NEB: Nanoelectronics with Mixed-valence Molecular QCA

该项目是在2020年纳米电子学和超越竞赛下授予的，得到了美国国家科学基金会多个部门和部门以及半导体研究公司纳米电子学研究计划的支持。该研究将探索结合在表面上的候选QCA分子之间的相互作用，并采用混合价化合物中成熟的电子转移理论，重点关注分子QCA范式提出的特定问题。由圣母大学的科学家和工程师组成的跨学科团队将结合合成、理论、测量和设备架构工程来研究为QCA操作设计的混合价化合物。候选分子将被合成并沉积在表面上，一个分子由于与邻近分子的相互作用而引起的电荷分布的变化将被直接成像，并且将开发查询和将这些分子系统集成到电子设备中的方法。这项工作的跨学科性质将影响各级学生的教育和培训。拓展工作将包括将扫描显微镜引入K12教室，并继续开发MATLAB项目，通过将真正的编程能力交到高中科学和数学学生手中，从而激发他们的活力。在研究生阶段，化学和电气工程文化的融合将为学生提供更广阔的视野，并克服学科语言和概念障碍。利用分子进行计算有可能产生耗电少的超小型设备；然而，要实现分子水平计算的优势，必须克服许多重大的技术障碍。这项工作将进一步加深我们对分子如何通过电荷进行交流的理解，这可能会导致计算机电路不使用电流来传输信息。这样的工作可能会影响在其产品中使用微处理器的行业，包括计算机、消费电子产品、汽车等。

This project is awarded under the Nanoelectronics for 2020 and Beyond competition, with support by multiple Directorates and Divisions at the National Science Foundation as well as by the Nanoelectronics Research Initiative of the Semiconductor Research Corporation. The proposed research will explore the interactions between candidate QCA molecules bound on a surface and employ the well-developed theory of electron transfer in mixed-valence compounds, focusing it on the particular problems presented by the molecular QCA paradigm. An interdisciplinary team of scientists and engineers from the University of Notre Dame will use a combination of synthesis, theory, measurement, and device architecture engineering to study classes of mixed-valence compounds designed for QCA operation. Candidate molecules will be synthesized and deposited on surfaces, shifts in the charge distribution of one molecule due the interaction with neighboring molecules will be imaged directly, and methods for querying and integrating these molecular systems into electronic devices will be developed. The interdisciplinary nature of this work will impact the education and training of students at all levels. Outreach efforts will include introducing scanning microscopy to the K12 classroom and continuing to develop a MATLAB project to energize high school science and math students by putting real programming power into their hands. At the graduate level, the fusion of chemistry and electrical engineering cultures will produce a broader perspective for students and overcomes disciplinary linguistic and conceptual barriers.Computing using molecules has the potential to generate ultrasmall devices that use little power; however, many significant technical hurdles must be overcome to realize the benefits of molecular level computing. This work will further our understanding how molecules can communicate via their charges, which could lead to computer circuits that do not use the flow of electrical current to transmit information. Such work could impact industries that use microprocessors in their products, including computer, consumer electronics, automotive, etc.