Is there no end to the wonder that is a carbon nanotube? The things can be used to make really black bulletproof objects and slow, tiny computers!
Those computers are hard to make, though. Nanotubes are, well, small and sometimes hard to work with, resulting in a lot of failure. IBM has a different take, though. Instead of arranging the nanotubes to replace traditional circuits by hand (or, more likely, traditional tools), Big Blue is stringing them together with DNA molecules. Once it's all put together, you slip the DNA out, and--ta dah!--you've got a grid of nanotubes
Also, the process just sounds cool.
"These are DNA nanostructures that are self-assembled into discrete shapes. Our goal is to use these structures as bread boards on which to assemble carbon nanotubes, silicon nanowires, quantum dots," Greg Wallraff, an IBM scientist and a lithography and materials expert working on the project, explained to CNET. "What we are really making are tiny DNA circuit boards that will be used to assemble other components."
Consider the work in very early stages, but eventually it could lead to a more successful way of working around the end of Moore's Law, which predicted that silicon chips will continue to shrink at their current explosive (implosive?) rate for only a few more years. IBM, though, wants to keep us rolling tiny gadgets for years to come.
To make the chips, scientists create scaffolds of DNA in specific shapes. The scientists then etch the circuit into a photo-resistant surface for e-beam lithography and several thin films. The DNA is then poured in, which is where I start to get icked out, before it reorganizes itself according to chemical and physical forces based on the patterns built into the molecules. Dump in some carbon nanotubes, mix (or let interact chemically) until set (hint: add peptides that bind DNA to nonbiological molecurles), and let cool.
You've just built a circuit.
It's not perfect, though.
"Of course, the devil is in the details," said Wallraff. "These are self-assembly procedures and error rates--missing features could be the downfall."
Phooey. The devil isn't in the details. It's in the chips when they reform into a cyborg artificial intelligence that wants to enslave humanity. And beat us at chess.
Thanks, IBM.
[via CNET]
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