Nanowire transistors show potential in electronic devices

The advance, by engineers at the University of California, Davis, is claimed to create opportunities for integrating other semiconductors, such as gallium nitride, on silicon substrates.

‘Silicon can’t do everything,’ said Saif Islam, professor of electrical and computer engineering at UC Davis. Circuits built on conventionally etched silicon have reached their lower size limit, which restricts operation speed and integration density. Additionally, conventional silicon circuits cannot function at temperatures above 250 degrees Celsius, or handle high power or voltages or optical applications.

According to UC Davis, the new technology could be used to build sensors that can operate under high temperatures, such as inside aircraft engines.

‘In the foreseeable future, society will be dependent on a variety of sensors and control systems that operate in extreme environments, such as motor vehicles, boats, airplanes, terrestrial oil and ore extraction, rockets, spacecraft, and bodily implants,’ Islam said in a statement.