Beyond silicon: How the US can pioneer the next phase of computing

This year marked the 75th anniversary of the Nobel Prize-winning invention of the transistor — a catalyst that sparked a transformation in technology and changed the world forever. The advancements that followed have made chips central to the function of our society. So much so that humanity now stands on the verge of a major inflection point in how we live, learn and work. 

The planet faces an urgent need for computing solutions that are energy-efficient and scalable before the carbon footprint of this exponential growth in computing and data generation, storage and analysis becomes unsustainable. While chips are, once again, at the heart of this transformation, we now must rise to meet the challenge of what’s next.

The foundational inventions, scaling and commercialization of the most significant advances in semiconductors happened here in the United States. However, other countries have since taken the lead in the manufacturing of those inventions to now produce more than 88 percent of the world’s chips.

The U.S. must regain its foothold in the microelectronics manufacturing industry, but an investment in manufacturing alone is not enough. For us to truly surpass our international competitors and be able to sustain the ever-growing semiconductor chip industry, we need to invest in an innovation-focused infrastructure.

As part of the FY 2021 National Defense Authorization Act, the U.S. authorized nearly $53 billion over five years for an incentive program to promote domestic semiconductor technology manufacturing, design and research, and in 2022, we passed the CHIPS and Science Act with the goal of regaining our competitive edge in chip manufacturing. This once-in-a-generation investment of taxpayer dollars has the potential to position America as a true leader in the discovery, innovation and manufacturing of semiconductors and will have a profound impact on the U.S. economy — if leveraged effectively.

A one-stop shop for chip design, fabrication and future R&D as a national resource does not exist today. The right confluence of academic partners, a large pool of engineering and computing students, national laboratories, space and land, a strong pool of diverse talent and workforce to be reskilled and a “get the work done” culture are the critical ingredients necessary to fuel an innovation renaissance in the U.S. 

This national resource for the prototyping of microelectronics and semiconductors would enable companies to try out new designs on the latest silicon technologies by coordinating design, manufacturing, advanced packaging and testing of new concepts that could then be prototyped quickly. Furthermore, this structure would enable U.S.-based researchers and companies to focus on the necessary innovations to pull ahead of our international competitors in addressing global challenges in the field of microelectronics.  

As we shift our focus to the future, we cannot ignore the realities of silicon’s limitations. Silicon chips can only be scaled down so much before they run up against performance limits and reliability concerns. To meet the computing demands of the future, we must develop “beyond silicon” technologies. Whatever comes next will need to interface and integrate with our existing silicon products, and innovations in design and materials will be the key to establishing superiority in manufacturing the devices that power the American economy.

Investment in innovation and design is also essential to addressing the planet’s need for energy-efficient and scalable computing solutions. With the explosive growth of complexity in generative AI, the carbon footprint of chips and associated data centers will become unsustainable.

Not only does the carbon footprint of current technologies need to be reduced, but we need to prioritize a reduction in emissions as we explore approaches to go beyond silicon. The solutions to these challenges will come not only from the discovery and invention of new materials and manufacturing techniques that produce less carbon but also from broader clean energy and sustainability initiatives to use alternative sources of power to run manufacturing plants such as hydrogen or micro-nuclear reactors.

We, of course, cannot ignore the talent and workforce that will be required to fuel this innovation boom. An investment in deeper and longer-term partnerships between academic institutions and industry will be critical to ensure that training is aligned to the cutting edge and provide students with access to tech resources that are not typically available to universities.

There is no shortage of possibilities when we think about the innovations that will be born out of the next 75 years. However, it is clear that an investment in what’s possible — not in creating more of what already exists — is essential if the U.S. is to lead the way in developing technology that goes beyond silicon to meet the global need for sustainable computing and data solutions.

Rashid Bashir, Ph.D. is the dean of The Grainger College of Engineering at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign. He has authored or co-authored over 250 journal papers, over 200 conference papers and conference abstracts, and over 100 invited talks, and has been granted 45 patents.