Nanoelectronics Research on European level


Nanoelectronics Research on European level

7th Framework Programme

http://cordis.europa.eu/fp7/ict/nanoelectronics/projects-fp7_en.html

The Seventh Framework Programme for research and technological development (FP7) is the European Union's chief instrument for funding research over the period 2007 to 2013. It bundles all research-related EU initiatives together under a common roof playing a crucial role in reaching the goals of growth, competitiveness and employment.

The Nanoelectronics unit (DG INFSO) targets directly the micro and nanoelectronics field. Research on micro and nanoelectronics and related subjects is also funded in other parts of ICT including Micro-Nanosystems, Embedded Systems, Energy and Environment, Communications and more directly in Nanoscience and Nanotechnology (NMP). 

ENIAC Joint Technology Initiative

http://cordis.europa.eu/fp7/ict/nanoelectronics/eniac_en.html

The ENIAC Joint Technology Initiative (JTI) is a European public-private partnership on nanoelectronics. It was officially launched as a Joint Undertaking (JU) in Brussels on February 7th 2008. The ENIAC JTI is officially called ENIAC Joint Undertaking and is not to be confused with the ENIAC European Technology Platform, with which it cooperates closely. The office of the JU is located in Brussels.

ENIAC combines for the first time funding efforts of industry, some EU Member States (and associated states) and the European Commission to implement research activities in the field of nanoelectronics. Although other European initiatives, like the European Technology Platforms or the regular calls in the Framework Programmes have established cooperation between these three actors before, none of them bring all together at the same time, systematically to implement a focused research programme.

Over its lifespan of 10 years, the JU is expected to bring together 3 billion euros of which more than half will be provided by industry and other research actors. The EC targets to contribute 450 M€ funding out of the 7th Framework and Member States at least another 800 M€. The association AENEAS represents industry and other research partners such as institutes and universities in the JU. 

ENIAC Technology Platform

http://www.aeneas-office.eu/web/index.php

The European Nanoelectronics Initiative Advisory Council ( ENIAC) is the European Technology Platform for nanoelectronics. The most important objective of ENIAC is to reinforce the position of Europe as a leading global player in micro- and nanoelectronics. 

European Technology Platforms focus on strategic issues where achieving Europe’s future growth, competitiveness and sustainability depends upon major technological advances. They bring together stakeholders, led by industry, to define medium to long term research and technological development objectives and lay down markers for achieving them. The achievement of these objectives will significantly improve the daily lives of the European citizen in many areas. These platforms are seen as a crucial component in future European research policy and already play a major role in the Seventh Framework Programme (FP7) for research.

Platforms have an impact on the development of national and regional research programmes and policies, creating the conditions for a stronger and more coherent European Research Area and making Europe a more attractive place for research investment and for innovation.

CATRENE

http://www.catrene.org

CATRENE builds on the successful previous EUREKA programmes JESSI, MEDEA, and MEDEA+ in fostering the continued development of a dynamic European ecosystem in micro and nanoelectronics with the critical mass necessary to compete at a global level in high technology industries.

CATRENE is a four-year programme, started on January 1st 2008, and is extendable by another four years. This is in line with the changing landscape of the semiconductor industry as well as the present view on technology evolution and the time span over which most of the major applications will develop. 

COMPETITIVENESS  CLUSTERS

A competitiveness cluster can be defined as the grouping of companies, training centres and public or private research units in a given geographical area, committed to a partnership-based approach intended to generate synergies in relation to common projects of an innovative nature. This partnership is structured around a market and the related technological and scientific field, and must achieve the critical mass needed for competitiveness as well as international visibility. These three main ingredients (companies, training and research and innovation), brought together by the three priorities of partnership, concrete common projects and international visibility, comprise the key elements of competitiveness clusters. The critical mass achieved by this grouping must enable it to develop a virtuous circle of growth.

The competitiveness clusters approach is a response to economic dynamics on a global scale, involving networks of excellence and innovation, partnerships and clusters. In different European regions, the establishment of competitiveness clusters is aimed at enhancing the attractiveness of a region and at developing employment via increased economic activity and a strengthening of synergies between stakeholders. To do this, it is necessary to rely on the region's potential for knowledge, research and innovation, which must be transformed into an economic asset.

Well-known examples of competitiveness clusters (French 'pôle de compétitivité') in nanoelectronics are the areas of Grenoble, Dresden, the triangle Leuven-Eindhoven-Aachen and the emerging Irish cluster around Intel Ireland. We should highlight that the latter manufactures Intel's most advanced microprocessors, used in most of the new generations of computers worldwide.