CMOS Scaling Trends and Beyond

Scaling transistors and following Moore's law have served the industry well for more than 50 years in providing integrated circuits that are denser, cheaper, higher performance, and lower power. And despite occasional reports of its demise, Moore's law is alive and well. But progress in scaling CMOS has not come easily. We've had to continually invent and introduce new materials and new device structures to deliver the performance, power, and cost improvements expected of each new technology generation. This article describes trends in CMOS scaling over the past decade and discusses some of the new device options and technology directions being explored to continue scaling into the future.