Bulletin of the American Physical Society
APS March Meeting 2014
Volume 59, Number 1
Monday–Friday, March 3–7, 2014; Denver, Colorado
Session W23: Invited Session: Industrial Physics Forum: Panel Discussion: Industrial Innovation: An Intersection Among Industry, Academia and Government |
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Sponsoring Units: FIAP Chair: David Seiler, National Institute of Standards and Technology Room: 505-507 |
Thursday, March 6, 2014 2:30PM - 2:36PM |
W23.00001: Introduction and Overview of the Industrial Interactive Panel Session David Seiler A unique industrial panel covering the challenges and needs of various industries and how being innovative is important. The session involves two invited industry speakers (24 minutes each) who will set the stage for the interactive round table panel session. The Panel, led by moderator Mark Bernius (Morgan Advanced Materials), consists of the two invited speakers plus an additional four industry panelists. The first twenty-four minutes of the panel session has the four additional panelists introducing themselves and their work/company. These introductions could include what they or their company does, sharing one or two technical highlights, listing some challenges or needs for physicists, and what innovation breakthroughs are needed in their industries. The final hour of the session will be highly interactive with questions to the panel coming from the moderator, the audience, and the panelists themselves. Questions that might be addressed include: how physicists are or could be critical in advancing innovation; how can AIP/APS/FIAP help industry get the physics help they need to be innovative (knowledge, the right staff, etc.); what role can students and post docs play in advancing industry's mission; etc. We invite you to participate in this interactive session and ask our industry experts your own interesting and challenging questions. The invited speakers are George Thompson, Intel, and James Hollenhorst, Agilent Technologies. The panel members also include Jason Cleveland, Asylum Research; Robert Doering, Texas Instruments; William Gallagher, IBM T.J. Watson Research Center; and Martin Poitzsch, Schlumberger-Doll Research. [Preview Abstract] |
Thursday, March 6, 2014 2:36PM - 3:00PM |
W23.00002: Industry - Government Collaboration as an Engine of Innovation Invited Speaker: George Thompson The role of the government in encouraging innovation is a widely discussed topic in science policy today. This talk will review at a high level some of the different models for collaboration between industry and government, with an eye towards elucidating some of the collaboration characteristics that may be best correlated to successful innovation. Specific examples of programs based on goal setting, supporting the relevant national labs and universities, and direct public - private partnerships will be described in order to provide concrete examples. [Preview Abstract] |
Thursday, March 6, 2014 3:00PM - 3:24PM |
W23.00003: Perspectives on Industrial Innovation from Agilent, HP, and Bell Labs Invited Speaker: James Hollenhorst Innovation is the life blood of technology companies. I will give perspectives gleaned from a career in research and development at Bell Labs, HP Labs, and Agilent Labs, from the point of view of an individual contributor and a manager. Physicists bring a unique set of skills to the corporate environment, including a desire to understand the fundamentals, a solid foundation in physical principles, expertise in applied mathematics, and most importantly, an attitude: namely, that hard problems can be solved by breaking them into manageable pieces. In my experience, hiring managers in industry seldom explicitly search for physicists, but they want people with those skills. [Preview Abstract] |
Thursday, March 6, 2014 3:24PM - 3:30PM |
W23.00004: Connecting Physics with Engineering in Industrial R&D Invited Speaker: Robert Doering Profitable products are frequently enabled by innovations that prevent early commoditization. At its best, industrial physics research provides the key differentiators for such products. To fulfill this goal, it's necessary to establish effective working relationships between R\&D staff with both physics and engineering backgrounds. In the semiconductor industry, the ``middle ground'' is often materials science, electromagnetics, or a wide range of phenomena useful for creating sensors. In this brief presentation, we will mention a few examples of such collaborative development at Texas Instruments, including MEMS devices, ferroelectric memory, and silicon-IC-based radar. [Preview Abstract] |
Thursday, March 6, 2014 3:30PM - 3:36PM |
W23.00005: Physics-Driven Innovation In the Oil and Gas Industry Invited Speaker: Martin Poitzsch In terms of sheer scale and financial investment and geographical footprint, nothing is bigger than the oil and gas industry. This ``mature industry'' employs a bewildering mix of technologies dating from the 19$^{\mathrm th}$ century to the 21$^{\mathrm th}$. Oil well construction represents one of the largest volume markets for steel tubulars, Portland cement, and high-quality sand. On the other hand, advanced 3D seismic data processing, shaped-charge perforating, and nuclear well logging have consistently driven forward the state of the art in their respective areas of applied science, as much or more so than defense or other industries. Moreover, a surprising number of physicists have made their careers in the oil industry. To succeed at introducing new technology requires understanding which problems most need to be solved. The most esoteric technology can take off in this industry if it honestly offers the best solution to a key problem that is costing millions of dollars in risk or inefficiency. When the right breakthrough solution emerges, the resources to implement it can be almost limitless. However, the prevailing culture is conservative and brutally cost-driven: any cheaper or simpler solution that performs as well will prevail, no matter how inelegant! [Preview Abstract] |
Thursday, March 6, 2014 3:36PM - 3:42PM |
W23.00006: A Physicist Role in Innovation within IBM Research Invited Speaker: William Gallagher The broad and deep insight a physicist brings to the goings on in a large technology company lead to many varied and exciting opportunities. Examples in my own career include contributions to important understanding of new breakthroughs (understanding the basic anisotropy of high temperature superconductivity), bringing vital physics understanding to ambitious engineering projects (basic switching and noise margins in digital Josephson junction technology), and initiating and growing large applied projects based on fundamental physics breakthroughs (magnetoresistive random access memory -- MRAM). Success at such undertakings within a large enterprise involves a number of factors. Always seeking out the best expert advice and the best collaborators in unfamiliar technical areas as new ideas develop is enormously helpful and not at all difficult within a large innovative organization. While being imaginative and optimistic, one must also remain brutally honest about the potential value of new endeavors, the hurdles ahead, and the likelihood of success. Always, however, there is no substitute hard work. I can attest that the results of efforts along these directions within a technology company can be very exciting and satisfying, and the process along the way a whole lot of fun. [Preview Abstract] |
Thursday, March 6, 2014 3:42PM - 3:48PM |
W23.00007: Entrepreneurial Physics Invited Speaker: Jason Cleveland As a physicist that co-founded a startup Atomic Force Microscopy company and co-managed it for 15 years, I bring a small business perspective to the panel. Our scientific and management teams are heavily weighted by physicists and the generalist skills and attitudes that they bring to the table have been extremely valuable at all stages of our company's growth. For physicists interested in entrepreneurship, scientific instrumentation companies represents a unique niche where the barrier to entry is lower for them than in many other areas. Besides the science and technology behind our company, I can address other factors that may be of interest to budding entrepreneurs including funding models and intellectual property. [Preview Abstract] |
Thursday, March 6, 2014 3:48PM - 4:48PM |
W23.00008: Interactive Panel Discussion Invited Speaker: Mark Bernius Quo Vadis? Here is the opportunity to ask panel members your questions: seek a forecast of current trends, where are we going as a collection of physicists in a wide variety of employment settings? What is the likelihood of remaining cohesive as those schooled in the fundamentals of physics? How might we better foster collaboration, with the disparate agendas of academia, government and commerce? Come with your questions, and share in this unique opportunity to quiz the experts. [Preview Abstract] |
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