Link: Ted Talk
Author: Karl Skjonnemand
Title: The self-assembling computer chips of the future
Published: November 2018
This TED talk by Karl Skjonnemand covers the possibility of using self-assembling materials to decrease the size and increase the power of transistors found in circuits. Skjonnemand is a technology Director with 20 years experience managing projects in Asia Pacific, Europe and the US. He currently is heading R&D in Branchburg, New Jersey with a focus on novel materials for the Semiconductor Industry. He be begins his TED talk by explaining the current physical makeup of transistors, and furthermore detailed their software capabilities. Transistors are tiny switches in circuits of computer chips that allow data to process. The current technological state of transistors is quite impressive, allowing whole computers that used to fill giants rooms with hardware to fit in your pocket, on your wrist, or even be implemented inside your body. We are currently undergoing a digital revolution that makes using computer technology ever so efficient, fast, and even cost-effective. However, he describes that soon in the near future, there will reach a point where our hardware will begin to limit the capabilities of our software. “We will hit digital roadblock soon enough,” he says. The rate of transistors are slowing down as our technology is advancing at such a rapid state that now technological ideas that were once only dreamed up in Hollywood such as artificial intelligence, facial recognition, augmented reality, and self-driving cars are part of everyday life. It is incredible to think of where we are now in the technology industry, however where it can go is limited by these transistors reaching their peak performance.
“The semi conductor industry is working on going beyond transistors to quantum computing or working with transistors in alternative architectures such as neural networks to make more robust and efficient circuits,” Skjonnemand states. These approaches he mentioned will take some time, but the technology industry is looking for a more immediate solution. “Transistor features are getting smaller and smaller, and we’re approaching the physical limitations of this manufacturing technique,” he adds. The idea Skjonnemand proposes to fix the current problem of maxing out our transistors is self-assembling computers. Self-assembly is actually quite a common theme in nature, as seen in so many natural processes such as lipid membranes and cell structures. He proposes that we can use block co-polymer, consisting of two polymer chains just a few tens of nanometers in length, to build self-assembling technology. The process would consist of these chains repelling each other as we bond them together while they try to separate, and eventually moving around until a shape is formed at the nanoscale level. Scientists and engineers could use molecule engineering to self-assemble nanoscale structures that can be lines or cylinders the size and periodicity of our design. This process is using chemistry to build technology; a crazy idea that combines nature with manmade technology. This “directed self-assembly” would propose quite the challenge as the whole system needs to align almost perfectly and any tiny defect could cause a transistor failure. Speaking on the difficulty of the process he explains, “we’re going to extraordinary measures to achieve this, from the cleanliness of our chemistry to the careful processing of these materials in the semiconductor factory to remove even the smallest nanoscopic defects.”
This concept of self-assembling computers relates to our Media and Information 201 course, as we have covered the physical buildup of computers, circuits, and transistors, and additionally covered the specifications and limitations of them. In segment 1, we covered the processing power of transistors as well as the improvement in the technology from 1971 to 2015. Also, Moore’s Law was covered, but as Skjonnemand states, it will no longer be applicable once our transistors reach their max performance in the near future. If we’re successful in introducing self-assembling computers, we’ll be able to continue with the cost-effective miniaturization of transistors, continue with the spectacular expansion of computing and the digital revolution and this could even be the dawn of a new era of molecular manufacturing.
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