Author Archives: Walt

About Walt

I have been involved in various aspects of nanotechnology since the late 1970s. My interest in promoting nano-safety began in 2006 and produced a white paper in 2007 explaining the four pillars of nano-safety. I am a technology futurist and is currently focused on nanoelectronics, single digit nanomaterials, and 3D printing at the nanoscale. My experience includes three startups, two of which I founded, 13 years at SEMATECH, where I was a Senior Fellow of the technical staff when I left, and 12 years at General Electric with nine of them on corporate staff. I have a Ph.D. from the University of Texas at Austin, an MBA from James Madison University, and a B.S. in Physics from the Illinois Institute of Technology.

Analog & Digital – Part II

Posted on October 31, 2023 by Walt | Permalink 0

Today’s electronics are based on the transistor, which can be switched either on (a one) or off (a zero).  Among other things, the sounds coming from musical instruments [..]

Technology

Analog & Digital – Part I

Posted on September 30, 2023 by Walt | Permalink 0

There is no question that we live in a digital world.  What does that mean?  Is there another world?  What is the difference?  We live in a world [..]

Technology

Power Challenges for Greater Computing

Posted on August 31, 2023 by Walt | Permalink 0

As mentioned in previous blogs [Ref. 1] the power consumption to manufacture semiconductors has raised concern.  The International Roadmap for Devices and Systems (IRDS) [Ref. 2] has been [..]

Semiconductor Technology

More Optical Metamaterials

Posted on July 31, 2023 by Walt | Permalink 0

Previous blogs have covered metamaterials for optics including an invisibility cloak.  Reference 1 moves into the shorter wavelengths of extreme ultraviolet (EUV) light.  It is interesting in that [..]

Metamaterials, Semiconductor Technology

The Issue with Artificial Intelligence (AI)

Posted on June 30, 2023 by Walt | Permalink 0

The issue of AI has been in the headlines of major newspapers with all kinds of doom projections.  Reference 1 from earlier this year has 11 areas that [..]

Science, Technology

3-D and Electronics

Posted on May 31, 2023 by Walt | Permalink 0

There has been a lot written about 2-D transistors and the coming applications involving the properties of the circuitry and its ability to create denser circuitry.  There are [..]

Electronics, Semiconductor Technology, Uncategorized

Artificial Intelligence (AI) and Nano Technology

Posted on April 30, 2023 by Walt | Permalink 0

“AI” has become a “hot” topic in both technical publications and general newspapers.  There have been multiple stories of ChatGPT 3.5 and 4.0 and other Chatbots [Ref 1]. [..]

Technology

New transistors in the nano realm

Posted on March 31, 2023 by Walt | Permalink 0

The current structures for semiconductor central processing units (CPUs) are being designed and produced with some dimensions in the single digit nanometer realm.  Beside being hard to make, [..]

Electronics, Metamaterials, Nanotechnology

More nanomaterials, or is it metamaterials, or semiconductors?

Posted on February 28, 2023 by Walt | Permalink 0

Last month’s blog covered changes that are coming in the structure of semiconductor transistors.  With the announcement of 3nm devices [Ref. 1}, there is no uncertainty that the [..]

Metamaterials, Nanotechnology, Semiconductor Technology

A New Year, New Opportunities

Posted on January 31, 2023 by Walt | Permalink 0

Semiconductors are always in the news as the drive for greater capabilities in ever decreasing package sizes.  With the announcement of 3nm node devices going into production, the [..]

Semiconductor Technology