Rad-Hard by Design (RHD) Transistors for Space Sensors

Nanoscale vacuum channel transistors (VCTs) recently attracted the attention of the microelectronics community due to their ability to operate at higher frequencies, with faster response and with higher reliability than the conventional field effect transistors (FETs). Importantly, VCTs can operate in harsh environments such as when exposed to ionizing radiation and/or subjected to high temperatures. Thus, they are considered for the development of microelectronics components capable of surviving and performing through space radiation environments. However, VCTs are challenging to manufacture even with nanolithography as they have complex geometry. A novel approach is needed for large scale manufacturing of these devices. RMD Inc. will address this challenge by adopting and developing a novel geometry of vertically aligned field emission transistor with a cylindrical vacuum channel. We will apply the industry-standard techniques to fabricate the vertically aligned vacuum transistor and demonstrate wafer-level scalability. Approved for Public Release |21-MDA-10789 (21 Apr 21)