FEATURE NANOTECHNOLOGY


A bright future ahead promised by the scope of nanoelectronics


security... all these applications are enabled by the next wave of smart RFID tags that overcome the limitations of passive tags. In the consumer electronics industry,


Luc Van den hove, President and CEO of imec, Belgium, explores the power of nanoelectronics and the capabilities these latest technologies present - from connecting lives to improving lives


T


he semiconductor industry is heading for a bright future. The advantages of


scaling, miniaturisation and integration can drive innovation and growth beyond its traditional markets. The Internet of Things, the Internet of healthy things and the Internet of power are driving the continuous growth of the semiconductor industry if the right ecosystems dynamics are brought into place. One of the drivers of growth for the


semiconductor industry has for decades been the continuous reduction of the cost per function, which has enabled the tremendous explosion of increased functionality of devices at acceptable cost. But for the first time, we seem not to be able to follow the traditional cost reduction per gate. One of the major contributors to the cost explosion is the need for multiple patterning as from the 20nm node as a result of the late availability of EUV. This explains the tremendous pressure on making EUV ready for prime time. But there will be a continued drive for increased performance which will require more complex processes. At the same time the cost of R&D,


related to advancing process technology, continues to rise with a higher growth rate than the growth rate of the semiconductor industry turnover and hence the overall available R&D spending (which typically scales with the overall turnover). The semiconductor industry is heading for a bright future. There are tremendous


12 SPRING 2015 | MICROMATTERS


opportunities which will pursue this continuous growth of our industry. The exploding mobile data communication market drags along a robust growth in mobile broadband services, creating huge opportunities for semiconductor companies to equip and implement next- generation wireless networks. In many markets, the 3G networks have approached the limits of their broadband capacity. 4G is penetrating at rapid pace and 5G is already on the research agenda. What 5G will bring is still unclear. For sure, it will not be an upgrade of the network as we know it today. It will be a mesh of networks that connects everything and everyone: people, objects, sensors, tools, and instruments. We are evolving towards


an Internet of everyTHING. It is expected that by 2020 100 billion computers, devices and sensors will be wirelessly connected. With the possibility to


IMEC's flexible wireless monitoring system for vital body parameters with embedded microcontroller chip


there are many opportunities arising from integrating sensors in systems. The major trend in this market is wearables. Start-ups, but also established system companies are coming up with inventive and surprising ways to augment the human body with sensors and displays. Fitness devices make up the vast majority of the wearable technology market at the moment. In consumer electronics, it’s all about more sensors, more data resolution, more functionality and more integration. Nanoelectronics can bring disruptive


innovation in healthcare. Disruptive innovation which is essential to create a sustainable healthcare system. Disruptive innovation which will break the traditional circle from a curing healthcare system to a more predictive and even preventive healthcare system. Nanoelectronics, enabling miniaturisation


and integration, has the potential to shift even more the boundaries in medical diagnostics and tests. Imagine a silicon chip that can diagnose multiple diseases, that integrates multiple laboratory tests, for under 10USD. Results are received in less than 10 minutes. It would bring multiple diagnostic and make lab tests available and easy-to-use for anyone anywhere in the world. Such a lab on chip could also be a game-changer in drug discovery. And imagine silicon chips that read single


“Nanoelectronics can bring disruptive


integrate sensors in systems and new sensor technologies on the horizon, many new applications and services are arising, stimulating many economies. An industry that is rapidly being


innovation in healthcare. Disruptive innovation which is essential to create a sustainable healthcare system ...”


revolutionised is packaging and logistics with new applications such as real-time location of products, sophisticated authentication of goods, freshness detection of food, enhancing medication


molecules of DNA in a massively parallel way with minimal preparatory steps. With these chips, DNA sequencing can become a routine diagnostic test. Or powerful chips that can image millions of cells per second at the microscopic level to hunt for rare but hugely important cells such as circulating tumor cells. Thanks to the integration power


of nanoelectronics, we can develop very powerful instrumentation at the lowest possible cost. Instrumentation


that will facilitate both discovery in the lab and routine diagnostics anywhere and anytime.


imec


www2.imec.be +32 16 28 12 11


Enter 202 / MICROMATTERS


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