U.S. engineers say they've created a method that rids microchips of tiny defects, possibly leading the way to smaller, more powerful nanometer-scale chips.

Princeton University researchers said their new nanotechnology enables more precise shaping of microchip components than has been possible. And, they said, more precise component shapes could help manufacturers build smaller and better microchips.

We are able to achieve a precision and improvement far beyond what was previously thought achievable, said engineering Professor Stephen Chou, who developed the method with graduate student Qiangfei Xia.

Microchips work best when the structures fabricated on them are straight, thin and tall, the scientists said. Rough edges and other defects can degrade or even ruin chip performance in most applications.

These chip defects pose serious roadblocks to future advances in many industries, Chou said.

Chou's method involves quickly melting the structures on a chip and then guiding the resulting flow of liquid so that it re-solidifies into the desired shapes. That's possible, he said, because natural forces acting on the molten structures, such as surface tension, smooth the structures into geometrically more accurate shapes.

The technology is reported in the journal Nature Nanotechnology.
Copyright 2008 by United Press International

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