A brief review of the origin of the Conference on the Physics and Chemistry of Semiconductor Interfaces (PCSI) establishes a motivation-the need for an insulating material for GaAs field-effect transistors-for the resulting focus of PCSI on surface and interface issues that impact semiconductor devices. Highlights of past meetings emphasize the contributions and value of PCSI in promoting scientific advances in solid-state electronics. Turning to the future, motivation will again be established by identifying the wide spectrum of device concepts that offer great potential as the basis for future electronic, magnetic, and photonic technologies that will provide high-speed and low-power capabilities far exceeding present-day capabilities. Successful demonstrations of these nanoelectronics devices will only be possible if surface and interface issues are addressed at the earliest stages. In the future, PCSI will be dominated by many problems where nanostructures are fabricated and heterogeneous materials characterized and understood on scales measured in a few nanometers. (c) 2006 American Vacuum Society.