Future Trends in Microelectronics

2.2

Graphene and Atom-Thick 2D Materials: Device Application Prospects

Sungwoo Hwang, Jinseong Heo, Min-Hyun Lee, Kyung-Eun Byun, Yeonchoo Cho and Seongjun Park

Device Laboratory, Samsung Advanced Institute of Technology, Suwon, 443-803, South Korea

1 Introduction

The electronic properties of low-dimensional systems have long been an interesting topic in both physics and engineering societies. Silicon MOSFET and III–V HEMT devices, for example, not only have been the most essential elements in micro- and nanoelectronics since their early days but have also provided wonderful playgrounds for correlated 2D electron systems, leading to such fundamental discoveries as the integer and fractional quantum Hall effects. These traditional 2D electron systems have now reappeared in the form of atomic sheets, shedding light on entirely new physics originating from the orbital confinement, as well as new materials science aspects. The new physics, in turn, enables innovation in the 2D device realm. In this chapter, we consider these new opportunities and accompanying challenges, examining various aspects of potential device applications of graphene and atom-thick 2D materials, including optoelectronic devices, new types of transistors, and possible CMOS integration. Direct growth is the key technology to make all these applications realistic, so we will also address the prospects of wafer-scale graphene and 2D materials growth.

2 Conventional low-dimensional systems

Back in 1967,¹