Energy dissipation and transport in nanoscale devices

TLDR

Energy dissipation and transport in nanoscale structures are critical for designing energy‑efficient circuits and energy‑conversion systems, and represent a fertile area for fundamental discoveries at the intersection of electron, lattice, and optical interactions. This review surveys recent progress in understanding and manipulating energy dissipation and transport in nanoscale solid‑state structures. The authors survey power usage across scales from nanoscale transistors to data centers, examine dissipation in circuits, silicon transistors, carbon nanostructures, and semiconductor nanowires, review steady‑state and transient thermal transport for sub‑nanosecond switching, and discuss recent advances in electrical and thermal conductivity, thermal rectification, and interface effects.

Abstract

Understanding energy dissipation and transport in nanoscale structures is of great importance for the design of energy-efficient circuits and energy-conversion systems. This is also a rich domain for fundamental discoveries at the intersection of electron, lattice (phonon), and optical (photon) interactions. This review presents recent progress in understanding and manipulation of energy dissipation and transport in nanoscale solid-state structures. First, the landscape of power usage from nanoscale transistors (∼10−8 W) to massive data centers (∼109 W) is surveyed. Then, focus is given to energy dissipation in nanoscale circuits, silicon transistors, carbon nanostructures, and semiconductor nanowires. Concepts of steady-state and transient thermal transport are also reviewed in the context of nanoscale devices with sub-nanosecond switching times. Finally, recent directions regarding energy transport are reviewed, including electrical and thermal conductivity of nanostructures, thermal rectification, and the role of ubiquitous material interfaces.