Future satellite technology the role of nanoelectronics
By:  John S. Rice
Publisher: Naval Postgraduate School; Available from National Technical Information Service
Published: 1998
Place of publication: Monterey, Calif; Springfield, Va
Language: eng
Format: Electronic resource
Number of pages: 53
Description: Tiny earth-orbiting spacecraft known as nanosatellites are now possible due to breakthroughs in  microelectromechanics that permit engineers to build extremely small yet fully functional devices. With today's satellite launch costs averaging around $20,000 per pound lifted into space, nanosatellites could revolutionize the future of space access by significantly reducing the size, mass, power requirements, complexity and      ultimately the costs of space systems. The small satellite concept fosters a faster evolution in space science and introduces and tests state-of-the-art space technology. of the technologies required to design a miniaturized      and yet autonomous vehicle, nanoelectronics is at the forefront. The field of nanoelectronics is primarily concerned with integrated circuit (IC) technology for scale sizes well below 100 nanometers. It is in this realm      that the quantum - mechanical nature of the electron becomes of paramount importance. With the tools of quantum physics, reduction in the size of individual transistors has yielded the quantum dot; a three-dimensional structure for confinement of a single electron. The theoretical study in this thesis will show that the width in p-n junctions is generally underestimated for curved * interfaces by textbook formulas. This result is significant for semi-cylindrical quantum dots which are the logical result of continued down scaling in semiconductor devices.
Notes: Thesis advisor(s): James Luscombe, Robert Armstead.

"September 1998."

Thesis (M.S. in Applied Physics) Naval Postgraduate School, September 1998.

Includes bibliographical references (p. 49-51).

"Approved for public release,distribution unlimited"--Cover.

Also available online.

Mode of access: World Wide Web.

System Requirements: Adobe Acrobat reader.

US Navy (USN) author.

dk/dk cc:9116 11/23/98