{"664032":{"#nid":"664032","#data":{"type":"news","title":"At the Edge of Graphene-Based Electronics","body":[{"value":"\u003Cp\u003EA pressing quest in the field of nanoelectronics is the search for a material that could replace silicon. Graphene has seemed promising for decades. But its potential faltered along the way, due to damaging processing methods and the lack of a new electronics paradigm to embrace it. With silicon nearly maxed out in its ability to accommodate faster computing, the next big nanoelectronics platform is needed now more than ever.\u003C\/p\u003E\r\n\r\n\u003Cp\u003E\u003Ca href=\u0022https:\/\/physics.gatech.edu\/user\/walter-de-heer\u0022\u003EWalter de Heer\u003C\/a\u003E, Regents\u0026rsquo; Professor in the \u003Ca href=\u0022https:\/\/physics.gatech.edu\/\u0022\u003ESchool of Physics\u003C\/a\u003E at the Georgia Institute of Technology, has taken a critical step forward in making the case for a successor to silicon. De Heer and his collaborators developed a new nanoelectronics platform based on graphene \u0026mdash; a single sheet of carbon atoms. The technology is compatible with conventional microelectronics manufacturing, a necessity for any viable alternative to silicon. In the course of their research, \u003Ca href=\u0022https:\/\/www.nature.com\/articles\/s41467-022-34369-4\u0022\u003Epublished in \u003Cem\u003ENature Communications\u003C\/em\u003E\u003C\/a\u003E, the team may have also discovered a new quasiparticle. Their discovery could lead to manufacturing smaller, faster, more efficient, and more sustainable computer chips, and has potential implications for quantum and high-performance computing.\u003C\/p\u003E\r\n\r\n\u003Cp\u003E\u0026ldquo;Graphene\u0026rsquo;s power lies in its flat, two-dimensional structure that is held together by the strongest chemical bonds known,\u0026rdquo; de Heer said. \u0026ldquo;It was clear from the beginning that graphene can be miniaturized to a far greater extent than silicon \u0026mdash; enabling much smaller devices, while operating at higher speeds and producing much less heat. This means that, in principle, more devices can be packed on a single chip of graphene than with silicon.\u0026rdquo;\u003C\/p\u003E\r\n\r\n\u003Cp\u003EIn 2001, de Heer proposed an alternative form of electronics based on epitaxial graphene, or epigraphene \u0026mdash; a layer of graphene that was found to spontaneously form on top of silicon carbide crystal, a semiconductor used in high power electronics. At the time, the researchers found that electric currents flow without resistance along epigraphene\u0026rsquo;s edges, and that graphene devices could be seamlessly interconnected without metal wires. This combination allows for a form of electronics that relies on the unique light-like properties of graphene electrons.\u003C\/p\u003E\r\n\r\n\u003Cp\u003E\u0026ldquo;Quantum interference has been observed in carbon nanotubes at low temperatures, and we expect to see similar effects in epigraphene ribbons and networks,\u0026rdquo; de Heer said. \u0026ldquo;This important feature of graphene is not possible with silicon.\u0026rdquo;\u003C\/p\u003E\r\n\r\n\u003Cp\u003E\u003Cstrong\u003EBuilding the Platform \u003C\/strong\u003E\u003C\/p\u003E\r\n\r\n\u003Cp\u003ETo create the new nanoelectronics platform, the researchers created a modified form of epigraphene on a silicon carbide crystal substrate. In collaboration with researchers at the Tianjin International Center for Nanoparticles and Nanosystems at the University of Tianjin, China, they produced unique silicon carbide chips from electronics-grade silicon carbide crystals. The graphene itself was grown at de Heer\u0026rsquo;s laboratory at Georgia Tech using patented furnaces.\u003C\/p\u003E\r\n\r\n\u003Cp\u003EThe researchers used electron beam lithography, a method commonly used in microelectronics, to carve the graphene nanostructures and weld their edges to the silicon carbide chips. This process mechanically stabilizes and seals the graphene\u0026rsquo;s edges, which would otherwise react with oxygen and other gases that might interfere with the motion of the charges along the edge.\u003C\/p\u003E\r\n\r\n\u003Cp\u003EFinally, to measure the electronic properties of their graphene platform, the team used a cryogenic apparatus that allows them to record its properties from a near-zero temperature to room temperature.\u003C\/p\u003E\r\n\r\n\u003Cp\u003E\u003Cstrong\u003EObserving the Edge State\u003C\/strong\u003E\u003C\/p\u003E\r\n\r\n\u003Cp\u003EThe electric charges the team observed in the graphene edge state were similar to photons in an optical fiber that can travel over large distances without scattering. They found that the charges traveled for tens of thousands of nanometers along the edge before scattering. Graphene electrons in previous technologies could only travel about 10 nanometers before bumping into small imperfections and scattering in different directions.\u003C\/p\u003E\r\n\r\n\u003Cp\u003E\u0026ldquo;What\u0026#39;s special about the electric charges in the edges is that they stay on the edge and keep on going at the same speed, even if the edges are not perfectly straight,\u0026quot; said Claire Berger, physics professor at Georgia Tech and director of research at the French National Center for Scientific Research in Grenoble, France.\u003C\/p\u003E\r\n\r\n\u003Cp\u003EIn metals, electric currents are carried by\u0026nbsp;negatively charged electrons. But contrary to the researchers\u0026rsquo; expectations, their measurements suggested that the edge currents were not carried by electrons or by holes (a term for positive quasiparticles indicating the absence of an electron). Rather, the currents were carried by a highly unusual quasiparticle that has no charge and no energy, and yet moves without resistance. The components of the hybrid quasiparticle were observed to travel on opposite sides of the graphene\u0026rsquo;s edges, despite being a single object.\u003C\/p\u003E\r\n\r\n\u003Cp\u003EThe unique properties indicate that the quasiparticle might be one that physicists have been hoping to exploit for decades \u0026mdash; the elusive Majorana fermion predicted by Italian theoretical physicist Ettore Majorana in 1937.\u003C\/p\u003E\r\n\r\n\u003Cp\u003E\u0026ldquo;Developing electronics using this new quasiparticle in seamlessly interconnected graphene networks is game changing,\u0026rdquo;\u0026nbsp;de Heer said.\u003C\/p\u003E\r\n\r\n\u003Cp\u003EIt will likely be another five to 10 years before we have the first graphene-based electronics, according to de Heer. But thanks to the team\u0026rsquo;s new epitaxial graphene platform, technology is closer than ever to crowning graphene as a successor to silicon.\u003C\/p\u003E\r\n\r\n\u003Cp\u003E\u0026nbsp;\u003C\/p\u003E\r\n\r\n\u003Cp\u003E\u003Cstrong\u003ECitation\u003C\/strong\u003E: Prudkovskiy, V.S., Hu, Y., Zhang, K.\u0026nbsp;\u003Cem\u003Eet al.\u003C\/em\u003E\u0026nbsp;An epitaxial graphene platform for zero-energy edge state nanoelectronics.\u0026nbsp;\u003Cem\u003ENat Commun\u003C\/em\u003E\u0026nbsp;\u003Cstrong\u003E13\u003C\/strong\u003E, 7814 (2022).\u003C\/p\u003E\r\n\r\n\u003Cp\u003E\u003Cstrong\u003EDOI\u003C\/strong\u003E: 10.1038\/s41467-022-34369-4\u003C\/p\u003E\r\n\r\n\u003Cp\u003E\u003Cstrong\u003EWriter\u003C\/strong\u003E: Catherine Barzler\u003C\/p\u003E\r\n\r\n\u003Cp\u003E\u003Cstrong\u003EPhotography\u003C\/strong\u003E: Jess Hunt-Ralston\u003C\/p\u003E\r\n\r\n\u003Cp\u003EThe\u0026nbsp;Georgia Institute of Technology,\u0026nbsp;or\u0026nbsp;Georgia Tech,\u0026nbsp;is one of the top public research universities in the U.S., developing leaders who advance technology and improve the human condition. The Institute offers\u202fbusiness, computing, design, engineering, liberal arts,\u202fand\u202fsciences\u202fdegrees. Its more than 46,000 students, representing 50 states and more than 150 countries, study at the main campus in Atlanta, at campuses in France and China, and through distance and online learning. As a leading technological university, Georgia Tech is an engine of economic development for Georgia, the Southeast, and the nation, conducting more than $1 billion in research annually for government, industry, and society.\u0026nbsp;\u0026nbsp;\u003C\/p\u003E\r\n","summary":null,"format":"limited_html"}],"field_subtitle":"","field_summary":[{"value":"\u003Cp\u003ERegents\u0026rsquo; Professor Walter de Heer has taken a critical step in the case for a successor to silicon, working with collaborators to develop a new nanoelectronics platform based on graphene \u0026mdash; a single sheet of carbon atoms. The technology is compatible with conventional microelectronics manufacturing, and the new research, published in \u003Cem\u003ENature Communications\u003C\/em\u003E, shows the team may have also discovered a new quasiparticle.\u0026nbsp;\u003C\/p\u003E\r\n","format":"limited_html"}],"field_summary_sentence":[{"value":"The researchers developed a new nanoelectronics platform based on graphene - a single sheet of carbon atoms."}],"uid":"36123","created_gmt":"2022-12-21 17:37:13","changed_gmt":"2023-03-02 19:37:40","author":"Catherine Barzler","boilerplate_text":"","field_publication":"","field_article_url":"","dateline":{"date":"2022-12-21T00:00:00-05:00","iso_date":"2022-12-21T00:00:00-05:00","tz":"America\/New_York"},"extras":[],"hg_media":{"664027":{"id":"664027","type":"image","title":"Graphene chip on fingertip","body":null,"created":"1671641241","gmt_created":"2022-12-21 16:47:21","changed":"1671641848","gmt_changed":"2022-12-21 16:57:28","alt":"A tiny graphene device\u00a0on a silicon carbide substrate chip. The device rests on a person\u0027s fingertip. Credit: Jess Hunt-Ralston, Georgia Tech\u00a0","file":{"fid":"251365","name":"Claire holds chip eedit.jpg","image_path":"\/sites\/default\/files\/images\/Claire%20holds%20chip%20eedit.jpg","image_full_path":"http:\/\/www.tlwarc.hg.gatech.edu\/\/sites\/default\/files\/images\/Claire%20holds%20chip%20eedit.jpg","mime":"image\/jpeg","size":785389,"path_740":"http:\/\/www.tlwarc.hg.gatech.edu\/sites\/default\/files\/styles\/740xx_scale\/public\/images\/Claire%20holds%20chip%20eedit.jpg?itok=rgk_Kqvp"}},"664029":{"id":"664029","type":"image","title":"Graphene Walt de Heer and Claire Berger","body":null,"created":"1671642222","gmt_created":"2022-12-21 17:03:42","changed":"1671642222","gmt_changed":"2022-12-21 17:03:42","alt":"Walter de Heer and Claire Berger, physics professors, holding an atomic model of graphene (black atoms)\u00a0on crystalline silicon carbide (yellow atoms) in the Epitaxial Graphene Lab at Georgia Tech. Credit: Jess Hunt-Ralston, Georgia Tech","file":{"fid":"251366","name":"edit Walt and Claire with model of how chip material is made.jpg","image_path":"\/sites\/default\/files\/images\/edit%20Walt%20and%20Claire%20with%20model%20of%20how%20chip%20material%20is%20made.jpg","image_full_path":"http:\/\/www.tlwarc.hg.gatech.edu\/\/sites\/default\/files\/images\/edit%20Walt%20and%20Claire%20with%20model%20of%20how%20chip%20material%20is%20made.jpg","mime":"image\/jpeg","size":1125991,"path_740":"http:\/\/www.tlwarc.hg.gatech.edu\/sites\/default\/files\/styles\/740xx_scale\/public\/images\/edit%20Walt%20and%20Claire%20with%20model%20of%20how%20chip%20material%20is%20made.jpg?itok=pZ0J2wSL"}},"664030":{"id":"664030","type":"image","title":"Graphene induction furnace","body":null,"created":"1671642528","gmt_created":"2022-12-21 17:08:48","changed":"1671642528","gmt_changed":"2022-12-21 17:08:48","alt":"De Heer\u0027s\u00a0patented induction furnace\u00a0used to produce\u00a0graphene on silicon carbide. Credit: Jess Hunt-Ralston, Georgia Tech","file":{"fid":"251367","name":"EEDITThe team superheats pic - wider crop.jpg","image_path":"\/sites\/default\/files\/images\/EEDITThe%20team%20superheats%20pic%20-%20wider%20crop.jpg","image_full_path":"http:\/\/www.tlwarc.hg.gatech.edu\/\/sites\/default\/files\/images\/EEDITThe%20team%20superheats%20pic%20-%20wider%20crop.jpg","mime":"image\/jpeg","size":721937,"path_740":"http:\/\/www.tlwarc.hg.gatech.edu\/sites\/default\/files\/styles\/740xx_scale\/public\/images\/EEDITThe%20team%20superheats%20pic%20-%20wider%20crop.jpg?itok=70-yxHKn"}},"664031":{"id":"664031","type":"image","title":"Graphene artwork ","body":null,"created":"1671644035","gmt_created":"2022-12-21 17:33:55","changed":"1671644035","gmt_changed":"2022-12-21 17:33:55","alt":"Art which depicts\u00a0the graphene network (black atoms) on top of silicon carbide (yellow and white atoms). The gold pads represent electrostatic gates, and the blue and red\u00a0balls represent\u00a0electrons and holes, respectively. Credit: Noel Dudeck, Georgia Tech","file":{"fid":"251368","name":"graphene graphic.png","image_path":"\/sites\/default\/files\/images\/graphene%20graphic.png","image_full_path":"http:\/\/www.tlwarc.hg.gatech.edu\/\/sites\/default\/files\/images\/graphene%20graphic.png","mime":"image\/png","size":816616,"path_740":"http:\/\/www.tlwarc.hg.gatech.edu\/sites\/default\/files\/styles\/740xx_scale\/public\/images\/graphene%20graphic.png?itok=wFXclRhD"}}},"media_ids":["664027","664029","664030","664031"],"groups":[{"id":"1188","name":"Research Horizons"},{"id":"1278","name":"College of Sciences"},{"id":"126011","name":"School of Physics"}],"categories":[],"keywords":[{"id":"192251","name":"cos-quantum"}],"core_research_areas":[{"id":"39451","name":"Electronics and Nanotechnology"}],"news_room_topics":[{"id":"71881","name":"Science and Technology"}],"event_categories":[],"invited_audience":[],"affiliations":[],"classification":[],"areas_of_expertise":[],"news_and_recent_appearances":[],"phone":[],"contact":[{"value":"\u003Cp\u003ECatherine Barzler, Senior Research Writer\/Editor\u003C\/p\u003E\r\n\r\n\u003Cp\u003EPhotos and Media: \u003Ca href=\u0022mailto:jess@cos.gatech.edu\u0022\u003EJess Hunt-Ralston\u003C\/a\u003E, College of Sciences\u003C\/p\u003E\r\n","format":"limited_html"}],"email":["catherine.barzler@gatech.edu"],"slides":[],"orientation":[],"userdata":""}}}