Round table discussion, FWPR'99: Future trends in ferroelectric research and technology

Abstract The round table discussion capped off two days of very interesting talks, and intense discussions in the general area of ferroelectric and dielectric materials. The RTD focused on the “Future of Ferroelectric and Dielectric Thin Film based Technologies.” The panelists, with active participation from the audience (including the moderator), discussed several aspects of this important area. The overall conclusion was that Ferroelectric Thin Film based technologies are in a very active phase of development. There are immense opportunities in this field for research, development, and productization. In parallel, there was concern about the sustainability of research and development activities, especially in the US, given the sparse federal funding in this area. The discussion was broadly categorized into: (i) Applied and Market Issues and (ii) Fundamental Issues. The discussion generally went along technology lines, with considerable discussion on memories, microwave components and markets.