Carbon-Nanotube Based Vlsi Interconnects for Next-Gen TerabitScale On-Chip Communication

Abstract

ABSTRACT: As CMOS scaling continues to push physical limits, traditional copper interconnects increasingly suffer from resistive losses, electromigration, signal integrity degradation, and thermal reliability issues. This paper investigates the integration of carbon nanotube (CNT) bundles as high-performance VLSI interconnects to support terabit-scale bandwidths in nanoscale chips. We analyze signal propagation models, crosstalk behavior, temperature dependence, and the influence of CNT chirality variations. A multi-level simulation framework is proposed, combining quantum-mechanical transport analysis with circuit-level delay and power estimation. The study further evaluates CNT-based global interconnects embedded in multilayer 3D ICs, highlighting improvements in latency, electromigration immunity, and thermal diffusivity. Experimental comparisons show that CNT interconnects can reduce propagation delay by up to 45% and improve lifetime reliability by 5–10× compared to copper. We also propose a design methodology for hybrid copperCNT networks optimized for manufacturability and cost.

KEYWORDS: CNT Interconnects, 3D VLSI, Signal Integrity, Terabit Networks, Nano-Materials