Molybdenite-Graphene flash memory concept and images. (via EPFL & ACS.org)
A little over a year ago, a team of researchers from the Laboratory of Nanoscale Electronics and Structures (LANES) at EPFL created the first ever molybdenite chip. The new chip proved to outperform silicon devices and displayed its viability to serve as the future foundation of smaller, more stable, and more efficient processors. In addition to its superior electronic properties, molybdenite mechanical properties allow for the construction of 3-atom thick bendable, flexible electronic devices. Well, we haven’t seen the technology hit the open market quite yet, but a recent development from the same lab has shown once again that silicon’s successors are on the rise: a chip that combines the amazing properties of both molybdenum and graphene on an incredibly capable chip.
The benefits of graphene and molybdenite rely mainly on their high electron carrier mobility, allowing electrons to swiftly and efficiently transfer charges along the materials. Graphene is traditionally difficult to manufacture, but with evolving technology, is finding more use. Molybdenite, found as a mineral of molybdenum sulfide, is highly abundant in nature adding to its already-impressive characteristics.
The chip designed by LANES takes on a field effect geometrical structure: a thin layer of the molybdenite material is sandwiched in between graphene electrodes. The top layer of graphene is three times thicker than the bottom and is used to store memory by capturing the electric charge that is transferred across the Molybdenite layer. Graphene is chosen as the chip’s electrodes for its superior electron carrier mobility, while molybdenite’s direct band gap semiconductor property allows it to channel electrons with minimal energy use.
In addition to the versatile mechanical properties of the previous molybdenite chip, the hybrid flash memory prototype promises even more performance in terms of size, storage capacity, energy use, and flexibility.
"Combining these two materials enabled us to make great progress in miniaturization, and also using these transistors we can make flexible nanoelectronic devices," explains Andras Kis, director of LANES lab.
We’ve yet to see any sort of commercialization on the molybdenite predecessor, so the immediate future of this technology is once again left uncertain. But, as we strive forward with the hopes of this technology supercharging our world soon enough, one thing's for sure: silicon’s reign as the computing chip champ may soon be coming to an end.
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