transistor

(Newser) - The future of electronics may be etched on paper, reports the Economist. Researchers have found a cheaper, easier way to make transistors using cellulose, paper’s key ingredient. Paper could soon replace silicon as a surface on which to mount transistors, which control the flow of electric currents and power...

(Newser) - Scientists in England have created the world’s smallest transistor, the BBC reports. At 1 atom thick and 10 atoms wide, it could be the key to creating microchips beyond the power of silicon. The transistor is made of graphene, a single layer of graphite and an excellent conductor of...

(Newser) - Imagine a computer chip that could literally have wires drawn onto it and erased like an etch-a-sketch. That’s what University of Pittsburgh researchers have been able to create, Technology Review reports. To demonstrate the technology, researchers drew the tip of an atomic force microscope across the chip like a...

(Newser) - It’s been 60 years since three Bell Lab scientists invented the transistor, launching an electronics revolution that changed the way we live. Engineers have miniaturized the powerful on-off switches—eventually integrated onto silicon chips—about as far as they can. Now, companies are pouring billions of dollars into research...