Extending life of silicon chips.

Treating silicon chips--the lifeblood of modern computers and other electronic devices--with deuterium rather than hydrogen during a final processing step extends their life and should make it possible to drive the chips harder and faster, Joe Lyding and Karl Hess, professors of electrical and computer engineering, University of Illinois, indicate. The processing change has extended the life of chips used by AT&T Bell Laboratories by as much as 50 times and appears to be 100% compatible with existing silicon chip-processing technology.

The treatment allows the chips to withstand the damage generated by electrons passing through them. The deuterium-treated chips also should stand up better in harsh environments, such as space. The treatment could improve the reliability of other chip-carrying devices in everything from kitchen appliances and automobiles to military weapons systems.

Deuterium is a stable, non-radioactive...