Patent ID: 7517794

Claim:
A method for fabricating a nanoscale shift register, the method comprising: applying a nanoimprinting-resist layer above a silicon-on-insulator substrate; nanoimprinting the nanoimprinting-resist layer to form troughs and trough segments; etching a silicon layer exposed at the bottom of the troughs and trough segments; depositing a conductive material into the troughs to form nanowires and into the trough segments to form nanowire segments; coating the exposed surfaces of the nanowires with a protective coating; removing the conductive material of the nanowire segments, unprotected by the protective coating applied to the nanowires, to produce trough segments etched through the nanoimprinting resist and the silicon layer; fabricating a dielectric column between configurably resistive columns in orientations non-parallel with the orientation of the nanowires to form a layer above the nanowires; fabricating gate signal lines above, and parallel with, the dielectric column; and fabricating latch-control signal lines above, and parallel with, the configurably resistive columns.