Study on Progress Towards Carbon Nanotube Adder Circuits Capable of Energy Efficient Computing in Integrated Systems.

As silicon-based CMOS technology progresses into nanoscale territory and approaches its physical limit, one of the more significant advanced transistor technologies that has advanced beyond Moore’s Law is believed to be Carbon Nanotube Field-effect Transistors (CNTFETs). Carbon nanotubes (CNT) have been identified as an innovative new technology which could address some of the weaknesses in CMOS without impacting performance or reliability. The CNTFET features a quasi-one dimensional structure, which enables its carrier to travel at ballistic speed with extremely high mobility. Furthermore, hundreds of nanowires may be added into its conductivity channels in order to increase current transport capabilities with lower supply voltages and thus providing a foundation for designing ultra-large scale analog/logic circuits on nanoscale levels. Technology based on carbon transistors has led to huge advancements in the manufacture of devices and design, however carbon-based process design kit (PDKs) that conform to the requirements of the design tools that are commercially available remain a major obstacle to the development of integrated circuits based on carbon. This article surveys research progress made with CNTFETs as well as their compact models, energy efficient adder circuits, and computing applications that pose specific problems. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]