SOFTWARE INDUSTRY NEWS

IBM creates nano 3D world map

26 April 2010 , Written by Dhruv Tanwar
Bookmark and Share


IBM has created a miniature 3D map of the Earth that is so small that a thousand of them could fit on a single grain of salt.

IBM scientists created the map though a breakthrough technique that uses a tiny, silicon tip with a sharp apex — 100,000 times smaller than a sharpened pencil — to create patterns and structures as small as 15 nanometers at greatly reduced cost and complexity. IBM said this patterning technique opens new prospects for developing nano-sized objects in fields such as electronics, future chip technology, medicine, life sciences, and optoelectronics. To demonstrate its capability, the team created several 3D and 2D patterns using different materials for each, as as reported in the scientific journals Science and Advanced Materials:IBM_logo.svg

  • A 25-nanometer-high 3D replica of the Matterhorn, a famous Alpine mountain that soars 4,478 m (14,692 ft) high, was created in molecular glass, representing a scale of 1:5 billion.**
  • Complete 3D map of the world measuring only 22 by 11 micrometers was "written" on a polymer. At this size, 1,000 world maps could fit on a grain of salt. In the relief, one thousand meters of altitude correspond to roughly eight nanometers (nm). It is composed of 500,000 pixels, each measuring 20 nm2, and was created in only 2 minutes and 23 seconds.
  • 2D nano-sized IBM logo was etched 400-nm-deep into silicon, demonstrating the viability of the technique for typical nano-fabrication applications.
  • 2D high-resolution 15-nm dense line patterning.

ibm_3dmapThe core component of the new technique that was developed by a team of IBM scientists, is a tiny, very sharp silicon tip measuring 500 nanometers in length and only a few nanometers at its apex. The tip, similar to the ones used in atomic force microscopes, is attached to a bendable cantilever that controllably scans the surface of the substrate material with the accuracy of one nanometer—a millionth of a millimeter. By applying heat and force, the nano-sized tip can remove substrate material based on predefined patterns, thus operating like a "nanomilling" machine with ultra-high precision. IBM's new technique achieves resolutions as high as 15 nanometers — with a potential of going even smaller.

Potential applications of the new technology, IBM said, range from the fast prototyping of nano-sized devices for future computer chips to the production of well defined micron-sized optical elements like aspheric lenses and lens-arrays for optoelectronics and on-chip optical communication.
 

LISTS AND RESEARCH

  • list Global Software Top 100 - Edition 2011
    • The Global Software Top 100 is a list of the world's largest software companies, ranked by annual software revenues. The list is based upon revenue information of 10,000+ IT companies worldwide.
  • Software industry trends (2011)
    • This research article (accompanying the Global Software Top 100) describes changes in the software industry playing field. It analyses trends and key players and forecasts future developments.
  • Top hardware companies
    • A list of the world's largest hardware companies.
  • What happens in the hardware industry?
    • Trends and analysis of the hardware industry and its key players.
  • Top IT services companies
    • A list of the world's largest IT services companies, ranked by annual services revenues. This link will take you to www.servicestop100.org.
  • IT services companies: healthy growth
    • What is happening in the IT services industry? Read this research publication to find out about trends and key players in the IT services industry.
  • Top gaming companies (2010)
    • Entertainment is good business, and gaming software companies are growing faster than the rest of the software industry. This research article discusses trends and key players in the gaming business.
  • Top ERP companies
    • A research publication about the world's leading players in enterprise software.
  • Top security software companies
    • A research publication discussing the world's leading publishers of security software: antivirus-, spamfiltering-, intrusion detection- and firewall software.
  • The fastest growing software companies
    • This research publication reveals the fastest growing software companies in the world.
  • CRM companies: a short list
    • A short list of the leading software companies selling Customer Relationship Management software; aimed at IT managers looking to purchase CRM software.
  • Top software companies in the US (2010)
    • A list of the largest software companies in the United States, ranked by annual software revenues. 2010 Edition, posted 15 December 2010.
  • U.S. software industry trends (2010)
    • A research publication discussing the trends and the key players in the software industry in the United States. Posted 15 December 2010.
  • Top companies in the world (not just software)
    • A general list of the largest companies in the world, ranked by revenues. Not just software companies; in fact, there are no software companies in it...
  • Top IT companies
    • A list of the largest IT companies in the world, ranked by annual revenues. Includes hardware, software and services.

POPULAR NEWS

RECENT NEWS