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 Phiar Corporation claims its metal-based electronics technology bridges the speed gap between "conventional" semiconductor chips and high-speed optical (light wavelength) components. In development are these advanced, but lower-cost applications: Flash-memory solid-state data storage drives; millimeter-wave radar; integrated terahertz detector arrays for "X-ray vision" systems; and radio frequency interconnects. The metal-insulator layer stacks in these devices use "quantum tunneling" to transport electrons (electric current) at a much faster rate than semiconductors. "Our technology is the first viable alternative to semiconductors since the vacuum tube," says Adam Rentschler, Phiar's director of business development.
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