Self-driving cars that eliminate traffic jams, remote health checks from your living room, or even feeling a loved one's touch from across the country might sound like science fiction -- but thanks to a new breakthrough from scientists at the University of Bristol, these ideas could soon become part of everyday life.
Published in Nature Electronics, this research reveals a major advance in semiconductor technology, which could pave the way for the next generation of wireless networks: 6G.
These networks are expected to be much faster and more powerful than today's 5G, enabling people to share huge amounts of data instantly, from anywhere in the world.
Professor Martin Kuball, one of the study's leaders, says that in just ten years, technology that once seemed impossible could be widely available.
This includes remote medical care, virtual classrooms, virtual travel, smarter driverless cars that improve safety, and more efficient factories.
"The potential is enormous," he said, "and our new semiconductor discovery helps bring all of this closer."
A big challenge in building 6G networks is improving the materials and systems that send and receive signals. One of the most important components is the radio frequency amplifier, which boosts the signal strength.
These amplifiers are made from a material called gallium nitride (GaN), known for handling high power and speed.
The team developed a new way to improve these GaN devices using a clever trick called the "latch effect."
This effect, when understood and controlled, allows the device to send signals more efficiently. They built a special type of transistor called a superlattice castellated field effect transistor -- SLCFET for short -- which has more than 1,000 tiny fins, each less than 100 nanometers wide (about 1,000 times thinner than a human hair). These fins help drive current through the device more effectively.
Dr. Akhil Shaji, another lead researcher, explained that although these devices had already shown great performance at very high frequencies, no one had figured out why -- until now. They discovered that the latch effect was the key, and by carefully measuring and analyzing more than 1,000 of these tiny fins, they found that the effect happens in the widest fin.
To make sure this effect wouldn't harm the device over time, the researchers tested it for durability. They found that the latch effect didn't reduce performance or reliability. In fact, a thin coating around each fin helped make the device more stable.
Now, the team is working to boost the power even more and hopes to see this technology used in real-world products soon.
With help from industry partners, these powerful new devices could one day bring science fiction dreams to life through 6G technology.