Low Budget Undergraduate Microelectronics Laboratory; University Government Industry Microelectronics Symposium

Abstract

Equipment costs for semiconductor fabrication can be millions of dollars just to get started, not to mention the specialized facility expenses required to house such intricate equipment. Specialized facilities such as clean-rooms, special exhaust systems, cryo-pumps, and gas cylinder storage are a huge investment and sometimes hard to justify for undergraduate education. Chemical usage and disposal can also be a considerable expense. Very few institutions can even afford an undergraduate microelectronics laboratory due to the high start-up costs, high equipment costs and continuous and constant maintenance of such equipment. Many colleges have acquired used equipment through donations from industry. However, donated equipment from industry is not always the most feasible option for small colleges with limited budgets and resources. The technical costs of keeping the equipment going can be expensive, not to mention the difficulty of obtaining parts on used industrial equipment. Through a recent New York State Science, Technology, and Academic Research (NYSTARreg) grant opportunity, obtained in collaborations with Alfred University and Rochester Institute of Technology, Alfred State College, a small technical college in rural western New York, has started its own low budget undergraduate microelectronics laboratory facility at a fraction of the cost of comparable industrial equipment. This new undergraduate microelectronics laboratory at Alfred State College has been equipped with Modu-Labtrade semiconductor device manufacturing equipment, which gives students realistic exposure to the semiconductor planer processes. Oxidation, diffusion, photolithography, etch, and vapor deposition stations allow the students the opportunity to design, fabricate, and test their own simple diffused resistors and PMOS devices while gaining experience in microelectronic fabrication techniques. The Microelectronics Laboratory at Alfred State College gives students a realistic experience in semiconductor manufacturing processes. An important concept of this laboratory is hands-on training. Although it is unlikely that the students will work with this type of equipment in industry, the understanding of general processes gained through laboratory experiences will prepare them to either continue their education in the microelectronics field or work in a modern industrial laboratory. Mask layers can be designed on just about any good quality CAD program. Individual layers can be printed out on transparent paper using a good quality laser printer. Diffused resistor and PMOS devices can be designed, fabricated and tested without spending millions of dollars. Functional resistors and aluminum gate PMOSFET transistors have been successfully fabricated, even though the device sizes are 100-1000 times larger than typical devices fabricated in a clean-room facility. This grant has also led to collaboration with other institutions such as Alfred University and Rochester Institute of Technology who have provided technical expertise and faculty training. Student field trips have enhanced the students' overall experience. With Modu-Lab microelectronics laboratory equipment, IC design and fabrication at the undergraduate level is now a feasible proposition for small undergraduate technical colleges.