The research proposal is one of the hardest things to write. You are expected to know what problems exist and how they could be solved. Assuming that you have

The research proposal is one of the hardest things to write. You are expected to know what problems exist and how they could be solved. Assuming that you have a specific area of interest, use Google Scholar to look at the papers written on that topic in the last 2 years. You will probably need to invest 40-60 yours to do this well. Reading some recent PhD theses is also an eye-opener. Having done this step you should have a better idea of the sorts of theoretical research questions that others have asked and thus provide you with ideas for yours. The core point of a PhD is to make a significant contribution to the body of knowledge. It is very different to that of a Masters where you learn and apply advanced knowledge (developed by others). Looking at available technology is only likely to have merit if you find a deficiency and find a way of solving it. And a sound theoretical justification for your solution. Your comments on US universities might apply to some you may have looked at. From my experiences Stanford, MIT, Berkley, Princeton have very high standards and demand for theoretical foundations. Edsger Dijkstra had noted the trend for stronger mathematical foundations in the European universities than the USA ones. A PhD is an apprenticeship for becoming a researcher. So you will learn to think like a researcher as you progress. Most universities have introductory courses on how to do research, literature searches, etc. There are also excellent books are resources on the internet. Seek and you shall find.