Congratulations go to the research team led by Prof Kei May Lau, Chair Professor of Electronic and Computer Engineering, for receiving the JSAP Outstanding Paper Award from the Japan Society of Applied Physics for its work on novel high-speed, energy-saving transistors. This is the first time the award has been won by any team from Hong Kong and Mainland China since its inception in 1979.

 

The paper on "Inverted-Type InGaAs Metal-Oxide-Semiconductor High-Electron-Mobility Transistor on Si Substrate with Maximum Drain Current Exceeding 2A/mm" was co-authored by alumna Dr Xiuju Zhou, PhD student Qiang Li, researcher Chak Wah Tang and Prof Lau. The award honors excellent original papers that contribute to the progress and improvement of applied physics.

 

The novel "match-making" technology deposits next-generation, high-speed, energy-efficient transistors on silicon using high-mobility compound semiconductor materials. These devices seek to reduce power consumption by as much as 10 times and increase switching speeds five-fold. This is indeed groundbreaking work, given the importance of computers, mobile devices and other gadgets in everyday life and their reliance on high-performing transistors.

 

In addition, the research team has also demonstrated high-speed transistors and photo-detectors utilizing the compound crystals with comparable performance to those using high-cost matching crystals. The project is supported by major multinational companies in the field and by public funding, and the technology is expected to be widely used by the semiconductor integrated circuit industry in the future.