Limits - some are more fundamental than others

Abstract

The continued progress in miniaturization of semiconductor devices is pushing device dimensions to 0.1 μm and beyond. Potential limits to device miniaturization are considered. It is concluded that even for the 16 Gb DRAM technology level, limits are more practical than fundamental, and that even if technology progress were to slow dramatically or stop, system performance improvement could continue through improved design tools, circuit and chip design cleverness, and system configurations.