new state of matter in a 'transistor'

Tony Austin
Tuesday, 28 October 2008 07:30

Opinion and Analysis

Since the invention of the integrated circuit in 1958, Moore’s Law has powered the ever-accelerating home electronics, personal computer and Internet revolutions which have changed the world.

But, Dr. Gervais explained, Moore’s Law is not an irresistible force, and some time in the next decade, it will inevitably collide with the immovable object of the laws of physics.

“In a standard transistor, you have a gate and the electron flow is controlled by it like a faucet would control a gas flow,” he said.

“You can understand the particles as independent units, which lets us treat them as ones and zeroes or on and off switches in digital computing.

“However, once you get down to the nano scale, quantum forces kick in and the electrons may condense into a collective state and lose their individual nature. Then all sorts of bizarre phenomena pop up. In some cases, the electrons may even split. Concepts of ‘on’ and ‘off’ lose all meaning under these conditions.”

“This issue is academic, but it’s not just academic. The same semiconductor materials we’re working with are currently used in cell phones and other electronic devices."

"We need to understand quantum effects so we can use them to our own advantage and perhaps reinvent the transistor altogether. That way, progress in electronics will keep happening.”