单选题 Computer microchips could become smaller, faster and cheaper, thanks to scientists in the United States who have developed a speedier method of printing minuscule patterns on silicon chips.
The discovery, by Stephen Chou and fellow scientists at Princeton University in New Jersey, could allow electronics manufacturers to increase the density of transistors on silicon chips by 100- fold and streamline production at the same time.
Instead of taking 10 or 20 minutes to make a computer chip, the electrical engineers have imprinted features measuring I0 nanometers, or 10 millionths of a millimeter, on a computer chip in a quarter of a millionth of a second.
The achievement, which could pave the way for more powerful computers and memory chips, is reported in the science journal Nature.
"You just imprint the pattern directly into the silicon. You not only reduce the steps, you can do it in nanoseconds," Chou said in a statement.
Silicon chips are minute slices of semiconducting material made to carry out functions in everything from toasters and mobile phones to giant corporate computers.
Scientists had been looking for a replacement for silicon because they thought it would be impossible to improve the silicon chip, which would limit advancements in chip size and speed.
Chou has done away with etching, the normal way to make small patterns in silicon, and pressed a mould against a piece of silicon and applied a laser pulse for just 20 billionths of a second. It melts and resolidifies around mould.
"Here we do not need to use all those steps," Chou said. "Scientifically, people are still trying to understand how it works, because it is amazing that it works at all."
He calls the method Laser-Assisted Direct Imprint or LADI. Princeton University is applying for a patent on the technique. In a commentary on the research in Nature, Fabian Pease, of Stanford University, said the achievement will allow electronics manufacturers to continue the pace of miniaturization and keep Moore's laws on track.
Moore's Law, observed by Intel Corp, co-founder Gordon Moore in 196.5, posits that the number of transistors on a semiconductor doubles roughly every 18 months.
"A new imprinting technology for the production of silicon chips, introduced by Chou et al, could keep us on track," Pease said, adding that the law could hold for possibly another two decades.
单选题 What is the significance of the new technology?
  • A. It is a replacement for silicon.
  • B. It is a new imprinting technology to make faster, smaller computer chips.
  • C. It is the improved etching method.
  • D. The pattern can be imprinted directly into the silicon.
【正确答案】 B
【答案解析】[解析] 本题考查主旨大意。文章首段指出“Computer microchips could become smaller，faster and cheaper，thanks to scientists in the United States who have developed a speedier method of printing minuscule patterns on silicon chips．由此可知，由于这项新技术，电脑芯片会变得更小、更快、更便宜。故[B]为正确答案。
单选题 What does "resolidify" (Para. 8, last sentence. mean?
  • A. Become hard again,
  • B. Back to solitude.
  • C. Become liquid.
  • D. Stretch around.
【正确答案】 A
【答案解析】[解析] 本题考查词义辨析。resolidify为派生词。solid，形容词，“固体的，固态的”。re-，前缀，又，再。-fy，动词后缀。resolidify，“再度变得坚硬”。故[A]为正确答案。
单选题 Which of the following statements is NOT true as to LADI?
  • A. It could allow electronics manufacturers to increase the density of transistors on silicon chips by 100 times and simplify production meanwhile.
  • B. A mould is pressed against a piece of silicon and a laser pulse is applied for just 20 billionths of a second before it's done.
  • C. It could result in more powerful computers and memory chips.
  • D. It limits advancements in chip size and speed.
【正确答案】 D
【答案解析】[解析] 本题考查细节判断。文章第二段“The discovery，by Stephen Chou and fellow scientists at Princeton University in New Jersey，could allow electronics manufacturers to increase the density of transistors on silicon chips by 100-fold and streamline production at the same time． ([A])文章第八段…pressed a mould against a piece of silicon and applied a laser pulse for just 20 billionths of a second．([C]) 文章第四段The achievement，which could pave the way for more powerful computers and memory chip…([B])文章第七段Scientists had been looking for a replacement for silicon because they thought it would be impossible to improve the silicon chip，which would limit advancements in chip size and speed．没有这项新技术以前人们想要找东西替换silicon，以为没办法改进silicon chip(芯片)，会限制芯片的大小与速度。故[D]表述错误，为正确答案。
单选题 How many nanoseconds equal one second?
  • A. One million.
  • B. Ten million.
  • C. One hundred million.
  • D. One billion.
【正确答案】 D
【答案解析】[解析] 本题考查细节判断。通过第三段信息10 nanometers = 10 millionths of a millimeter，(10纳米=1毫米的百万分之十)推导出one billion nanoseconds=one second。故[D]为正确答案。
单选题 What can be concluded concerning Moore's laws?
  • A. It has proved to be out of date.
  • B. It is still applicable to electronic industry.
  • C. It will hold for another twenty years.
  • D. It was observed by Gordon Moore in 1965.
【正确答案】 B
【答案解析】[解析] 本题考查推理判断。文章的后三段反复提到“Moore's Law，…the achievement will allow electronics manufacturers to continue the pace of miniaturization and keep Moore's laws on track．…the number of transistors on a semiconductor doubles roughly every 18 months，” 由此可知，摩尔定律指出，大约每18个月半导体上的晶体管的数目就要翻倍。这项新发明使得摩尔定律继续发挥效用。故[B]为正确答案。