BELL LABS PAPERS QUESTIONED
MITCH JACOBY · Chemical & Engineering News · 2002
CLAIMS MADE IN A SERIES OF high-profile papers appear to be based on data of questionable validity, say scientists in the U.S. Their suspicions—if proved correct—could set back the field of nanoelectronics significantly. In question are several key figures published in Science, Nature, and Applied Physics Letters over the past few years by jan Hendrik Schön and coworkers at Lucent Technology's Bell Labs. In all cases, Schön—who did not respond directly to C&EN's request for comment—is the corresponding author. The data, which were widely reported in the press, show the performance characteristics of electronic devices made from field effect transistors (FETs) based on organic materials. The data plots appear to show identical noise levels—blip for blip—in studies of related but nonidentical systems. The suspicious pattern was flagged by Harvard chemistry professor Charles M. Lieber and physics professors Lydia Sohn of Princeton, Paul L. McEuen of Cornell, and others, who notified ...