Professor Alexander Moewes (right) and Neil Johnson (left) study a new super-thin material using synchrotron light. DAVID STOBBE / SASKATOON

Young Innovators: Powering the next computer revolution

Neil’s work on silicene is featured in the Saskatoon Star Phoenix newspaper as part of the Young Innovators series.

By FEDERICA GIANNELLI

Read the full article here: http://thestarphoenix.com/news/saskatchewan/young-innovators-powering-the-next-computer-revolution 

From computers to cellphones, the silicon chips that make our electronic devices work have progressively shrunk in size by using smaller and faster components, sometimes just a few dozen atoms thick.     

But in about five years, chip developers will not be able to go smaller because materials that thin become progressively unreliable chip semiconductors, says Neil Johnson, a recent University of Saskatchewan PhD graduate.