“Global collaborations for European economic resilience” is the theme of  SEMICON Europa 2025. The event is coming to Munich, Germany on 18–21 November and it will attract 25,000 semiconductor professionals who will enjoy presentations from over 200 speakers.

The TechARENA portion of the event will cover a wide range of technology-related issues including new materials, future computing paradigms and the development of hi-tech skills in the European workface. There will also be an Executive Forum, which will feature leaders in industry and government and will cover topics including silicon geopolitics and the use of artificial intelligence in semiconductor manufacturing.

SEMICON Europa will be held at the Messe München, where it will feature a huge exhibition with over 500 exhibitors from around the world. The exhibition is spread out over three halls and here are some of the companies and product innovations to look out for on the show floor.

Accelerating the future of electro-photonic integration with SmarAct

As the boundaries between electronic and photonic technologies continue to blur, the semiconductor industry faces a growing challenge: how to test and align increasingly complex electro-photonic chip architectures efficiently, precisely, and at scale. At SEMICON Europa 2025, SmarAct will address this challenge head-on with its latest innovation – Fast Scan Align. This is a high-speed and high-precision alignment solution that redefines the limits of testing and packaging for integrated photonics.

In the emerging era of heterogeneous integration, electronic and photonic components must be aligned and interconnected with sub-micrometre accuracy. Traditional positioning systems often struggle to deliver both speed and precision, especially when dealing with the delicate coupling between optical and electrical domains. SmarAct’s Fast Scan Align solution bridges this gap by combining modular motion platforms, real-time feedback control, and advanced metrology into one integrated system.

At its core, Fast Scan Align leverages SmarAct’s electromagnetic and piezo-driven positioning stages, which are capable of nanometre-resolution motion in multiple degrees of freedom. Fast Scan Align’s modular architecture allows users to configure systems tailored to their application – from wafer-level testing to fibre-to-chip alignment with active optical coupling. Integrated sensors and intelligent algorithms enable scanning and alignment routines that drastically reduce setup time while improving repeatability and process stability.

Fast Scan Align’s compact modules allow various measurement techniques to be integrated with unprecedented possibilities. This has become decisive for the increasing level of integration of complex electro-photonic chips.

Apart from the topics of wafer-level testing and packaging, wafer positioning with extreme precision is as crucial as never before for the highly integrated chips of the future. SmarAct’s PICOSCALE interferometer addresses the challenge of extreme position by delivering picometer-level displacement measurements directly at the point of interest.

When combined with SmarAct’s precision wafer stages, the PICOSCALE interferometer ensures highly accurate motion tracking and closed-loop control during dynamic alignment processes. This synergy between motion and metrology gives users unprecedented insight into the mechanical and optical behaviour of their devices – which is a critical advantage for high-yield testing of photonic and optoelectronic wafers.

Visitors to SEMICON Europa will also experience how all of SmarAct’s products – from motion and metrology components to modular systems and up to turn-key solutions – integrate seamlessly, offering intuitive operation, full automation capability, and compatibility with laboratory and production environments alike.

For more information visit SmarAct at booth B1.860 or explore more of SmarAct’s solutions in the semiconductor and photonics industry.

Optimized pressure monitoring: Efficient workflows with Thyracont’s VD800 digital compact vacuum meters

Thyracont Vacuum Instruments will be showcasing its precision vacuum metrology systems in exhibition hall C1. Made in Germany, the company’s broad portfolio combines diverse measurement technologies – including piezo, Pirani, capacitive, cold cathode, and hot cathode – to deliver reliable results across a pressure range from 2000 to 3e-11 mbar.

Front-and-centre at SEMICON Europa will be Thyracont’s new series of VD800 compact vacuum meters. These instruments provide precise, on-site pressure monitoring in industrial and research environments. Featuring a direct pressure display and real-time pressure graphs, the VD800 series is ideal for service and maintenance tasks, laboratory applications, and test setups.

The VD800 series combines high accuracy with a highly intuitive user interface. This delivers real-time measurement values; pressure diagrams; and minimum and maximum pressure – all at a glance. The VD800’s 4+1 membrane keypad ensures quick access to all functions. USB-C and optional Bluetooth LE connectivity deliver seamless data readout and export. The VD800’s large internal data logger can store over 10 million measured values with their RTC data, with each measurement series saved as a separate file.

Data sampling rates can be set from 20 ms to 60 s to achieve dynamic pressure tracking or long-term measurements. Leak rates can be measured directly by monitoring the rise in pressure in the vacuum system. Intelligent energy management gives the meters extended battery life and longer operation times. Battery charging is done conveniently via USB-C.

The vacuum meters are available in several different sensor configurations, making them adaptable to a wide range of different uses. Model VD810 integrates a piezo ceramic sensor for making gas-type-independent measurements for rough vacuum applications. This sensor is insensitive to contamination, making it suitable for rough industrial environments. The VD810 measures absolute pressure from 2000 to 1 mbar and relative pressure from −1060 to +1200 mbar.

Model VD850 integrates a piezo/Pirani combination sensor, which delivers high resolution and accuracy in the rough and fine vacuum ranges. Optimized temperature compensation ensures stable measurements in the absolute pressure range from 1200 to 5e-5 mbar and in the relative pressure range from −1060 to +340 mbar.

The model VD800 is a standalone meter designed for use with Thyracont’s USB-C vacuum transducers, which are available in two models. The VSRUSB USB-C transducer is a piezo/Pirani combination sensor that measures absolute pressure in the 2000 to 5.0e-5 mbar range. The other is the VSCUSB USB-C transducer, which measures absolute pressures from 2000 down to 1 mbar and has a relative pressure range from -1060 to +1200 mbar. A USB-C cable connects the transducer to the VD800 for quick and easy data retrieval. The USB-C transducers are ideal for hard-to-reach areas of vacuum systems. The transducers can be activated while a process is running, enabling continuous monitoring and improved service diagnostics.

With its blend of precision, flexibility, and ease of use, the Thyracont VD800 series defines the next generation of compact vacuum meters. The devices’ intuitive interface, extensive data capabilities, and modern connectivity make them an indispensable tool for laboratories, service engineers, and industrial operators alike.

To experience the future of vacuum metrology in Munich, visit Thyracont at SEMICON Europa hall C1, booth 752. There you will discover how the VD800 series can optimize your pressure monitoring workflows.

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Better together. That’s the headline take on a newly inked technology partnership between Bluefors, a heavyweight Finnish supplier of cryogenic measurement systems, and Delft Circuits, a Dutch manufacturer of specialist I/O cabling solutions designed for the scale-up and industrial deployment of next-generation quantum computers.

The drivers behind the tie-up are clear: as quantum systems evolve – think vastly increased qubit counts plus ever-more exacting requirements on gate fidelity – developers in research and industry will reach a point where current coax cabling technology doesn’t cut it anymore. The answer? Collaboration, joined-up thinking and product innovation.

In short, by integrating Delft Circuits’ Cri/oFlex^® cabling technology into Bluefors’ dilution refrigerators, the vendors’ combined customer base will benefit from a complete, industrially proven and fully scalable I/O solution for their quantum systems. The end-game: to overcome the quantum tech industry’s biggest bottleneck, forging a development pathway from quantum computing systems with hundreds of qubits today to tens of thousands of qubits by 2030.

Joined-up thinking

For context, Cri/oFlex^® cryogenic RF cables comprise a stripline (a type of transmission line) based on planar microwave circuitry – essentially a conducting strip encapsulated in dielectric material and sandwiched between two conducting ground planes. The use of the polyimide Kapton^® as the dielectric ensures Cri/oFlex^® cables remain flexible in cryogenic environments (which are necessary to generate quantum states, manipulate them and read them out), with silver or superconducting NbTi providing the conductive strip and ground layer. The standard product comes as a multichannel flex (eight channels per flex) with a range of I/O channel configurations tailored to the customer’s application needs, including flux bias lines, microwave drive lines, signal lines or read-out lines.

“Reliability is a given with Cri/oFlex^®,” says Robby Ferdinandus, global chief commercial officer for Delft Circuits and a driving force behind the partnership with Bluefors. “By integrating components such as attenuators and filters directly into the flex,” he adds, “we eliminate extra parts and reduce points of failure. Combined with fast thermalization at every temperature stage, our technology ensures stable performance across thousands of channels, unmatched by any other I/O solution.”

Technology aside, the new partnership is informed by a “one-stop shop” mindset, offering the high-density Cri/oFlex^® solution pre-installed and fully tested in Bluefors cryogenic measurement systems. For the end-user, think turnkey efficiency: streamlined installation, commissioning, acceptance and, ultimately, enhanced system uptime.

Scalability is front-and-centre too, thanks to Delft Circuits’ pre-assembled and tested side-loading systems. The high-density I/O cabling solution delivers up to 50% more channels per side-loading port to Bluefors’ (current) High Density Wiring, providing a total of 1536 input or control lines to an XLDsl cryostat. In addition, more wiring lines can be added to multiple KF ports as a custom option.

Doubling up for growth

Reciprocally, there’s significant commercial upside to this partnership. Bluefors is the quantum industry’s leading cryogenic systems OEM and, by extension, Delft Circuits now has access to the former’s established global customer base, amplifying its channels to market by orders of magnitude. “We have stepped into the big league here and, working together, we will ensure that Cri/oFlex^® becomes a core enabling technology on the journey to quantum advantage,” notes Ferdinandus.

That view is amplified by Reetta Kaila, director for global technical sales and new products at Bluefors (and, alongside Ferdinandus, a main-mover behind the partnership). “Our market position in cryogenics is strong, so we have the ‘muscle’ and specialist know-how to integrate innovative technologies like Cri/oFlex^® into our dilution refrigerators,” she explains.

A win-win, it seems, along several coordinates. “The Bluefors sales teams are excited to add Cri/oFlex^® into the product portfolio,” Kaila adds. “It’s worth noting, though, that the collaboration extends across multiple functions – technical and commercial – and will therefore ensure close alignment of our respective innovation roadmaps.”

Scalable I/O will accelerate quantum innovation

Deconstructed, Delft Circuits’ value proposition is all about enabling, from an I/O perspective, the transition of quantum technologies out of the R&D lab into at-scale practical applications. More specifically: Cri/oFlex^® technology allows quantum scientists and engineers to increase the I/O cabling density of their systems easily – and by a lot – while guaranteeing high gate fidelities (minimizing noise and heating) as well as market-leading uptime and reliability.

To put some hard-and-fast performance milestones against that claim, the company has published a granular product development roadmap that aligns Cri/oFlex^® cabling specifications against the anticipated evolution of quantum computing systems –  from 150+ qubits today out to 40,000 qubits and beyond in 2029 (see figure below, “Quantum alignment”).

The resulting milestones are based on a study of the development roadmaps of more than 10 full-stack quantum computing vendors – a consolidated view that will ensure the “guiding principles” of Delft Circuits’ innovation roadmap align versus the aggregate quantity and quality of qubits targeted by the system developers over time.

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At the centre of most quantum labs is a large cylindrical cryostat that keeps the delicate quantum hardware at ultralow temperatures. These cryogenic chambers have expanded to accommodate larger and more complex quantum systems, but the scientists and engineers at UK-based cryogenics specialist ICEoxford have taken a radical new approach to the challenge of scalability. They have split the traditional cryostat into a series of cube-shaped modules that slot into a standard 19-inch rack mount, creating an adaptable platform that can easily be deployed alongside conventional computing infrastructure.

“We wanted to create a robust, modular and scalable solution that enables different quantum technologies to be integrated into the cryostat,” says Greg Graf, the company’s engineering manager. “This approach offers much more flexibility, because it allows different modules to be used for different applications, while the system also delivers the efficiency and reliability that are needed for operational use.”

The standard configuration of the ICE-Q platform has three separate modules: a cryogenics unit that provides the cooling power, a large payload for housing the quantum chip or experiment, and a patent-pending wiring module that attaches to the side of the payload to provide the connections to the outside world. Up to four of these side-loading wiring modules can be bolted onto the payload at the same time, providing thousands of external connections while still fitting into a standard rack. For applications where space is not such an issue, the payload can be further extended to accommodate larger quantum assemblies and potentially tens of thousands of radio-frequency or fibre-optic connections.

The cube-shaped form factor provides much improved access to these external connections, whether for designing and configuring the system or for ongoing maintenance work. The outer shell of each module consists of panels that are easily removed, offering a simple mechanism for bolting modules together or stacking them on top of each other to provide a fully scalable solution that grows with the qubit count.

The flexible design also offers a more practical solution for servicing or upgrading an installed system, since individual modules can be simply swapped over as and when needed. “For quantum computers running in an operational environment it is really important to minimize the downtime,” says Emma Yeatman, senior design engineer at ICEoxford. “With this design we can easily remove one of the modules for servicing, and replace it with another one to keep the system running for longer. For critical infrastructure devices, it is possible to have built-in redundancy that ensures uninterrupted operation in the event of a failure.”

Other features have been integrated into the platform to make it simple to operate, including a new software system for controlling and monitoring the ultracold environment. “Most of our cryostats have been designed for researchers who really want to get involved and adapt the system to meet their needs,” adds Yeatman. “This platform offers more options for people who want an out-of-the-box solution and who don’t want to get hands on with the cryogenics.”

Such a bold design choice was enabled in part by a collaborative research project with Canadian company Photonic Inc, funded jointly by the UK and Canada, that was focused on developing an efficient and reliable cryogenics platform for practical quantum computing. That R&D funding helped to reduce the risk of developing an entirely new technology platform that addresses many of the challenges that ICEoxford and its customers had experienced with traditional cryostats. “Quantum technologies typically need a lot of wiring, and access had become a real issue,” says Yeatman. “We knew there was an opportunity to do better.”

However, converting a large cylindrical cryostat into a slimline and modular form factor demanded some clever engineering solutions. Perhaps the most obvious was creating a frame that allows the modules to be bolted together while still remaining leak tight. Traditional cryostats are welded together to ensure a leak-proof seal, but for greater flexibility the ICEoxford team developed an assembly technique based on mechanical bonding.

The side-loading wiring module also presented a design challenge. To squeeze more wires into the available space, the team developed a high-density connector for the coaxial cables to plug into. An additional cold-head was also integrated into the module to pre-cool the cables, reducing the overall heat load generated by such large numbers of connections entering the ultracold environment.

Meanwhile, the speed of the cooldown and the efficiency of operation have been optimized by designing a new type of heat exchanger that is fabricated using a 3D printing process. “When warm gas is returned into the system, a certain amount of cooling power is needed just to compress and liquefy that gas,” explains Kelly. “We designed the heat exchangers to exploit the returning cold gas much more efficiently, which enables us to pre-cool the warm gas and use less energy for the liquefaction.”

The initial prototype has been designed to operate at 1 K, which is ideal for the photonics-based quantum systems being developed by ICEoxford’s research partner. But the modular nature of the platform allows it to be adapted to diverse applications, with a second project now underway with the Rutherford Appleton Lab to develop a module that that will be used at the forefront of the global hunt for dark matter.

Already on the development roadmap are modules that can sustain temperatures as low as 10 mK – which is typically needed for superconducting quantum computing – and a 4 K option for trapped-ion systems. “We already have products for each of those applications, but our aim was to create a modular platform that can be extended and developed to address the changing needs of quantum developers,” says Kelly.

As these different options come onstream, the ICEoxford team believes that it will become easier and quicker to deliver high-performance cryogenic systems that are tailored to the needs of each customer. “It normally takes between six and twelve months to build a complex cryogenics system,” says Graf. “With this modular design we will be able to keep some of the components on the shelf, which would allow us to reduce the lead time by several months.”

More generally, the modular and scalable platform could be a game-changer for commercial organizations that want to exploit quantum computing in their day-to-day operations, as well as for researchers who are pushing the boundaries of cryogenics design with increasingly demanding specifications. “This system introduces new avenues for hardware development that were previously constrained by the existing cryogenics infrastructure,” says Kelly. “The ICE-Q platform directly addresses the need for colder base temperatures, larger sample spaces, higher cooling powers, and increased connectivity, and ensures our clients can continue their aggressive scaling efforts without being bottlenecked by their cooling environment.”

• You can find out more about the ICE-Q platform by contacting the ICEoxford team at iceoxford.com, or via email at sales@iceoxford.com. They will also be presenting the platform at the UK’s National Quantum Technologies Showcase in London on 7 November, with a further launch at the American Physical Society meeting in March 2026.

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This talk shows how integrating p-type NiO to form NiO/Ga_₂O_₃ heterojunction rectifiers overcomes that barrier, enabling record-class breakdown and Ampere-class operation. It will cover device structure/process optimization, thermal stability to high temperatures, and radiation response – with direct ties to today’s priorities: EV fast charging, AI data‑center power systems, and aerospace/space‑qualified power electronics.

An interactive Q&A session follows the presentation.

Jian-Sian Li received the PhD in chemical engineering from the University of Florida in 2024, where his research focused on NiO/β-Ga_₂O_₃ heterojunction power rectifiers, includes device design, process optimization, fast switching, high-temperature stability, and radiation tolerance (γ, neutron, proton). His work includes extensive electrical characterization and microscopy/TCAD analysis supporting device physics and reliability in harsh environments. Previously, he completed his BS and MS at National Taiwan University (2015, 2018), with research spanning phoretic/electrokinetic colloids, polymers for OFETs/PSCs, and solid-state polymer electrolytes for Li-ion batteries. He has since transitioned to industry at Micron Technology.

The post Fabrication and device performance of Ni0/Ga₂O₃ heterojunction power rectifiers appeared first on Physics World.

From quantum utility today to quantum advantage tomorrow: incumbent technology companies – among them Google, Amazon, IBM and Microsoft – and a wave of ambitious start-ups are on a mission to transform quantum computing from applied research endeavour to mainstream commercial opportunity. The end-game: quantum computers that can be deployed at-scale to perform computations significantly faster than classical machines while addressing scientific, industrial and commercial problems beyond the reach of today’s high-performance computing systems.

Meanwhile, as technology translation gathers pace across the quantum supply chain, government laboratories and academic scientists must maintain their focus on the “hard yards” of precompetitive research. That means prioritizing foundational quantum hardware and software technologies, underpinned by theoretical understanding, experimental systems, device design and fabrication – and pushing out along all these R&D pathways simultaneously.

Bringing order to disorder

Equally important is the requirement to understand and quantify the relative performance of quantum computers from different manufacturers as well as across the myriad platform technologies – among them superconducting circuits, trapped ions, neutral atoms as well as photonic and semiconductor processors. A case study in this regard is a broad-scope UK research collaboration that, for the past four years, has been reviewing, collecting and organizing a holistic taxonomy of metrics and benchmarks to evaluate the performance of quantum computers against their classical counterparts as well as the relative performance of competing quantum platforms.

Funded by the National Quantum Computing Centre (NQCC), which is part of the UK National Quantum Technologies Programme (NQTP), and led by scientists at the National Physical Laboratory (NPL), the UK’s National Metrology Institute, the cross-disciplinary consortium has taken on an endeavour that is as sprawling as it is complex. The challenge lies in the diversity of quantum hardware platforms in the mix; also the emergence of two different approaches to quantum computing – one being a gate-based framework for universal quantum computation, the other an analogue approach tailored to outperforming classical computers on specific tasks.

“Given the ambition of this undertaking, we tapped into a deep pool of specialist domain knowledge and expertise provided by university colleagues at Edinburgh, Durham, Warwick and several other centres-of-excellence in quantum,” explains Ivan Rungger, a principal scientist at NPL, professor in computer science at Royal Holloway, University of London, and lead scientist on the quantum benchmarking project. That core group consulted widely within the research community and with quantum technology companies across the nascent supply chain. “The resulting study,” adds Rungger, “positions transparent and objective benchmarking as a critical enabler for trust, comparability and commercial adoption of quantum technologies, aligning closely with NPL’s mission in quantum metrology and standards.”

Not all metrics are equal – or mature

For context, a number of performance metrics used to benchmark classical computers can also be applied directly to quantum computers, such as the speed of operations, the number of processing units, as well as the probability of errors to occur in the computation. That only goes so far, though, with all manner of dedicated metrics emerging in the past decade to benchmark the performance of quantum computers – ranging from their individual hardware components to entire applications.

Complexity reigns, it seems, and navigating the extensive literature can prove overwhelming, while the levels of maturity for different metrics varies significantly. Objective comparisons aren’t straightforward either – not least because variations of the same metric are commonly deployed; also the data disclosed together with a reported metric value is often not sufficient to reproduce the results.

“Many of the approaches provide similar overall qualitative performance values,” Rungger notes, “but the divergence in the technical implementation makes quantitative comparisons difficult and, by extension, slows progress of the field towards quantum advantage.”

The task then is to rationalize the metrics used to evaluate the performance for a given quantum hardware platform to a minimal yet representative set agreed across manufacturers, algorithm developers and end-users. These benchmarks also need to follow some agreed common approaches to fairly and objectively evaluate quantum computers from different equipment vendors.

With these objectives in mind, Rungger and colleagues conducted a deep-dive review that has yielded a comprehensive collection of metrics and benchmarks to allow holistic comparisons of quantum computers, assessing the quality of hardware components all the way to system-level performance and application-level metrics.

Drill down further and there’s a consistent format for each metric that includes its definition, a description of the methodology, the main assumptions and limitations, and a linked open-source software package implementing the methodology. The software transparently demonstrates the methodology and can also be used in practical, reproducible evaluations of all metrics.

“As research on metrics and benchmarks progresses, our collection of metrics and the associated software for performance evaluation are expected to evolve,” says Rungger. “Ultimately, the repository we have put together will provide a ‘living’ online resource, updated at regular intervals to account for community-driven developments in the field.”

From benchmarking to standards

Innovation being what it is, those developments are well under way. For starters, the importance of objective and relevant performance benchmarks for quantum computers has led several international standards bodies to initiate work on specific areas that are ready for standardization – work that, in turn, will give manufacturers, end-users and investors an informed evaluation of the performance of a range of quantum computing components, subsystems and full-stack platforms.

What’s evident is that the UK’s voice on metrics and benchmarking is already informing the collective conversation around standards development. “The quantum computing community and international standardization bodies are adopting a number of concepts from our approach to benchmarking standards,” notes Deep Lall, a quantum scientist in Rungger’s team at NPL and lead author of the study. “I was invited to present our work to a number of international standardization meetings and scientific workshops, opening up widespread international engagement with our research and discussions with colleagues across the benchmarking community.”

He continues: “We want the UK effort on benchmarking and metrics to shape the broader international effort. The hope is that the collection of metrics we have pulled together, along with the associated open-source software provided to evaluate them, will guide the development of standardized benchmarks for quantum computers and speed up the progress of the field towards practical quantum advantage.”

That’s a view echoed – and amplified – by Cyrus Larijani, NPL’s head of quantum programme. “As we move into the next phase of NPL’s quantum strategy, the importance of evidence-based decision making becomes ever-more critical,” he concludes. “By grounding our strategic choices in robust measurement science and real-world data, we ensure that our innovations not only push the boundaries of quantum technology but also deliver meaningful impact across industry and society.”

Further reading

Deep Lall et al. 2025 A  review and collection of metrics and benchmarks for quantum computers: definitions, methodologies and software https://arxiv.org/abs/2502.06717

End note: NPL retains copyright on this article.

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The microelectronics sector is known for its relentless drive for innovation, continually delivering performance and efficiency gains within ever more compact form factors. Anyone aspiring to build a career in this fast-moving field needs not just a thorough grounding in current tools and techniques, but also an understanding of the next-generation materials and structures that will propel future progress.

That’s the premise behind a Master’s programme in microelectronics technology and materials at the Hong Kong Polytechnic University (PolyU). Delivered by the Department for Applied Physics, globally recognized for its pioneering research in technologies such as two-dimensional materials, nanoelectronics and artificial intelligence, the aim is to provide students with both the fundamental knowledge and practical skills they need to kickstart their professional future – whether they choose to pursue further research or to find a job in industry.

“The programme provides students with all the key skills they need to work in microelectronics, such as circuit design, materials processing and failure analysis,” says programme leader Professor Zhao Jiong, who research focuses on 2D ferroelectrics. “But they also have direct access to more than 20 faculty members who are actively investigating novel materials and structures that go beyond silicon-based technologies.”

The course in also unusual in providing a combined focus on electronics engineering and materials science, providing students with a thorough understanding of the underlying semiconductors and device structures as well as their use in mass-produced integrated circuits. That fundamental knowledge is reinforced through regular experimental work, providing the students with hands-on experience of fabricating and testing electronic devices. “Our cleanroom laboratory is equipped with many different instruments for microfabrication, including thin-film deposition, etching and photolithography, as well as advanced characterization tools for understanding their operating mechanisms and evaluating their performance,” adds Zhao.

In a module focusing on thin-film materials, for example, students gain valuable experience from practical sessions that enable them to operate the equipment for different growth techniques, such as sputtering, molecular beam epitaxy, and both physical and chemical vapour deposition. In another module on materials analysis and characterization, the students are tasked with analysing the layered structure of a standard computer chip by making cross-sections that can be studied with a scanning electron microscope.

That practical experience extends to circuit design, with students learning how to use state-of-the-art software tools for configuring, simulating and analysing complex electronic layouts. “Through this experimental work students gain the technical skills they need to design and fabricate integrated circuits, and to optimize their performance and reliability through techniques like failure analysis,” says Professor Dai Jiyan, PolyU Associate Dean of Students, who also teaches the module on thin-film materials. “This hands-on experience helps to prepare them for working in a manufacturing facility or for continuing their studies at the PhD level.”

Also integrated into the teaching programme is the use of artificial intelligence to assist key tasks, such as defect analysis, materials selection and image processing. Indeed, PolyU has established a joint laboratory with Huawei to investigate possible applications of AI tools in electronic design, providing the students with early exposure to emerging computational methods that are likely to shape the future of the microelectronics industry. “One of our key characteristics is that we embed AI into our teaching and laboratory work,” says Dai. “Two of the modules are directly related to AI, while the joint lab with Huawei helps students to experiment with using AI in circuit design.”

Now in its third year, the Master’s programme was designed in collaboration with Hong Kong’s Applied Science and Technology Research Institute (ASTRI), established in 2000 to enhance the competitiveness of the region through the use of advanced technologies. Researchers at PolyU already pursue joint projects with ASTRI in areas like chip design, microfabrication and failure analysis. As part of the programme, these collaborators are often invited to give guest lectures or to guide the laboratory work. “Sometimes they even provide some specialized instruments for the students to use in their experiments,” says Zhao. “We really benefit from this collaboration.”

Once primed with the knowledge and experience from the taught modules, the students have the opportunity to work alongside one of the faculty members on a short research project. They can choose whether to focus on a topic that is relevant to present-day manufacturing, such as materials processing or advanced packaging technologies, or to explore the potential of emerging materials and devices across applications ranging from solar cells and microfluidics to next-generation memories and neuromorphic computing.

“It’s very interesting for the students to get involved in these projects,” says Zhao. “They learn more about the research process, which can make them more confident to take their studies to the next level. All of our faculty members are engaged in important work, and we can guide the students towards a future research field if that’s what they are interested in.”

There are also plenty of progression opportunities for those who are more interested in pursuing a career in industry. As well as providing support and advice through its joint lab in AI, Huawei arranges visits to its manufacturing facilities and offers some internships to interested students. PolyU also organizes visits to Hong Kong’s Science Park, home to multinational companies such as Infineon as well as a large number of start-up companies in the microelectronics sector. Some of these might support a student’s research project, or offer an internship in areas such as circuit design or microfabrication.

The international outlook offered by PolyU has made the Master’s programme particularly appealing to students from mainland China, but Zhao and Dai believe that the forward-looking ethos of the course should make it an appealing option for graduates across Asia and beyond. “Through the programme, the students gain knowledge about all aspects of the microelectronics industry, and how it is likely to evolve in the future,” says Dai. “The knowledge and technical skills gained by the students offer them a competitive edge for building their future career, whether they want to find a job in industry or to continue their research studies.”

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