Transistor Breaks Speed Record

Thanks to funding by the U.S. Defence Advanced Research Projects Agency, the record for the world's fastest transistor has been broken once again by U.S. researchers. The new transistor, made of iridium phosphide and iridium gallium arsenide, has a frequency of 845 GHz (845 billion cycles a second) beating last year's speed record of 704 GHz. 845 GHz is achieved at -55 C while at room temperature (25 C), the transistor operates at 765 GHz.

The scientists at University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign are credited for the achievement and they believe that a tetrahertz, one trillion hertz, is now within reach. Speed is, however, not the only achievement; engineering techniques have also improved, allowing even smaller parts for the transistor (the transistor in question is about 12.5 nanometres wide).

This just goes to show you, the potential for much faster computers and more secure wireless communications is constantly evolving.

News source: CBC News