2 High-Tech Questionnaire

Please answer the following questions:

1. What do you feel will be the major technological development in the next 10 years?

Integration. (this seems important from my standpoint as an electrical engineer. I don't have any insight into bio or chemical or anything like that. Integration seems to enable lots of stuff, though, across many bounds.)

2. Please describe the development and explain why it will be so important.

Historically, integration in terms of integrated circuits meant performing multiple functions previously done by external, space-taking circuitry on one device. Nowadays millions of transistors can be placed on one die, enabling ridiculous amounts of computation in small spaces.

Microprocessors are not the only beasts that enjoy benefits from integration. And for other types of systems that enjoy integration, the already mature business of shrinking die sizes and smaller transistors may not be the relevant paradigm. But speaking, integration is.

Then integration does not only mean producing more transistors per area. It also means inventing new processes to reduce package sizes, to incorporate more than one TYPE of material in one device, etc.

Some examples where integration will help:

Integrating magnetic devices (inductors, transformers) onto power supply ICs, or even integrating these devices with power supply circuitry onto the microprocessor itself.

Integrating power and circuitry in cell phone applications. Perhaps the all the components on a circuit board may become one IC.

Integrating optical and electrical and interface elements on one part to enable optical computing.

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