Quantum-dot cellular automata

There has been increasing concern in recent years that the limits of what can be achieved with current approaches to improving device performance will soon be reached. Quantum-dot cellular automata (QCA) have been proposed as a means of getting around these limitations. This paper reviews the work done concerning QCA to date. First, the QCA architecture is described along with a model used for calculating their properties. Next, the approach to computing with QCA by implementing QCA analogs to traditional logic devices will be discussed. Issues that affect the performance of these devices and the experimental work that has been done are summarized. Finally, some interesting QCA applications are reviewed.