Molecular Nanoelectronics
Dominique Vuill · Proceedings of the IEEE · 2010
Molecular electronics is envisioned as a promising candidate for the nanoelectronics of the future. More than a possible answer to ultimate miniaturization problem in nanoelectronics, molecular electronics is foreseen as a possible way to assemble a large numbers of nanoscale objects (molecules, nanoparticules, nanotubes, and nanowires) to form new devices and circuit architectures. It is also an interesting approach to significantly reduce the fabrication costs, as well as the energetic costs of computation, compared to usual semiconductor technologies. Moreover, molecular electronics is a field with a large spectrum of investigations: from quantum objects for testing new paradigms, to hybrid molecular-silicon complementary metal-oxide-semiconductor (CMOS) devices. However, problems remain to be solved (e.g., a better control of the molecule-electrode interfaces, improvements of the reproducibility and reliability, etc.).