Scientists from the University of Warwick and the National Research Council of Canada have achieved the highest hole mobility ever measured in a silicon-compatible material. Using a compressively strained germanium layer on silicon, they reached 7.15 million cm² per volt-second. This breakthrough promises faster, cooler electronics and advances in quantum devices.
Silicon underpins most modern semiconductor devices, but as components shrink, they produce more heat and hit performance limits. Germanium, used in early 1950s transistors, is gaining attention for its better electrical properties while fitting into silicon manufacturing processes.
In a study published in Materials Today, a team led by Dr. Maksym Myronov at the University of Warwick developed a nanometer-thin germanium epilayer on silicon under compressive strain. This structure allows electrical charge to move with minimal resistance, surpassing any prior silicon-compatible material.
The researchers grew a thin germanium layer on a silicon wafer and applied precise compressive strain to create a pure crystal structure. Testing showed a hole mobility of 7.15 million cm² per volt-second, compared to about 450 cm² in standard industrial silicon. This means charges travel much more easily, enabling quicker device operation and lower power use.
Dr. Maksym Myronov, Associate Professor and leader of the Semiconductors Research Group at the University of Warwick, said, "Traditional high-mobility semiconductors such as gallium arsenide (GaAs) are very expensive and impossible to integrate with mainstream silicon manufacturing. Our new compressively strained germanium-on-silicon (cs-GoS) quantum material combines world-leading mobility with industrial scalability -- a key step toward practical quantum and classical large-scale integrated circuits."
Dr. Sergei Studenikin, Principal Research Officer at the National Research Council of Canada, added, "This sets a new benchmark for charge transport in group-IV semiconductors -- the materials at the heart of the global electronics industry. It opens the door to faster, more energy-efficient electronics and quantum devices that are fully compatible with existing silicon technology."
Potential applications include quantum information systems, spin qubits, cryogenic controllers for quantum processors, AI accelerators, and energy-efficient servers that reduce data center cooling needs. This work highlights the UK's role in semiconductor research.