May 17, 2019

Castro Announces $99K NSF Grant to UTSA for Computer Systems Research & Development

SAN ANTONIO—Congressman Joaquin Castro (TX-20), Chairman of the Congressional Hispanic Caucus, Vice Chairman of the House Foreign Affairs Committee, and a member of the House Intelligence and Education and Labor Committee, today announces that the National Science Foundation (NSF) intends to award $99,853.00 to the University of Texas at San Antonio (UTSA) for a project addressing the construction of Electrostrictive Field-Effect Transistor (FET) devices while better understanding factors that contribute to superior device performance in terms of speed, power, and reliability.

“I am pleased to know that the University of Texas at San Antonio has taken steps to better understand and enhance our computing systems. One of the most important actions we can take as a community and nation is to adequately prepare for future opportunities and challenges,” said Congressman Castro. “As technological advancements occur, it is vital that we keep the desire to build stronger, effective, and efficient devices at the forefront of our minds. I applaud UTSA on their research and look forward to their results.”

Background: The National Science Foundation (NSF) has announced its intent to award $99,853.00 to the University of Texas at San Antonio (UTSA) for a project titled “EAGER: Feasibility Study of Epitaxial Oxide Resistive Field Effect Transistor (EOR-FET).” Led by UTSA’s Ethan Ahn, the project will address the need to accelerate computing speed while maintaining efficient levels of power consumption in microelectronics. The specific research objective is to determine the best way of constructing the Electrostrictive Field-Effect Transistor (FET) device structure and to understand what factors contribute to superior device performance in terms of speed, power, and reliability. Although extensive research and development efforts of new logic devices exist, there is minimal research on the role of oxides in computing devices and how oxide thin films can lead to better computing. The project’s duration will start June 1, 2019 and conclude May 31, 2020.

# # #