The Many Faces of Absorptive Capacity: Spillovers of Copper Interconnect Technology for Semiconductor Chips

Kwanghui Lim, Melbourne Business School

Abstract

A case study of copper interconnect technology suggests that absorptive capacity exist in three forms: disciplinary, domain-specific and encoded. Each involves different ways of managing R&D and linking internal to external research. Disciplinary absorptive capacity requires a firm to actively engage with the scientific community, while protecting domain-specific knowledge. Domain-specific absorptive capacity depends upon influencing disciplinary research at universities and consortia, then capturing domain knowledge through collaboration and hiring. As a technology develops, it becomes encoded, and absorption depends increasingly upon integrating knowledge from suppliers. Hence, absorptive capacity is a multifaceted construct that is heavily shaped by the type and maturity of technology absorbed.