1FLEET 2017 ANNUAL REPORTANNUAL REPORT2ARC CENTRE OF EXCELLENCE IN FUTURE LOW-ENERGY ELECTRONICS TECHNOLOGIESQuasi-particle interference pattern on the surface of topological semimetal ZrSiS. Image courtesy of Bent Weber & Michael Fuhrer1FLEET 2017 ANNUAL REPORTThe ARC Centre of Excellence in Future Low-Energy Electronics Technologies (FLEET) addresses a grand challenge: reducing the energy used in information technology (IT), which now accounts for 5% of the electricity use on Earth, and is doubling every 10 years. The current, silicon-based technology is 40 years old, and reaching the limits of its efficiency. To allow computing to continue to grow, we need a new generation of ultra-low energy electronics.2INTRO04 FLEET at a glance05 Vision07 Timeline08 Message from the DirectorINNOVATE11 Key data12 FLEET team18 Topological materials22 Exciton superfluids26 Light-transformed materials30 Atomically-thin materials34 Nano-device fabrication010203COLLABORATEKey data 39Research collaborations 40Research translation 43Educational and outreach collaboration 443EQUITY49 Equity and fairness at FLEET INSIDE FLEETGovernance 70Business team 71Advisors 72Executive committee 74Equity and diversity committee 76Education and training committee 77Outreach committee 78Industry relationships committee 79Communications committee 80EDUCATION52 Building future science leadersENGAGE55 Key data56 Annual Workshop58 Engagement and Outreach67 CommunicationsPERFORMANCE82 Key performance indicators84 Research outputs90 Recognition92 Centre finance94 Collaborative visits96 Seminars and workshops97 Members in the media98 Outreach activities05070806044ARC CENTRE OF EXCELLENCE IN FUTURE LOW-ENERGY ELECTRONICS TECHNOLOGIESFLEET AT A GLANCE152CENTRE MEMBERS AND AFFILIATES127INVESTIGATORS ANDRESEARCH ASSOCIATES30EARLYCAREER RESEARCHERS19RESEARCH LEADERSFROM7 UNIVERSITIES13INTERNATIONAL PARTNER ORGANISATIONS2017$42.5 MILLION 2017-2023$5.9M$25.5MILLION2017–20232017–2023 RESEARCH FUNDINGIN-KIND COMMITMENT BY COLLABORATING ORGANISATIONS29JUNE 2017 CENTRE COMMENCEMENT DATE5FLEET 2017 ANNUAL REPORTLow-energy electronics technology under investigation by FLEET is critical for the future of computing and communications, specifically in reducing power consumption and operating costs of large clusters of servers.Steven Duvall FLEET Advisory Committee Chief Technology Officer and General Manager of Technology Development, SilannaVISION2017: FLEET’S FIRST YEAR UNDERSCORES CENTRE’S MISSIONIt’s been an exciting first year for FLEET as the Centre moves off the drawing board to become a real, vital entity, with over a hundred participants working towards a common goal. Recent events reinforced the urgency of FLEET’s mission, with the dramatic rise of Bitcoin introducing the public to the notion that computing is a limited resource, and that the energy used in computation has become a significant factor limiting its growth.Bitcoin’s reliance on the computationally-intensive process of ‘bitmining’ sparked a new industry with ever-more energy-hungry computers running non-stop to generate wealth. The resulting energy demands are a central feature of the cryptocurrency, designed to limit wealth creation. But few expected those energy demands to mount up quite so quickly. In fact, as increasingly strident headlines lamented, Bitcoin’s energy use had grown to exceed that of over 150 individual countries.It was a small-scale demonstration of an unavoidable truth: the exponential demand for new computing capacity must be met with corresponding gains in computing efficiency, or the information revolution will grind to a halt. To date, that need for computing efficiency was largely satisfied by steady progress in conventional, silicon-based computing technology – a phenomenon referred to in the semiconductor industry as ‘Moore’s law’. However there is increasing global recognition, even FLEET will develop: >New systems in which electricity flows with minimal resistance and therefore minimal wasted dissipation of energy >Devices in which this ‘dissipationless’ electric current can be switched on and off at will. These devices will enable revolutionary new electronics and communications technologies with ultra-low energy consumption.6ARC CENTRE OF EXCELLENCE IN FUTURE LOW-ENERGY ELECTRONICS TECHNOLOGIESamongst non-experts, that Moore’s law is slowly winding down. Computer-chip performance is flat-lining. FLEET’s mission to produce a new energy-efficient computing technology is vital and timely. At the same time, the science behind FLEET is gaining more recognition:The 2016 Nobel Prize in Physics was awarded to David Thouless, Duncan Haldane and Michael Kosterlitz for their work on topological phase transitions and topological insulators. Topological insulators form one of FLEET’s three approaches (see p10) to low-energy electronics. Atomically-thin materials, which underpin FLEET’s efforts, were featured in the 2010 Nobel Prize in Physics for the isolation of graphene, and continue to attract attention as they move from the laboratory into applications. Other ideas underpinning FLEET, such as the exploration of phases of matter far from equilibrium, have just begun to catch fire in the scientific community. Thus FLEET begins operations at an opportune time scientifically when new concepts and new tools have just become available and are ripe for exploitation, and FLEET will lead the charge.EFFICIENCY OF COMPUTING(MEGAWATTS PER QUADRILLION INSTRUCTIONS PER SECOND)Time1,00020102015202020252030100100.11SiliconNew TechnologyFLEET will develop electronic devices that operate at ultra-low energy, enabling revolutionary new technologies to drive future electronics and computing, while meeting society’s demand for reduced energy consumption.FLEET’S GRAND CHALLENGE: MINIMISING THE ENERGY USED IN COMPUTATIONFLEET addresses a grand challenge: reducing the energy used in information technology (IT), which already accounts for 5% of the electricity use on Earth, and is doubling every 10 years. The current, silicon-based technology is 40 years old, and reaching the limits of its efficiency.However, fundamental physical limits show that computing efficiency could still be several orders of magnitude better, which inspires us to search for a replacement technology.We have an insatiable demand for computation. Every year, the demand for computation grows by 70%. And using computers consumes energy. Lots of energy.Computing is achieved via microscopic switches called transistors – a couple of billion of them packed into each small computer chip. And each time one of those transistors switches, a tiny amount of energy is burnt. Consider the billions of transistors in each small computer chip, each switching billions of times a second, and multiply that by hundreds of servers in hundreds of thousands of factory-sized data centres…For many years, the growing energy demands of computations were kept in check by ever-more efficient, and ever more-compact computer chips – a trend related to Moore’s Law, which observed that number of transistors in a given area doubled around every 18 months. But Moore’s Law is ending. There are limited future efficiencies to be found in present technology.For computation to continue to grow, to keep up with society’s ever-increasing demands, we need more-efficient electronics. We need a new type of transistor that burns much less energy when it switches.Prof Michael Fuhrer FLEET Director7012017021005JANUARY >Chief Operating Officer appointed >FLEET branding established >Basic website launched >Governance structure and budget reviewedMAY >Equity & diversity policy established >Communications committee established >KPI reporting system established >Co-hosted SPICE workshop with PI Jairo Sinova, MainzFEBRUARY >Strategic Governance Committee Chairs appointed >Research video launched >Guidelines on acknowledgement & using the FLEET brand establishedOCTOBER >Centre branding installed at headquarters Monash >Co-hosted Gordon Godfrey workshop at UNSWJUNE >Centre commencement: 29 Jun 2017 >FLEET website launched >Scholarship policy established >FLEET – Nanyang Technological University Singapore workshop >Home Science program launched03MARCH >Centre Education & Outreach and Communications Coordinators recruited >KPIs approved by ARC >Travel policy established06NOVEMBER >First FLEET annual workshop >Visit by Nobel Laureate Wolfgang Ketterle, MIT (ISAC) >Public lecture by Nobel Laureate Wolfgang Ketterle >Vist by PI Qi-Kun Xue, Tsinghua University >Visit by AI Shaffique Adam, National University of Singapore >Mentoring programs developed (implemented 2018)110408APRIL >Equity & Diversity committee established >Education & Training committee established >Outreach committee established >Recruitment policy established12DECEMBER >Co-hosted first Victorian ARC centres and hubs staff workshop >Tender won to host ICON-2DMat 2018 in AustraliaAUGUST >Centre induction package established >First FLEET public lecture >First FLEET research seminar at Monash09SEPTEMBER >Centre quarterly financial reporting process implemented >First Young Researchers Forum >AC and ISAC strategically established07JULY >Centre Executive Officer appointed >FLEET intranet launched >Research personnel recruitment began >Visit by PI Victor Gurarie, UC Boulder >First FLEET lab tour at SwinburneNext >