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  • Perspective
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Quantum engineering of transistors based on 2D materials heterostructures

Nature Nanotechnology volume 13, pages 183–191 (2018)Cite this article

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A Publisher Correction to this article was published on 22 May 2018

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Abstract

Quantum engineering entails atom-by-atom design and fabrication of electronic devices. This innovative technology that unifies materials science and device engineering has been fostered by the recent progress in the fabrication of vertical and lateral heterostructures of two-dimensional materials and by the assessment of the technology potential via computational nanotechnology. But how close are we to the possibility of the practical realization of next-generation atomically thin transistors? In this Perspective, we analyse the outlook and the challenges of quantum-engineered transistors using heterostructures of two-dimensional materials against the benchmark of silicon technology and its foreseeable evolution in terms of potential performance and manufacturability. Transistors based on lateral heterostructures emerge as the most promising option from a performance point of view, even if heterostructure formation and control are in the initial technology development stage.

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Fig. 1
Fig. 2: Seven proposed transistor structures based on 2D heterostructures.
Fig. 3: Consensus on the transistor device structure to be used in CMOS chips versus year of first shipment.
Fig. 4

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  • 22 May 2018

    In the version of this Perspective originally published, in the email address for the author Giuseppe Iannaccone, the surname was incorrectly given as “innaconne”; this has now been corrected in all versions of the Perspective. Also, an error in the production process led to Figs. 1, 2 and 3 being of low resolution; these have now been replaced with higher-quality versions.

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Acknowledgements

We acknowledge financial support from the European Union’s Horizon 2020 research and innovation program under grant agreement no. 696656—GrapheneCore1, and a Newton International Fellowship.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Dipartimento di Ingegneria dell’Informazione, Università di Pisa, Pisa, Italy

    Giuseppe Iannaccone & Gianluca Fiori

  2. Istituto Italiano di tecnologia, Graphene Labs, Genova, Italy

    Francesco Bonaccorso

  3. Materials Science and Engineering, University of Texas at Dallas, Richardson, TX, USA

    Luigi Colombo

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  1. Giuseppe Iannaccone
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Iannaccone, G., Bonaccorso, F., Colombo, L. et al. Quantum engineering of transistors based on 2D materials heterostructures. Nature Nanotech 13, 183–191 (2018). https://doi.org/10.1038/s41565-018-0082-6

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