As semiconductor industry continues on its path to improve its productivity and profitability, the industry faces roadblocks due to huge capital investments with poor RoI. For past few decades ITRS has provided guidance to the research community and associated funding agencies worldwide, in setting up technological challenges and driving progress in digital technologies supporting the microelectronics industry.

However, Semiconductor industry has witnessed a huge consolidation in the last few years, in order to

1. 1. Increase customer base
2. 2. Offer diverse products
3. 3. Increase profit margins

Today, the semiconductor industry is at a tipping when it comes to technological maturation. The investments needed for next manufacturing node are tremendous and hence only few have the ability to invest. Hence, the ITRS has put forth new industry drivers for More than Moore and Beyond Moore.

On the macroeconomic level, US also has a huge national debt of 18 Trillion dollars and consumer debt in US economy is so high that it seems that even if more products were to be manufactured by the global semiconductor industry in driving the progress with More-than-Moore and Beyond Moore, there will be a lack of economic demand which will bring future progress of this industry to a standstill.

The Industry 4.0 does not seem to become successful in these uncertain economic times. While the technological progress of Moore’s law for last 50 years has been accompanied by a progress of supply-side of economy, the diminishing economic demand needs to be addressed for any future prospects of this industry.

Hence, For More than Moore and Beyond Moore to truly become successful in achieving the progress beyond Moore’s law, the macroeconomic policies have become mandatory to usher free market reforms that would drive economic demand. I had briefly touched on these demand side economic drivers in my second volume with Morgan and Claypool publishers ‘Sustaining Moore’s Law: Uncertainty Leading to a Certainty of IoT Revolution‘.

As per the  road map proposed by ITRS for More-than-Moore, there will not be a single road map of the “More-than-Moore” domain, but many dedicated road maps for those applications or technologies which fits the pre-requisites.

I have addressed many new drivers that would help take the global semiconductor industry to its next level of innovation and financial success. The title of my upcoming volume with Morgan and Claypool publishers is ‘More than Moore and Beyond Moore : Roadmap for Progress of the Semiconductor Industry’.

Did you know that

1. 1. There is a relation between progress of Moore’s law and growth of US National Debt?
2. 2. The global economy is headed for 1929 like economic crash ?
3. 3. The negative interest rates of central banks and resulting stronger US dollar is going to plunge the US and hence the global economy into a depression?
4. 4. The world population alarm is nothing but a myth?
5. 5. 50 years of progress of Moore’s law has been associated with a single roadmap providing a predictability to achieving RoI. And it is essential to have this predictability to ensure more investments into the economy for driving progress of ‘More-than-Moore’ approach.
6. 6. It is possible to have a single driver for measurement of progress of semiconductor industry and the resulting knowledge based economy with progress of ‘More-than-Moore’ because that driver would also ensure a good RoI for continued progress of industry to become sustainable?

If the above thoughts has grabbed your attention then do look forward to reading my third volume to be released in 2016. That would make me an author of three volumes about semiconductor industry in three consecutive years 2014, 2015 and 2016.