The triple helix is a well-established model for building a high-tech industry. It refers to collaboration between industry, academia, and the government. On the other hand, bridging the industry-academia gap has been a growing concern, notable in less developed countries. Despite the ever-increasing concern, this issue has remained unclear, notably within a particular industry like semiconductors. Due to a lack of clarity, academia remains primarily inactive despite the eagerness. Or, at best, they include some related courses at the undergraduate and graduate levels of Engineering and Computer Science Schools, hoping it will address the issue. However, the role of academia in building the semiconductor industry is far more profound than adding a few engineering and computer science courses and setting up laboratories. There appear to be seven major areas in which academia must play a role in developing semiconductor industry. Unfortunately, many of these areas are beyond the scope of best performing engineering and computer science degree offering programmes and research agenda, creating missing academic links.
DEVELOPING MICROCHIP DESIGNERS: One option for entering the semiconductor industry has been offering microchip design services. Hence, the role of academia begins by providing a few technical courses and training on how to use specific microchip design tools. The target is to develop the students’ knowledge and skill base to turn the chips’ high-level specifications into integrated circuit layout artwork. Hence, academia needs faculty members with real-life chip design experience and licences of state-of-the-art design tools, known as electronic design automation or EDA software tools. However, the value addition or revenue earned through offering microchip design services is shallow. For example, in Bangladesh, the average income from each microchip designer is around $10,000. In India, it’s a bit higher–$14,000. However, if firms develop ideas or intellectual properties of following generation chips and they succeed in trading them as their own products, revenue per microchip designer may jump as high as $700,000 per year, as demonstrated by the fabless industry segment of Taiwan.
CONCEIVING THE EVOLUTION OF MICROCHIPS AND GENERATING IDEAS: For generating ideas or intellectual properties (IP) about the next-generation chips, there is a need to study the evolution of target products and predict their likely trajectory. For example, MediaTek has become successful in predicting and driving the evolution of smartphone microchips through its IP. Such success of MediaTek and other fabless companies in Taiwan is at the core of generating as high as $700,000 per designer revenue, which is 50 times higher than that of India. However, Engineering and Computer Science curricula do not address this vital area. Hence, new courses and research programmes should be opened to unlock this opportunity of adding significant value through idea or IP production.
ASSESSING INDUSTRY DYNAMICS AND SWITCHING TO THE NEXT WAVE: Having technology competence is not good enough to develop and sustain the semiconductor industry’s success. For example, due to leveraging the personal computer wave, Intel became the global leader in microchip design and manufacturing. However, it could not sustain it. Surprisingly, while the market was suffering from chip supply scarcity, Intel was counting losses. On the other hand, late comer TSMC has become a global leader. It appears that existing academic curricula falls short in studying and predicting the semiconductor industry dynamics and advising the industry accordingly. Consequentially, despite the presence of top-ranking universities like Stanford and MIT, the USA lost the silicon edge.
DEVELOPING YIELD OPTIMISATION AND INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY (IP) MANAGEMENT CAPABILITY: From design service to wafer processing, yield optimisation plays a vital role. At the core of it is to get insights that are not written in manuals, develop intellectual assets, and apply the learning in improving yield through reducing defects and increasing reuse. It appears that existing academic programmes have significant deficiencies. Consequently, despite having engineers having high calibre qualifications and access to the same type of advanced machines, Intel has been failing to TSMC in the yield race. By developing significant internal capacity, TSMC has taken advantage of this academic missing link to outperform the competition.
DEVELOPING SKILLS FOR MICROCHIP PACKAGING AND TESTING: Microchip packaging and testing is a significant segment of the semiconductor industry. It generates almost $40 billion in revenue. However, academic programmes in Engineering and Computer Science at the University level do not offer this skill. Hence, polytechnique and vocational training institutions should be engaged to develop the needed skills.
TECHNOLOGY ASSESSMENT, LICENSING, ADVANCEMENT, AND FUSION: The success in building the semiconductor industry highly depends on technology assessment, licensing, advancement of licensed technologies, and fusion of multiple technologies. In developing the semiconductor industry, Japan did not get this help from academia. However, Japan overcame this limitation through the academic depth of Sony’s Masaru Ibuka and Akio Morita. To address this missing link, South Korea set up the Korean Advanced Institute of Science and Technology (KAIST). Unlike most academic institutions, it did not start the journey as an undergraduate degree-awarding institution. Instead, its focus has been on technology assessment, advancement, and fusion. It started the journey with postgraduate programmes like M.Sc and PhD. Besides, KAIST has not have a generic mission of producing graduates. Instead, in the form of an academic outfit, KAIST has been playing the role similar to the one played by America’s Battelle Memorial Institute in refining photocopier invention. On the other hand, for this purpose, Taiwan set up the Industrial Technology Research Institute(ITRI). In retrospect, it may not be unfair to conclude that due to the weakness in this vital area, despite having the Indian Institute of Technologies (IITs) and Semiconductor Fabrication Lab, India could not succeed like Korea and Taiwan in developing the semiconductor industry.
MANAGING TECHNOLOGY, R&D, AND INNOVATION: The availability of high-calibre science and technology competence is not sufficient enough for building the semiconductor industry. The success in this industry grows from humble beginnings through creating the snowball effect. It happens due to the growth of technologies and innovation from the embryonic beginning. However, such possibilities are fraught with pervasive uncertainties and technology discontinuities. Hence, competence in managing technology, R&D, and innovation is vital for developing the semiconductor industry. Unfortunately, most academic programmes in science, engineering, and business do not address this vital issue.
Due to the growing importance of the semiconductor industry, advanced countries are in a race to deepen their footprints. And a few developing countries have been aspiring to enter the global race. It’s worth noting that although South Korea graduated from delivering assembling and testing services to MNCs in the 1960s to a powerhouse of microchip fabrication and innovation, Malaysia, the Philippines, and Thailand are still stuck in labour-centric service delivery. Besides, although through the transfer of older fabrication technology by RCA, Taiwan has succeeded in becoming a global success story, India could not develop similar success out of its investment in a semiconductor fabrication facility. Furthermore, due to such missing links, despite having early success, a few countries, such as Canada and the UK, known for high-quality engineering education and research could not scale or retain initial success. On the other hand, within a few years of licensing semiconductor technology from America’s Bell Labs, Sony-led Japan took over the global lead and retained this position for 30 years. Hence, it’s not unfair to conclude that unless academic missing links for attaining the competence of technology, innovation, and R&D management and understanding the unfolding global dynamics of the semiconductor industry are addressed, it would be highly unlikely to develop high performing semiconductor industry through only science & technology knowledge and skills-based education and wage differential.
M. Rokonuzzaman, Ph.D is academic and researcher on technology, innovation and policy.
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