Partnership With IBM Will Position New York as a Leader in Information Technology

Troy, N.Y. — Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute, with generous support from IBM, is forming a $33 million research center that will create an information technology infrastructure so advanced that it can handle any level of Internet traffic, data storage, and new scientific challenges that require immense computing power, such as bioinformatics.

Research in the new Rensselaer Center for Broadband Data Transport Science and Technology, set to begin this summer, will lead to commercial initiatives in computing and communications that will position New York state for significant new industrial growth opportunities.

Housed in the Low Center for Industrial Innovation on the Rensselaer campus, the center will be headed by Michael Shur, the Patricia W. and C. Sheldon Roberts ’48 Professor of Solid State Electronics. Shur says the center is the first of its kind dedicated to entire systems rather than individual chips. “This is the next frontier for information technology,” said Shur.

This unique systems focus differentiates it from any other center. Research will encompass everything from advanced materials for chips to system-level architectures and analysis that will help prevent systems failure. Access to IBM’s device, processing, and packaging capabilities over the next five years will provide state-of-the-art technical support for the center. IBM will also provide fellowships, internships, and other investments in support of the programmatic and infrastructure development of the center. These fellowships and internships will go to Rensselaer faculty and graduate and undergraduate students to support a semester or summer at IBM. Researchers at IBM will also be in residence at Rensselaer.

“The complementary and interdisciplinary nature of the research in this center will provide a comprehensive set of solutions, from chip to system level, that will showcase Rensselaer and New York state’s technological leadership,” said Rensselaer President Shirley Ann Jackson. “This new center is essential to creating an information technology infrastructure that can meet the demands of inevitable and rapid societal and scientific advances. Our partnership with IBM, a longtime supporter of research and education at Rensselaer, will ensure the best minds and the best technology work in concert to address these critical IT issues.”

“Collaboration between industry, government, and universities has already paid huge dividends, and today’s announcement of a partnership between Rensselaer and IBM to create a center dedicated to improving computing at the systems level is another testament to the quality of academic research at our fine universities, and is yet another vote of confidence by the high tech industry in our state,” said New York Governor George Pataki.

“It is clear that New York State, and the Capital Region, are poised to become worldwide leaders in high tech industry, and Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute, with its unmatched reputation, is an integral part of this success,” said Senate Majority Leader Joseph L. Bruno. “The announce-ment of this center is yet another example of our ongoing efforts to revitalize the Capital Region economy using partnerships between the state, higher education, and the private sector.”

The Rensselaer Center for Broadband Data Transport Science and Technology will serve as the focal point for research by a spectrum of Rensselaer’s science and engineering faculty and IBM technical personnel and will eventually involve more than 50 researchers. A complementary facility will be created at the IBM T.J. Watson Research Center in Yorktown Heights, N.Y., where optical/electronic packaging and associated processing facilities will be installed. Additional academic and industry partners will also be invited to participate in the programs of the new center, adding to the interdisciplinary participation on both a regional and national basis.

“IBM has valued the opportunity to work with Rensselaer both to advance the state-of-the-art in science and technology as well as to equip students to enter the information technology industry,” said Paul Horn, senior vice president of research in IBM’s Research Division. “We now look forward to continuing such collaboration in the Center for Broadband Data Transport Science and Technology. It is our desire to help the university remain at the cutting edge of technology, providing value to its students, the businesses these students enter, and the communities to which they will contribute.”

The new center will address issues that are complementary to existing research at Rensselaer and cooperating institutions. The Focus Center - New York, and the Center for Advanced Interconnect Systems and Technology (CAIST) continue to support major research efforts involving Rensselaer, the University at Albany, and other university partners in cooperation with IBM. These centers address electronic materials, their characterization, and manufacturing processes supporting the fabrication of microelectronic circuits. These materials and manufacturing processes are the building blocks of new integrated circuits, the foundation of any computing or communication system.

Contact: Patricia Azriel
Phone: (518) 276-6531
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