Researchers at Columbia University's Nanoscience Center are on the verge of solving one of the most vexing barriers facing advances in molecular electronics: incorporating individual molecules into functional nanoscale devices and exploiting their electrical and chemical properties.
Scientists have long been intrigued by carbon nanotubes, tiny straws of pure carbon measuring less than a hair's width across. Successfully linking them in stable arrangements would allow for an impressive increase in both the speed and power of a variety of electronics. This new research at Columbia sets the stage for advances in real-time diagnosis and disease treatment, surgical robotics, and information storage and retrieval, potentially rendering room-sized supercomputers obsolete.
In the Jan. 20, 2006, issue of Science, Columbia scientists explain how they have developed a unique way to connect the ends of carbon nanotubes by forming robust molecular bridges between them. The Columbia team was able to combine the best qualities of carbon nanotubes and organic molecules in a single electronic switch, the journal reported. .