Over the past few years, the amount of work that has gone into determining the characteristics of silicon nanowires has increased considerably, mostly because they represent the future of the electronics industry, right next to their carbon nanotube cousins. In their search for ever-smaller technologies, manufacturers are pushing the boundaries of physics research close to the ultimate level, and nanowires are at the forefront of the investigation effort.

Determining the mechanical properties of silicon nanowires has thus become something that many research groups around the world are seeking to determine precisely. Scientists at the North Carolina State University (NC State) have only recently managed a breakthrough in the field, when they have determined some of the traits that the small structures have, as opposed to their larger counterparts. “The mainstream semiconductor industry is built on silicon. These wires are the building blocks for future nanoelectronics,” NC State Assistant Professor of Mechanical Engineering Dr. Yong Zhu says.

The expert is the lead researcher on the new project. His team has found out in experiments that the nanowire variety of silicon is considerably stronger than the large-scale one, a discovery that could pave the way for new ... (read more)