Molybdenite As an Alternative To Silicon

An anonymous reader writes "Molybdenite (MoS2) can be used to make transistors that consume 100,000 times less energy in standby state. This mineral, which is abundant in nature, is often used as an element in steel alloys or as an additive in lubricants. Research carried out in Switzerland at the Ecole Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne's Laboratory of Nanoscale Electronics and Structures (LANES) has revealed that is a very effective semiconductor. Molybdenite's 1.8 electron-volt gap is ideal for transistors and gives it an advantage over graphene (which does not have a gap)."

Comments

Molykote?

[cvtan]

Isn't this just Moly disulphide, the lubricant in Molykote? http://www.dowcorning.com/content/molykote/anniversary.aspx?bhcp=1

Re:Molykote?

[arivanov]

Probably not pure enough.

You need 99.995+% purity for most semiconductor stuff (99.999+ for CPUs and memory) which can be achieved only via zone smelting. In order to zone smelt the material needs to be able to re-crystalize after being heated locally in the first place. If it does not you can forget using it as a production semiconductor. There are in fact plenty of materials out there which have electron gaps are more "interesting" than silicon. We just have not figured out how to grow to purify them in quantity.

As far as MoS2 is concerned it does not melt and does not recrystalize (it decomposes straight away) so zone smelting is not an option. It decomposes straight away. So frankly I do not see how you can achieve 99.99+ purity to do anything useful with it.

reduction in subthreshold leakage current

[RichMan]

In the latest technologies a lot of current is wasted to subthreshold conduction . Current that flows then the transistors should be "off".

A material with a higher bandgap 1.8ev to silicons 1.1ev will naturally have less leakage. As it is an exponential thing the leakage should not just be a reduction of 1.1 to 1.8 thing but much more significant.

Make better computers, kill more plants

[Khyber]

Molybdenum is a CRITICAL trace element in the development of any food crop we have.

This reeks of the dumbest thing one could do, EVER.

Re:Make better computers, kill more plants

[Khyber]

"There are actual legitimate road blocks to using molybdenum in place of silicon. OMFG the plants!11!!! isn't one of them."

Okay, you tell that to a HUGE hydroponics industry responsible for keeping YOU fed by producing the food you buy.

They need that molybdenum WAY more than you do.

We also need that molybdenum for other things, like medical agents.

Oh, wait, those medical agents tend to come from PLANTS.

I have futures in all kinds of elements, from molybdenum to iridium. Why not use something with a higher band gap to reduce the current leakage any further? You've got TONS of other materials that are better suited (and I can think of several off the bat from my own experience in the optoelectronics industry workign alongside Cree and Nichia.)

I don't think you're even close enough to having the relevant experience to be able to talk, sir. Come back when you're actually fabricating semiconductors, okay?

finding a good material is not the problem

[Goldsmith]

There are plenty of materials out there that make good semiconductors, the question is: can we make them?

Moly disulfide is a material a couple of different graphene groups have been looking at (hey, we know there's an issue with graphene). What this paper really means is that the Ecole group has figured out how to *make* MoS2 better than other people, and that's really the hard part. Of course, they're still making devices using scotch tape exfoliation...

It's really hard to mass produce 2D materials.

Re:Abundant ... hello?

[m85476585]

How much of that silicon is ultra pure semiconductor grade? Probably none, so both materials need to go through a refining process. If there are areas with high moly concentrations, it doesn't matter how much the rest of the world has, as long as those mines are enough to meet demand (and can continue to do so for a while).

great, more advertising by press release

[cats-paw]

let me know when you have I-V curves for a moly disulpide FET. Both p and n types please.

I learned many moons ago, that one of the most important things about Si is the fact that it's so easy to grow an oxide. It's EXTREMELY useful when processing integrated circuits. Otherwise everything electronic would use III-V's.

Any new material which aims to replace Si is going to need an equivalent process capability.

Personally I'm hoping for a breakthrough in organic semiconductors. I want to be able to screen print transistors at home.