It is anticipated that the scaling of silicon complementary metal–oxide–semiconductor (CMOS) devices will end around 2020, but alternative technologies capable of maintaining advances in computing power and energy efficiency have not yet been established. Among various options, carbon-nanotube-based electronics has been shown to be one of the most promising candidates. A range of methods have been developed to prepare high-purity semiconducting carbon nanotubes suitable for use in integrated circuits, and 5 nm nanotube transistors with superior performance to that of silicon CMOS have been demonstrated. Here, we explore the potential of carbon nanotube digital electronics. We examine the development of nanotube-based CMOS field-effect transistors and the different nanotube material systems available to build integrated circuits. We also highlight the medium-scale integrated circuits created to date and consider the challenges that exist in delivering large-scale systems.

预计硅互补金属氧化物半导体（CMOS）器件的规模将在2020年左右结束，但尚未建立能够保持计算能力和能效进步的替代技术。在各种选择中，基于碳纳米管的电子产品已被证明是最有前途的候选产品之一。已经开发出多种方法来制备适用于集成电路的高纯度半导体碳纳米管，并且已经证明了具有优于硅CMOS的性能的5nm纳米管晶体管。在这里，我们探索碳纳米管数字电子技术的潜力。我们研究了基于纳米管的CMOS场效应晶体管的开发以及可用于构建集成电路的不同纳米管材料系统。