Carbon nanotube electronics pioneer Nantero has closed a $31.5million financing round, taking its total funding to date to $78m. The company says the successful funding round reflects the prospects for its NRAM – non volatile RAM – technology.
"With Nantero's NRAM, the wait for a new generation of super fast, high density non volatile memory is over," claimed Greg Schmergel, Nantero's president and CEO. "Our technology is already under development today in multiple world class manufacturing facilities and we have more than a dozen major corporate partners actively working on NRAM. We are excited to begin the next phase of commercialisation, which will bring Nantero's NRAM into volume production and change the course of electronics innovation for decades to come."
Nantero's NRAM technology takes advantage of carbon nanotubes to create memories that are said to be scalable, fast and reliable. The approach is also said to suit the development of 3D and multicell memories. Schmergel said he expects the technology to be cheaper than DRAM 'quickly' and to be cost competitive with NAND flash using a 3D approach.
According to Schmergel, the nanotubes are about 1nm apart and move in picoseconds. "The technology has very low power consumption because it's about moving small masses over small distances."
Schmergel believes Nantero's memory could enable new applications. "When flash came out, nobody predicted the mobile phone. We believe our technology will enable a similar wave of innovation."
Author
Graham Pitcher
Source: www.newelectronics.co.uk