Researchers at the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) have set the stage for building an “evolutionary link” between the microelectronics of today (built from semiconductor compounds) and future generations of devices, made largely from complex organic molecules, by assembling the devices on the same kind of substrate used in conventional microchips.

The ability to use a silicon crystal substrate compatible with the industry-standard CMOS (complementary metal oxide semiconductor) manufacturing technology paves the way for hybrid CMOS-molecular device circuitry. This, in turn, is a necessary precursor to a “beyond CMOS” totally molecular technology.

National Institute of Standards and Technology News Release