Chemistry and Microelectronics
In 1897, Ferdinand Braun published a paper in the journal Annalen der Physik und Chemie describing his "Braun tube," which was the first cathode-ray oscilloscope. He developed this as a method to record and study the time dependence of alternating currents.
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In 1874, two years before the American Chemical Society was founded, Ferdinand Braun made the first observation of current rectification at a semiconductor interface. Since then, ACS has grown from an initial membership of around 35 to more than 161,000, and the semiconductor interface has spawned both the expansive microelectronics industry and a technological revolution.
Throughout the development of modern microelectronics, chemistry has been a central contributor. And as we look to the next 125 years, the opportunities for chemists to develop devices for the useful manipulation of electrical energy are greater than ever. They include the continued development of traditional silicon-based devices, the application of new active materials in architectures analogous to conventional semiconductor electronics, and the exploration of new paradigms in nanoscale electronics.
Chemists versed in semiconductor electronics will play a major role in the continued evolution of silicon-based devices over the next few decades. Areas for innovation include the development of new materials such as dielectrics and photoresists, the integration of microelectronics and chemical analysis systems, and the development of economically and environmentally sound “green” manufacturing options.
Visit Chemical & Engineering News to read more about chemistry’s role in microelectronics.
Excerpted with permission, Chemical & Engineering News
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