Simulation design and fabrication of quantum dot celluar automata devices and circuits

晶体管的发明推动了电子和通信领域的一场革命，使我们日常生活中依赖的许多设备成为可能。 随着微电子学规模的潜在极限的接近，研究能够继续这种计算机能力增长的计算范式变得越来越紧迫。 基于量子点应用于计算的新兴技术已经获得了重大的研究兴趣。 一种称为量子点细胞自动机（QCA）的新兴技术已被确定为使用量子点和最终单分子实现计算电路的解决方案。 QCA是一种新的计算范式，它将信息编码在相同的计算单元的电子结构中，并依赖于电荷相互作用来实现信息处理。QCA被预测以非常小的功耗运行，在THz频率下切换，并且被认为是分子电子学的天然桥接点，这代表了电子缩放的圣杯。这项研究将集中在这一新兴技术发展的几个重要方面。申请人已经开发了一种称为QCADesigner的设计、布局和仿真工具，该工具已经成为QCA仿真中的事实标准，并且目前被研究该技术的大多数小组使用。本研究的目标之一是显著提高QCADesigner的建模能力。该工具将使我们能够准确地研究充分利用这一未来技术独特属性的计算架构。这项研究的另一个方面将有助于UBC的合作努力，旨在开发用于实现这些设备的可靠制造策略。这项研究可能会产生一种新的开关设备，这将对加拿大的研究和工业产生重大影响。

The invention of the transistor has fuelled a revolution in electronics and communications that has made possible many of the devices we have grown to depend on in our daily lives.  With the approach of potential limits in microelectronics scaling, it is becoming increasingly urgent to investigate computational paradigms that can continue this growth in computer power.  Emerging technologies based on the application of quantum dots to computing have gained significant research interest.  One such emerging technology, called quantum-dot cellular automata (QCA), has been identified as a solution for realizing computing circuits using quantum dots and ultimately single molecules.  QCA is a novel computing paradigm that encodes information in the electronic configuration of identical computing cells, and relies on the charge interactions to enable the information processing. QCA has been predicted to operate with very little power consumption, switch at THz frequencies, and has been recognized as a natural bridging point to molecular electronics, which represents the holy grail of electronics scaling. This research will focus on several important aspects of the development of this emerging technology. The applicant has already developed a design, layout, and simulation tool called QCADesigner, which has become the de facto standard in QCA simulation and is presently in use by most of the groups investigating this technology. One of the goals of this research will be to significantly increase the modeling capabilities of QCADesigner. This tool will enable us to accurately investigate computing architectures that take full advantage of the unique properties of this future technology. Another facet of this research will be to contribute to a collaborative effort at UBC directed at developing reliable fabrication strategies for implementing these devices. This research could result in a new class of switching devices, which would have a significant impact on Canadian research and industry.