/
Article

Patent Basics for Physicists

APR 01, 1997
In an age when scientific knowledge is increasingly being treated as a form of property, a general understanding of patents is becoming a necessity for the physicist.
A. James Richardson
Craig A. Wood

The careers of many physicists, particularly those engaged in applied or industrial research, depend on the cerns grow, they are increasingly being asked to help expand their employers’ sources of income. In many cases, the most direct link between an organization’s scientific research, development and application efforts and its financial objectives is its portfolio of patents. And so it would not be unreasonable to say that the professional success of many physicists is greatly affected by the number and quality of the patents resulting from their efforts.

This article is only available in PDF format

References

  1. 1. Report of Economic Survey 1995, American Intellectual Property Law Association, Arlington, Va. (1995).

  2. 2. HR 400.

More about the authors

A. James Richardson, Locke Reynolds Boyd & Weisell, Indianpolis, Indiana.

Craig A. Wood, Locke Reynolds Boyd & Weisell, Indianpolis, Indiana.

Related content
/
Article
Since 2008, more than 100 colleges and universities in the US have stopped offering an undergraduate physics major. What happened?
/
Article
The thermodynamic and quantum mechanical properties of topological insulators provide a path toward scalable energy storage in information-based batteries.
/
Article
At the end of the turbulent 1960s, the postwar funding boom in US physics came to a crashing halt. The lessons learned then may be helpful to today’s physicists.
/
Article
Interviews with 22 successful early-career physical scientists and engineers reveal that networking has been one of the most critical ways to nurture their careers.
This Content Appeared In
pt-cover_1997_04.jpeg

Volume 50, Number 4

Get PT newsletters in your inbox

pt_newsletter_card_blue.png
PT The Week in Physics

A collection of PT's content from the previous week delivered every Monday.

pt_newsletter_card_darkblue.png
PT New Issue Alert

Be notified about the new issue with links to highlights and the full TOC.

pt_newsletter_card_pink.png
PT Webinars & White Papers

The latest webinars, white papers and other informational resources.

By signing up you agree to allow AIP to send you email newsletters. You further agree to our privacy policy and terms of service.