Carbon based graphene nanoelectronics technologies

Graphene, a two-dimensional carbon form with the highest intrinsic carrier mobility and many desirable physical properties at room temperature, is considered a promising material for ultra high speed and low power devices with the possibility of strong scaling potential due to the ultra-thin body. (Fig. 1) Here IBM reports progress in graphene nanoelectronics, synthesizing wafer-scale monolayer-controlled graphene and fabricating high-speed single atomic layer graphene FETs (GFET) with the highest value reported cut-off frequency (f_T) 50 GHz, exceeding that of the same gate length Si FETs. It is achieved by improving gate oxide deposition and reducing series resistance. Systematic characterization and small-signal models enable further engineering and optimization for even higher performance. The high I_on/I_off ratios from bi-layer graphene suggest potential not only for analog but also for logic applications.