Atom-thin semiconductors could cut energy use by over 90%

Close up of a blue motherboard

Led by Queen Mary University of London, the team will work in partnership with many manufacturers and several research institutions (> 20 partners contributing over £2million to the project) to develop new materials and prototype revolutionary low-energy-consumption electronic devices such as transistors. This will enable the UK to build a new electronics industry beyond traditional materials with innovative two-dimensional semiconductors.
 
Sir Colin Humphreys, Professor of Materials Science at Queen Mary University of London, who leads the project, said: “Governments around the world are spending billions building wind, solar, nuclear and gas power stations to meet the huge energy demands of AI data centres. Our approach is to tackle the problem at the source: by reducing the power these centres consume in the first place.
To do this we will use the latest new materials, called two-dimensional materials, which are atomically thin. This will save over 90% of the energy required by data centres and computers, reduce the cost of electricity, and help to enable Net Zero.”
 
AI’s energy demands are growing at breakneck speed. The National Grid predicts that the electricity demand from UK data centres will increase sixfold by 2034, to 30% of total electricity used. This would cost £ billions and threaten climate goals. 2D semiconductors have emerged as a front-runner technology for building a more sustainable AI industry while also boosting the UK economy.
 
Colin Humphreys said: “Leading semiconductor industries including TSMC, Intel and Samsung have already recognised 2D materials as the future, placing them on their technology roadmaps for 2040. Our vision is to make the UK the world leader in ultra-low energy 2D devices well before 2040.”

Beyond AI data centres, the 2D materials could be used to dramatically reduce the energy costs of other devices, including smartphones. “You will need to charge your mobile phone weekly instead of daily!” Colin Humphreys said.  

The new 2D materials being developed, including graphene and related compounds, carry electrical charge with far greater efficiency than silicon when scaled down to 2 dimensions; a future requirement for this technology. Electrons in these new materials can move much faster than in silicon, enabling ultra-low power computing and reducing heat waste. They are also ideal for miniaturisation, 3D stacking and new computing architectures like quantum and neuromorphic systems.
 
Amalia Patanè, Professor of Physics at the University of Nottingham and deputy project lead, said: “We are excited about the potential impact of our research and the project's comprehensive approach, spanning from computational modelling and materials synthesis to device fabrication and industrial engagement. 2D semiconductors behave in a fundamentally different way from their bulk (3D) counterparts and their unique electronic properties can support entirely new effects at the atomic scale. We will advance the precise engineering of 2D semiconductors, pushing the limits of what we can create, probe and exploit.”
  
David Moran, Professor of Advanced Semiconductors at the University of Glasgow comments: “This is a truly exciting project that will utilise the extensive state of the art semiconductor fabrication and prototyping capabilities of the James Watt Nanofabrication Centre at University of Glasgow and complementary capabilities at Queen Mary and University of Nottingham to develop truly next generational low-power electronic devices and systems.” 

Queen Mary University of London, the University of Nottingham and the University of Glasgow are recognised globally as leaders in 2D materials and semiconductor research, with a world-class team pioneering breakthroughs in synthesis, characterisation and device integration. Colin Humphreys has also demonstrated the potential of graphene at industrial scale through his company Paragraf. This new project builds on those successes, going from basic science through to prototype devices, to enable the manufacture of complex semiconductor devices, such as transistors, made from new 2D materials.
 
The UK already has Europe’s largest data centre market, with London as its central hub. Replacing energy-wasting silicon chips with low-power 2D transistors will help ensure the UK remains an attractive location for technology investment while proving the economic potential of the energy transition.
 
With the UK electricity grid facing unprecedented demand, this research promises to help the UK meet its climate goals while building a revolutionary new microelectronics industry, creating jobs and wealth, and reducing our electricity costs.