Nanocomputers and Swarm Intelligence

Jean-Baptiste Waldner is a technology-managing consultant for various companies. He has also worked as head of operations for Carrefour and PPR, where he instigated worldwide transformations based on the intensive use of IT, telecommunications and digital technologies.

• Foreword ixDidier TRUTTPreface xiiiAcknowledgements xixIntroduction xxiChapter 1. Revolution or Continuity? 11.1. Ubiquity and pervasion 11.2. From the art of building small – perspectives of nanoproduction 4Chapter 2. The Rise and Anticipated Decline of the Silicon Economy 72.1. 40 years of global growth 72.2. From sand to the chip, the epic of semi-conductors 92.2.1. Semi-conductors – some solid-state physics 102.2.2. CMOS technology and high-density integrated circuits 142.2.3. Half a century of industrial methods and processes 162.3. The fatality of Moore’s Law: “the wall” 222.3.1. The disaggregation of the microelectronics industry value chain 262.3.2. The ITRS (International Roadmap for Semi-conductors) – a race to controlled miniaturization 292.3.3. Will a slowdown in the economy overturn established models? 332.4. Beyond silicon – from microelectronics to nanotechnologies 36Chapter 3. Rebuilding the World Atom by Atom 413.1. Manipulation on an atomic scale – the scanning tunneling microscope 413.2. From the manipulation of atoms to nanomachines – the concept of self-assembly 453.3. From the feasibility of molecular assemblers to the creation of self-replicating entities 493.4. Imitating nature – molecular biology and genetic engineering 553.4.1. When nature builds its own nanomachines 563.4.2. Genetic engineering – the nanotechnology approach by life sciences 603.5. From coal to nanotubes – the nanomaterials of the Diamond Age 623.6. Molecular electronics and nanoelectronics – first components and first applications 703.6.1. Carbon Nanotube Field Effect Transistors (CNFET) 713.6.2. Hybrid mono-molecular electronic circuits733.6.3. Organic molecular electronics 753.6.4. Spin valves and spintronic semi-conductor components 823.6.5. Quantum dots and the phenomenon of quantum confinement 85Chapter 4. The Computers of Tomorrow 894.1. From evolution to revolution 894.2. Silicon processors – the adventure continues 934.2.1. Progress in photolithography and new materials 954.2.2. The structure of microprocessors 1014.2.3. Digital signal processing and DSP processors 1074.3. Conventional generation platforms 1094.3.1. Traditional platforms 1104.3.2. Emerging platforms 1134.3.3. Distributed computing, an alternative to supercomputers 1154.4. Advanced platforms – the exploration of new industries 1194.4.1. Quantum information systems 1214.4.2. DNA computing 130Chapter 5. Elements of Technology for Information Systems of the New Century 1355.1. Beyond processors 1355.2. Memories and information storage systems 1385.2.1. Memories consisting of semi-conductors – perspectives 1405.2.2. Limits of magnetic data storage 1465.2.3. Holographic memory 1505.2.4. The technology of AFM memories 1545.2.5. Molecular memory 1565.3. Batteries and other forms of power supply 1575.3.1. Lithium-ion and lithium-polymer batteries 1595.3.2. Zinc-air batteries 1605.3.3. Micro-batteries 1615.3.4. Micro-batteries using nuclear energy 1625.3.5. Recharging batteries with the help of kinetic energy 1635.4. New peripheral devices and interfaces between humans and machines 1635.4.1. Automatic speech recognition 1655.4.2. Gesture recognition 1705.4.3. Processing and recognizing writing 1715.4.4. Eye tracking 1725.4.5. Brain machine interface 1735.4.6. Electronic paper 1775.4.7. New visualization systems 1815.5. Telecommunications – a different kind of revolution 1845.6. The triumph of microsystems 1875.7. Is this the end of the silicon era? 190Chapter 6. Business Mutation and Digital Opportunities in the 21st Century 1976.1. Towards a new concept of information technology 1976.2. Ubiquitous information technology and the concept of “diluted” information systems 1996.3. Highly diffused information systems – RFID 2046.3.1. The “Internet of things” and the supply chain of the future – Auto-ID 2096.3.2. Economic opportunities vs. privacy protection 2146.4. New challenges for web applications in a global network of objects 2186.4.1. Complexity and efficiency of very large infrastructures 2196.4.2. From centralized intelligence to swarm intelligence – reinventing the programming code 2246.5. The IT jobs mutation 2316.5.1. New concepts in agile software development 2356.5.2. Ambient intelligence and the delocalization of jobs in the IT sector 2416.5.3. New opportunities for the profession 245Conclusion 253Bibliography 259Index 263