This book is designed as an introduction for graduate students, engineers, and researchers who want to understand the current status and future trends of micro- and nano-electronic materials and devices. It also serves as an essential reference for nanotechnology "gurus" who need to keep abreast of the latest directions and challenges in microelectronic technology. The viewpoints presented within the book can help to foster further research and cross-disciplinary interactions required to surmount the barriers facing future generations of technology design.

A Hybrid Route from CMOS to Nano and Molecular Electronics.- From SOI Basics to Nano-Size MOSFETs.- Strategies of Nanoscale Semiconductor Lasers.- Silicon Nanocrystal Nonvolatile Memory.- Novel Dielectric Materials for Future Transistor Generations.- Scanning Force Microscopies for Imaging and Characterization of Nanostructured Materials.- Simulation of Nano-CMOS Devices: From Atoms to Architecture.- Lattice Polarons and Switching in Molecular Nanowires and Quantum Dots.

The high level of attention and interest of the global community to NANO science and technology to a large extent is linked to the GIGAntic challenges for the c- tinuing growth of information technology, which sparked an unprecedented level of interdisciplinary and international cooperation among industrial and academic researchers, companies, IT market rivals, and countries, including former political and military rivals . Microelectronics technologies have reached a new stage in their development: The latest miniaturization of electronic devices is approaching atomic dimensions, interconnect bottlenecks are limiting circuit speeds, new ma- rials are being introduced into microelectronics manufacture at an unprecedented rate , and alternative technologies to mainstream complementary metal-oxide sem- conductors (CMOSs) are being considered . The very dynamic stage of science and technology related to the advanced and future electronics and photonics creates a growing gap between the large number of rapid publications and nanotechnology highlights in media on one side and fundamental understanding of underlying phenomena and an adequate evaluation of scientific discoveries and technological innovations on the other side. Writing a tutorial book on fundamentals of science and technology for electronics at this time is almost the same level of challenge as writing a history book during a revolution.