Nanotechnology experts from top US universities will offer insight into the latest nanotech research during SEMI's inaugural daylong Nano U program on Oct. 31, which precedes this week's SEMI NanoForum 2006 at the San Jose Marriott. SEMI, which represents the semiconductor, display, MEMS (microelectromechanical systems) and related industries, said Nano U is designed to promote cooperation between academia and industry. The event is sponsored by SIA, the Semiconductor Industry Association. "Nano U provides a unique forum for industry executives to gain insight on cutting-edge research relevant to their businesses," said Stanley T. Myers, president and CEO at SEMI. "By creating this forum, we are encouraging greater collaboration, ultimately equating to a reduction in R&D costs and faster times to market for the resulting technologies." "The reality is that universities do the vast majority of basic research in America," said SIA President George Scalise. "Close collaboration between the microelectronics industry and academia is essential to establish the direction for basic research activities in nanoelectronics." Currently, there are over 50 nanotech research centers and user facilities operating in the US funded by the National Nanotechnology Initiative, with the National Science Foundation and the National Institute of Health funding the six centers at the five universities presenting at Nano U. Featured speakers include Yoshiro Nishi of Stanford University; Michael Heller of the University of California, San Diego; Fraser Stoddart of UCLA; Arunava Majumdar of the University of California, Berkeley; and nanocar inventor James Tour of Rice University. Stoddart is currently one of the 10 most frequently-cited chemists according to the Institute of Scientific Information. Majumdar, Nishi and Heller have all been active in helping the US government shape its nanotech university research strategies. Collectively, these five professors hold over 120 patents in the US and Japan. On Wednesday and Thursday, also at the San Jose Marriott, SEMI NanoForum will take place. The objective of the event, SEMI said, is to bring nanomaterial and manufacturing experts together with nanotech executives to discuss ways to enhance existing products, develop new nano products faster and speed time to market. Among the featured speakers at SEMI NanoForum is Alan Heeger, Nobel laureate in chemistry, chief scientist and co-founder of Konarka and professor of physics at the University of California, Santa Barbara, who will give a presentation on nanoenergy. Also speaking on that topic will be Ged McLean, president and CTO of Angstrom Power Inc.; Chris Eberspacher, vice president of engineering at Nanosolar Inc.; and Wasiq Bokahari, a managing partner with Quantum Insight. Speaking on the topic of "Nanotechnology and Medicine: The New Frontier" will be G. Steven Burrill, CEO of Burrill & Co.; Jeannine Sargent, EVP/GM, metrology & Instrumentation, and head of corporate marketing and business development for Veeco Instruments; Clinton Ballinger, president, CEO and chairman of Evident Technologies; and Rob Fastenau, senior vice president, Nanoresearch & Industry and nanobiology senior executive, Europe for FEI Co. Giving presentations on "Nanotechnology: The New Era of Defense and Aerospace" will be Michael Postek, assistant to the director for nanotechnology and nanomanufacturing program manager at NIST; Ken Babcock, CEO of Affinity Biosensors; Dean Collins, deputy director of the Microsystems Technology Office at DARPA; and Thomas Feist, Thin Film Lab manager at GE Global Research. "Nanoelectronics: Beyond CMOS" will be covered in talks by Stevens DenBaars, professor of materials and co-director of the Solid State Lighting Center at UC Santa Barbara; Jong Min Kim, vice president, Samsung Fellow and director of Display Labs and the Samsung Materials Research Center; Yang Yang, materials science and engineering professor at UCLA; and Angela Belcher Germehausen, materials science and engineering and biological engineering professor at Massachusetts Institute of Technology and co-founder of Cambrios Technology. She is also a MacArthur Foundation Fellow. For more information, visit: www.semi.org/nanoforum