Multi-cluster R&D teams have the potential to generate breakthrough inventions because they can tap into the distinct knowledge of the different geographic hot spots in which team members are located. Having access to a variety of knowledge offers these teams great recombinatorial potential. To succeed, however, the geographically dispersed members must share and integrate the different local knowledge pools available to them. We argue that the density of intra-team co-patenting ties shapes intra-team knowledge sharing and integration and hence the extent teams benefit from the knowledge they can access. Whereas greater density of intra-cluster team ties (within a given location) hinders sharing and integration of locally tapped knowledge across locations, greater density of inter-cluster ties (across cluster locations) facilitates it. Our empirical analysis of 834 multi-cluster nanotechnology R&D teams shows that the technological distance (the difference in knowledge) between clusters in which inventors are located has an inverted-U relationship with the likelihood of the team generating a breakthrough. Further, we find that the density of multi-cluster team intra- vs. inter-cluster ties influences the effect of technological distance on the likelihood of breakthrough invention.

多集群研发团队具有产生突破性发明的潜力，因为他们可以利用团队成员所在的不同地理热点的独特知识。获得各种知识为这些团队提供了巨大的重组潜力。然而，要取得成功，地理上分散的成员必须共享和整合他们可用的不同本地知识库。我们认为，团队内部共同专利关系的密度塑造了团队内部的知识共享和整合，因此团队从他们可以访问的知识中受益的程度。虽然集群内团队联系（在给定位置内）的密度更大阻碍了跨位置本地挖掘知识的共享和整合，但集群间联系（跨集群位置）的更高密度有利于它。我们对834个多集群纳米技术研发团队的实证分析表明，发明人所在集群之间的技术距离（知识差异）与团队产生突破的可能性呈倒U关系。此外，我们发现多集群团队内部与集群间联系的密度影响技术距离对突破性发明可能性的影响。