As we enter the nanotechnology era, we are also encountering the 50th anniversary of the invention of the IC. Will silicon continue to be the pre-eminent material and will MooreTM´s Law continue unabated, albeit in a broader economic venue, in the nanotechnology era? This monograph addresses these issues through a re-examination of the scientific and technological foundations of the microelectronics era. It is proposed that, by better assessing and understanding the past five decades of this era, a firmer foundation can yet be laid for the research that will ensue and possibly provide a glimpse of opportunities in the nanotechnology era. For example, we are already seeing some potential applications in the bonding of molecular devices onto a previously formed IC chip providing vehicles for the continued growth of the Information Age and further extending opportunities for today's microelectronics porducts. There will, furthermore, no doubt be scientific advances generating opportunities and applications defining new technology initiatives in the nanotechnology era, barely perceived at present. This book will help prepare us to meet these challenges with the requisite skills to facilitate the identification and development of these future initiatives.
