The Application of Carbon Nanotubes in CMOS Integrated Circuits

With the complementary metal-oxide-semiconductor (CMOS) technology approaching its scaling limit, many novel devices are being investigated for the replacement of CMOS FET. Among them, carbon nanotubes show unique properties and are currently considered as a promising alternative material for the building blocks of future nanoelectronic. Performance of carbon nanotube field effect transistors (CNFET) can be competitive with Si MOSFET in the sub-20 nm regime. With its superior material properties, CNT can also function as quantum wire and critical material for the integrated circuit interconnection. In this paper, we shall present some of the research we have done on the application of carbon nanotubes to the CMOS Integrated Circuits at the Hong Kong University of Science and Technology.