acm-header
Sign In

Communications of the ACM

News

A Block on the Old Chip


plasma etch of block copolymers

Credit: SPIE Newsroom

For decades, computers have grown more powerful because chipmakers have been able to make ever-smaller transistors, allowing them to cram more onto a single chip. That steady march has always depended on optics—shorter wavelengths of light allowed chipmakers to draw smaller lines for circuit paths, which then can be closer together. It has become increasingly harder, however, to reach the high resolutions needed for ever-tinier features.

The answer, or at least part of it, may lie not with optics at all, but with chemistry. Researchers in both industry and academia are trying to perfect a process that would let chemicals arrange themselves into tiny lines to serve as a pattern for the circuits. The lines and spaces in most chips now are on the order of 40 nanometers (nm) wide, but are expected to drop to less than 10 nm within a few years.


 

No entries found

Log in to Read the Full Article

Sign In

Sign in using your ACM Web Account username and password to access premium content if you are an ACM member, Communications subscriber or Digital Library subscriber.

Need Access?

Please select one of the options below for access to premium content and features.

Create a Web Account

If you are already an ACM member, Communications subscriber, or Digital Library subscriber, please set up a web account to access premium content on this site.

Join the ACM

Become a member to take full advantage of ACM's outstanding computing information resources, networking opportunities, and other benefits.
  

Subscribe to Communications of the ACM Magazine

Get full access to 50+ years of CACM content and receive the print version of the magazine monthly.

Purchase the Article

Non-members can purchase this article or a copy of the magazine in which it appears.
Sign In for Full Access
» Forgot Password? » Create an ACM Web Account