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May 19th, 2015 – Nanoscale Vacuum Electronics

“Nanoscale Vacuum Electronics”

Speaker: Dr. Meyya Meyyappan, Chief Scientist for Exploration Technology at NASA Ames Research Center in Moffett Field, CA

 

Abstract:

This talk will present an overview of some recent exciting research activity at NASA Ames Research Center on nanoscale vacuum tubes.  First, we have been fabricating these devices for ” rocket electronics ” over the last two years using entirely and exclusively silicon technology.  Vacuum is superior to any semiconductor in terms of electron transport, in addition to being immune to all radiations.  We have combined the best of vacuum and silicon technology to fabricate surround gate nanoscale vacuum transistors on 8 ” wafers with a channel dimension of 50 nm.  These vacuum transistors, operating at a drive voltage of only 2 V which is remarkable for vacuum devices,  have the potential for THz electronics and several other applications.  We have also fabricated them side by side with MOSFETs demonstrating monolithic integration.  The device physics, fabrication and results including preliminary radiation tests will be presented.     The author thanks  Jin-Woo Han for spearheading the nanoscale vacuum tube project.

 

Biography:

Meyya Meyyappan is Chief Scientist for Exploration Technology at NASA Ames Research Center in Moffett Field, CA. Until June 2006, he served as the Director of the Center for Nanotechnology. He is a founding member of the Interagency Working Group on Nanotechnology (IWGN) established by the Office of Science and Technology Policy (OSTP). The IWGN is responsible for putting together the National Nanotechnology Initiative.

Dr. Meyyappan has authored or co-authored over 300 articles in peer-reviewed journals and made over 250 Invited/Keynote/Plenary Talks in nanotechnology subjects across the world and over 200 seminars at universities. His research interests include carbon nanotubes, graphene, and various inorganic nanowires, their growth and characterization, and application development in chemical and biosensors, instrumentation, electronics and optoelectronics.
Dr. Meyyappan is a Fellow of the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE), Electrochemical Society (ECS), American Vacuum Society (AVS), Materials Research Society (MRS), Institute of Physics (IOP), American Institute of Chemical Engineers (AIChE) and the California Council of Science and Technology.  He is currently the IEEE Nanotechnology Council (NTC) Distinguished Lecturer on Nanotechnology, IEEE Electron Devices Society (EDS) Distinguished Lecturer, and was ASME’s Distinguished Lecturer on Nanotechnology (2004-2006). He served as the President of the IEEE’s Nanotechnology Council in 2006-2007 and the Vice President of IEEE-EDS for Educational Activities in 2010-2013.
For his contributions and leadership in nanotechnology, he has received numerous awards including: a Presidential Meritorious Award; NASA’s Outstanding Leadership Medal; Arthur Flemming Award given by the Arthur Flemming Foundation and the George Washington University; IEEE Judith Resnick Award; IEEE-USA Harry Diamond Award; AIChE Nanoscale Science and Engineering Forum Award; Distinguished Engineering Achievement Award by the Engineers’ Council; Pioneer Award in Nanotechnology by the IEEE-NTC; Sir Monty Finniston Award by the Institution of Engineering and Technology (UK); Outstanding Engineering Achievement Merit Award (2014) by the Engineers’ Council; IEEE-USA Professional Achievement Award; AVS Nanotechnology Recogntion Award. For his sustained contributions to nanotechnology, he was inducted into the Silicon Valley Engineering Council Hall of Fame in 2009.  He received an Honorary Doctorate in 2015 from the University of Witwatersrand, Johannesburg, South Africa for his scientific contributions.
For his educational contributions, he has received: Outstanding Recognition Award from the NASA Office of Education; the Engineer of the Year Award(2004) by the San Francisco Section of the American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics (AIAA); IEEE-EDS Education Award; IEEE-EAB (Educational Activities Board) Meritorious Achievement Award in Continuing Education.