News Article
USA shows the way on nanotechnology collaboration
In what should be a wake up call to European industry and government, two USA national nanoelectronics groups have announced a nationwide research programme to ensure the USA develops a strong nanotechnology industry.
In what should be a wake up call to European industry and government, two USA national nanoelectronics groups have announced a nationwide research programme to ensure the USA develops a strong nanotechnology industry. The National Science Foundation (NSF) and the Nanoelectronics Research Initiative (NRI), a consortium of members of the Semiconductor Industry Association (SIA), have agreed to jointly fund a national university-based research program focused on long-term nanoelectronics exploration. NRI will be administered on behalf of the industrial participants by the Nanoelectronics Research Corporation (NERC) a subsidiary of the Semiconductor Research Corporation (SRC).
NSF and NRI will each contribute $1,000,000 to support research aimed at sustaining U.S. leadership in the global semiconductor industry. The six NRI industrial participants – AMD, Freescale Semiconductor, IBM, Intel, Micron Technology, and Texas Instruments – are providing funds for this effort.
This agreement represents the first step as part of the Nanoelectronics Research Initiative (NRI), announced last November by SIA, aimed at the acceleration of nanoelectronics research in universities – research that is crucial not just to the semiconductor industry, but also to the broader information technology ecosystem.
“The global semiconductor industry is facing a critical technology transition over the next 10 to 15 years,” said SIA President George Scalise. “The technology leaders of 2020 will be determined by actions taken today. The incubation period for new technologies is typically 15 years, making it essential for us to support basic research on nanoelectronics today.”
The NRI will explore, both independently and in conjunction with government organizations, new approaches in emerging areas of electronics and other quantum variables (e.g., spin, phase, etc.) at the nanoscale level, aimed at discovering new devices that will work with industry-standard CMOS (complementary metal oxide semiconductor) in the year 2020 and beyond. Dr. Paolo Gargini of Intel (chair) and Dr. Hans Stork of Texas Instruments (vice-chair) will head the governing council overseeing NRIs efforts. Dr. Hans Coufal of IBM is the director of NERC and will lead the NRI Technical Program Group.
“For the first time, the U.S. government and the U.S. semiconductor industry are collaborating on long-term research on nanoelectronics,” noted Dr. Gargini. “This is a very big deal over some very small structures. With these tiny nano transistors - 10 nanometers in size -, we will be able to build 10 billion transistors in the space of a period made by a ballpoint pen."
“We are in a race for global leadership in Information Technology,” said Scalise. “Other countries have recognized the critical importance and value of leadership in Information Technology and the role of nanoelectronics in achieving leadership. The United States has the worlds greatest research universities, but to maintain their leadership, we must continue to fund basic research programs at these universities.”
NSF and NRI will each contribute $1,000,000 to support research aimed at sustaining U.S. leadership in the global semiconductor industry. The six NRI industrial participants – AMD, Freescale Semiconductor, IBM, Intel, Micron Technology, and Texas Instruments – are providing funds for this effort.
This agreement represents the first step as part of the Nanoelectronics Research Initiative (NRI), announced last November by SIA, aimed at the acceleration of nanoelectronics research in universities – research that is crucial not just to the semiconductor industry, but also to the broader information technology ecosystem.
“The global semiconductor industry is facing a critical technology transition over the next 10 to 15 years,” said SIA President George Scalise. “The technology leaders of 2020 will be determined by actions taken today. The incubation period for new technologies is typically 15 years, making it essential for us to support basic research on nanoelectronics today.”
The NRI will explore, both independently and in conjunction with government organizations, new approaches in emerging areas of electronics and other quantum variables (e.g., spin, phase, etc.) at the nanoscale level, aimed at discovering new devices that will work with industry-standard CMOS (complementary metal oxide semiconductor) in the year 2020 and beyond. Dr. Paolo Gargini of Intel (chair) and Dr. Hans Stork of Texas Instruments (vice-chair) will head the governing council overseeing NRIs efforts. Dr. Hans Coufal of IBM is the director of NERC and will lead the NRI Technical Program Group.
“For the first time, the U.S. government and the U.S. semiconductor industry are collaborating on long-term research on nanoelectronics,” noted Dr. Gargini. “This is a very big deal over some very small structures. With these tiny nano transistors - 10 nanometers in size -, we will be able to build 10 billion transistors in the space of a period made by a ballpoint pen."
“We are in a race for global leadership in Information Technology,” said Scalise. “Other countries have recognized the critical importance and value of leadership in Information Technology and the role of nanoelectronics in achieving leadership. The United States has the worlds greatest research universities, but to maintain their leadership, we must continue to fund basic research programs at these universities.”
