Molectronics: A circuit design perspective

Recently, several mechanisms have been proposed as a basis for designing molecular electronic logic switching elements. Many two terminal molecular devices functioning as diodes have been synthesized with responses similar to silicon devices such as rectifying and resonant tunneling diodes. In this paper, the feasibility of integrating these molecular diodes into current circuit architectures is explored. A series of logic gates and a memory element are simulated based on the voltagecontrolled current flow method using the Tour-Reed molecular diode exhibiting negative differential resistance (NDR). HSPICE simulation results are used to illustrate the performance of these devices and to quantify additional component and interconnect requirements. Finally, future system design approaches using molecular components are discussed.