Scientists Stack Three Silicon Layers to Build Faster, Denser 3D Chips

Scientists stack three silicon layers to build faster, denser 3D chips

Researchers at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign have developed a way to stack high-performance silicon circuits directly on top of one another, a breakthrough that could help the semiconductor industry keep increasing computing power without shrinking transistors further. The approach tackles one of the biggest challenges facing chipmakers as Moore’s law begins to slow. For decades, the industry boosted performance by making transisto…

3D silicon circuits bring denser computer chips closer to reality

By stacking transistors on top of one another, rather than laying them side by side on a flat chip, many electronic engineers are hopeful that vast amounts of computing power could be packed into tiny spaces, all while cutting energy use. So far, however, the ability to build these monolithic 3D integrated circuits has proven stubbornly difficult, largely because the fabrication processes required can damage the layers already in place.

New 3D silicon chip breakthrough could extend Moore’s Law for years

As traditional chip miniaturization slows, researchers have found a way to pack more computing power into the same space by stacking silicon circuits in multiple layers. The new process uses ultra-thin silicon membranes and low-temperature manufacturing techniques to overcome a major obstacle that has long blocked the production of true 3D chips.

To Keep Computers Improving, Engineers Are Building Chips Upward in Stacked Silicon Floors

The transistor has stopped shrinking. Not slowing down, not easing off, but actually hitting a wall set by the size of atoms and the rules of quantum mechanics. For roughly sixty years the whole logic of computing rested on making these tiny switches smaller and cramming more of them onto a flat sheet of silicon. It worked spectacularly well. It worked so well that the industry painted itself into a corner. So a team at the University of Illinoi…