| This dissertation will bring to life a roadmap for studying the effects of a new technology on the design, organization, and architecture of digital computer systems. Until only recently, most research conducted with any nano-scale device has been limited to the realm of device physics, or at best, the simplest circuits. But now, with some specific nano-scale devices showing significant promise and progress, some researchers are beginning to study what computational systems of such devices might look like. My work takes this idea one step further. Its focus is to use research in architecting and designing complex systems of nano-scale devices to actually enhance device development and accelerate potential device implementations. This research was done in the context of the quantum-dot cellular automata (QCA). It considers the design of a completely QCA microprocessor which formed a foundation of circuit design techniques, candidate architectures, and logical design rules for the technology. This foundation has had a positive impact on the most promising implementation for QCA (molecular cells) in the context of FPGAs. It also explores and defines a set of Mead/Conway-esq physical design rules that should promote further interdisciplinary work between device physicists and computer system designers and how these methodologies should be beneficial to other emergent devices. |
