Nanocomputing (ePub)

Nanocomputer is the logical name for a computer smaller than the microcomputer, which is smaller than the minicomputer. (The minicomputer is called "e;mini"e; because it was a lot smaller than the original (mainframe) computers.) More technically, it is a computer whose fundamental parts are no bigger than a few nanometers. Computational nanotechnology is a powerful tool for understanding nanoparticle physics and chemistry. After carrying out a simulated experiment, theory is developed to explain the observed results, which is then validated by conducting a lab experiment. If the predicted results and the theoretical results agree, then the theory is accepted. Unexpected results from laboratory work can also be examined with theoretical methods, which often lead to the development of new theory. Electronic nanocomputers would operate in a manner similar to the way present-day microcomputers work. The main difference is one of physical scale. More and more transistors are squeezed into silicon chips with each passing year; witness the evolution of integrated circuits (ICs) capable of ever-increasing storage capacity and processing power. The ultimate limit to the number of transistors per unit volume is imposed by the atomic structure of matter. Most engineers agree that technology has not yet come close to pushing this limit. In the electronic sense, the term Nanocomputer is relative. By 1970s standards, today's ordinary microprocessors might be called Nanodevices. The book will make fascinating and useful reading for computer engineers, scientists, administrators, public policy makers, and students in a range of science and engineering discipline.