Origami electronics for three dimensional integration of computational devices

Project Information

ORIGENAL

Grant agreement ID: 863258

DOI

10.3030/863258

Project closed

EC signature date 30 August 2019

Start date 1 October 2019

End date 31 March 2024

Funded under

• EXCELLENT SCIENCE - Future and Emerging Technologies (FET)

Total cost

€ 2 743 800,50

EU contribution

€ 2 743 800,50

Coordinated by

BERGISCHE UNIVERSITAET WUPPERTAL
Germany

Periodic Reporting for period 3 - ORIGENAL (Origami electronics for three dimensional integration of computational devices)

Reporting period: 2022-04-01 to 2024-03-31

Summary of the context and overall objectives of the project

Increasing the integrated circuits complexity by lateral scaling, known as Moore’s law, has been the major driving force for the semiconductor industry. Now, after more than 4 decades, new solutions need to be explored to further increase the transistor count, as traditional downscaling strategies are reaching their fundamental limits. One of the most promising directions is to exploit the third dimension in chip architectures.
The ORIGENAL project develops a radically new approach to address the challenge of ultra-dense 3D integration of CMOS devices. The key idea is to use a thin-film-transistor (TFT) technology on thin foil substrate, and then fold the substrate to achieve a dense 3D packaging with completely new integration architectures, addressing both traditional logic and neuromorphic computing schemes
The project focuses on the development of:
1. A suitable thin-film-transistor technology on ultrathin-foil,
2. Tailored 3D interconnects and device architectures,
3. The technology for high precision folding.
ORIGENAL will not only lay the foundations for a new line of technology, but also open up an opportunity to reinforce the technological leadership of European players.

Work performed from the beginning of the project to the end of the period covered by the report and main results achieved so far

The ORIGENAL project developed significant steps towards the realization of foldable electronics based on thin-film-transistor technology on foil, which is suitable to address the challenges of ultra-dense 3D integration of logic components and for flexible sensor devices.
Specifically, a high performance thin-film-transistor technology on foil based on MoS2 and WSe2 as semiconducting channel material was developed, demonstrating excellent logic operation and high mechanical flexibility. Key electronic building blocks including inverters, ring oscillators, multiplexors and operation amplifiers were demonstrated, pushing the performance limits of flexible electronics.
To address the challenges of 3D integration by folding a folding tool was designed based on the knowledge generated within this project. As a final demonstrator a three-layer stack, where the different electronic components were distributed among the layers and were they were interconnected has been successfully achieved in order to show the potential of the developed technology.
The key results of this project, which will be further exploited are:
- Thin-film-transistor technology (TFT) on foil based on MoS2 and WSe2
- Device models and design library for the TFT based devices
- Conceptual design of a folding tool, capable to fold and interconnect electronic layers on flexible foil.

Progress beyond the state of the art and expected potential impact (including the socio-economic impact and the wider societal implications of the project so far)

The ORIGENAL project is targeting a breakthrough for integrated circuits and microelectronics by laying the scientific foundations for a novel and disruptive approach of 3D integration. Therefore this project will have direct impact on the forefront science and also industry in different areas, including thin-film-transistor technology, 2D materials, memory and logics electronics, chip architecture, manufacturing equipment, and material synthesis.
By the proposed 3D integration scheme a significantly higher device density per area is possible, which directly translates into reduced energy consumption and reduced cost per computing power or storage place. This technology has the potential to continuously extend the integration density for more than 30 years after the scaling of the lateral dimensions has reached fundamental limits and thus will have a disruptive impact on the future of the semiconductor industry. In addition, the 3D integration ultimately opens up the route for a novel 3D highly interconnected architecture concept required for reconfigurable electronics or neuromorphic computing.

Folding approaches within the ORIGENAL project.