I don’t have time to write about this very important topic, but my journalistic colleague from across the Willamette River in Portland, OR,  wrote a compelling story for EETimes: Bell Labs exits chip research. Here’s a portion of Colin’s report:

Bell Labs abandonment of basic research in IC materials and devices leaves the U.S. with one less semiconductor R&D center at a time when the pace on innovation is quickening and CMOS fabrication moves to advanced nodes beyond 45 nanometers.

Basic R&D investment is our hope for the future. This trend in decreased R&D doesn’t bode well for the chip industry. But more on that later.