MIT findings could help design faster chips

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MIT findings could help design faster chips

Graphene may solve communications speed limit, says a recent research conducted by Massachusetts Institute of Technology

Tuesday, March 24, 2009

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WASHINGTON, USA: Researchers at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) said that their new research findings could lead to microchips that operate at much higher speeds than is possible with today's standard silicon chips.

This would help cell phones and other communications systems in transmitting data much faster, said David Chandler of MIT news recently. The key to the superfast chips is the use of a material called graphene, a form of pure carbon that was first identified in 2004.

Researchers at other institutions have already used the one-atom-thick layer of carbon atoms to make prototype transistors and other simple devices. According to MIT the latest results could open up a range of new applications.

The MIT researchers built an experimental graphene chip known as a frequency multiplier, meaning it is capable of taking an incoming electrical signal of a certain frequency and producing an output signal that is a multiple of that frequency. The MIT graphene chip can double the frequency of an electromagnetic signal.

"In electronics, we're always trying to increase the frequency in order to make 'faster and faster computers' and cellphones that can send data at higher rates," said Tomás Palacios, assistant professor in MIT's Department of Electrical Engineering and Computer Science and a core member of the Microsystems Technology Laboratories, while delivering a talk at the American Physical Society recently.

While it is very difficult to generate high frequencies above 4 or 5 gigahertz, the new graphene technology could lead to practical systems in the 500 to 1,000 gigahertz range, he said.

The work was done by Palacios along with EECS Assistant Professor Jing Kong and two of their students, Han Wang and Daniel Nezich.

"Researchers have been trying to find uses for this material since its discovery in 2004. I believe this application will have tremendous implications in high-frequency communications and electronics," Palacios said.

While the work is still at the laboratory stage, developing it to a stage that could become a commercial product "may take a year of work, maximum two", said Palacios.

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