Shrink-Path of ultra-low power super-conducting electronics

SONDERMANN Frank

Commissariat a l'energie Atomique, FRANCE
The Chancellor, Masters and Scholars of the University of Cambridge, UNITED KINGDOM
Universiteit Twente, NETHERLANDS
STELLENBOSCH University, SOUTH AFRICA
Consiglio Nazionale delle Ricerche, ITALY
PHYSIKALISCH-TECHNISCHE BUNDESANSTALT, GERMANY
TECHNISCHE UNIVERSITAET ILMENAU, GERMANY
IMMS INSTITUT FUER MIKROELEKTRONIK- UND MECHATRONIK-SYSTEME GGMBH, GERMANY
UNIVERSITAET KARLSRUHE (TH), GERMANY
THALES SA, FRANCE
THALES ALENIA SPACE FRANCE, FRANCE
UNIVERSITE DE SAVOIE, FRANCE
THE UNIVERSITY OF BIRMINGHAM, UNITED KINGDOM
CHALMERS TEKNISKA HOEGSKOLA AKTIEBOLAG, SWEDEN

Institut fuer Photonische Technologien E.V. IPHT
Albert Einstein Str. 9 Postfach 07745, Jena, GERMANY
Tel: +49-3641-206-023
Fax: +49-3641-206-099

The proposed Support Action S-PULSE aims to prepare Super-conducting Electronics (SE) for the technology generation beyond the CMOS scaling limits ("beyond CMOS"). Scaling laws in CMOS technology indicate that some concepts cannot be simply extrapolated, and new physical effects that have been negligible up to now, have to be taken into account in the future. Due to the total different physical base in SE, it never had a scaling law, and quantum limits define the ultimate speed. This provides already demonstrated logic operation speed above 100GHz with typically power dissipation of 1 aJ per logic operation with a 1 µm feature size metal based process.

The European activities in SE are currently coordinated by the non-profit Society FLUXONICS e.V., a SCENET initiative under FP6 for a dynamic technology platform in SE. As a major outcome of this network, a circuit foundry for SE was established, a cell library was made available and a first roadmap was drawn up in the field. S-PULSE supports joint efforts of European academic and industrial groups in the super-conducting technologies field. The action is to strengthen the vital link between research and development on the one hand and the industrial view on the other hand, bring together industrial expectations and visionary extrapolation and current status of technology, intensify the exchange of knowledge and ideas, take charge of education, and win public interest.

The overall strategy of S-PULSE is to broaden the FLUXONICS network and to promote the formation of a European Technology Platform (ETP) to develop and implement a Strategic Research Agenda in the field of ultra-low power super-conducting electronics down to the nano-scale domain. With the view on the formation of an industrial guided ETP in the field of SE, the SA is expected to strengthen the competitiveness of the European nanoelectronics industry and to make SE technologies ready to compete with other technologies in the world markets.