Posted: November 3, 2008 |
Physicists overcome roadblock to using nano-electro-mechanical systems for digital logic and memory applications |
(Nanowerk News) Physicists working at Canada’s National Institute for Nanotechnology (NINT), the University of Alberta, and Norcada Inc. have perfected a technique for controlling the oscillation of nano-electromechanical systems (NEMS).
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They can turn on and turn off the oscillation of the resonator in less than one oscillation cycle. The technique, likened to un-ringing a bell, fully stops the cantilever vibration in less than a nanosecond. This level of control over nano-cantilever resonators makes it much more likely they could be used as digital devices in ICT memory and computation.
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This technique is described in a new paper published on-line in Nature Nanotechnology on November 2, 2008 ("Time-domain control of ultrahigh-frequency nanomechanical systems").
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The paper describes a novel approach to measuring high frequency cantilevers and imaging the vibrational modes. It also establishes a new record for high frequency NEMS cantilevers – over one gigahertz - in a simple silicon-on-insulator platform.
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The combination of perfecting the control technique and breaking the one GHz barrier for cantilevers increase the likelihood of NEMS applications in information and communication technology.
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Principal Investigator Mark Freeman described the new potential for NEMS, “The ability to control the oscillation – stopping it in less than a nanosecond – eliminates the drawback of slow switching speed in NEMS and enhances possibilities for use in future ICT applications.”
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