OTHER ELECTRONICS & NANOTECHNOLOGY
INDUSTRY UPDATE
June 2012
McIlvaine Company
TABLE OF CONTENTS
New State-of-the-Art Facility at NUS
University of Nebraska - Lincoln Has New Nanoscience Metrology Facility
Linde Expands in China with Contract for Samsung Electronics in Suzhou
Entegris to Create Advanced Nanotech R&D and Manufacturing Center
Los Alamos National Laboratory Nuclear Facility
New Labs Boost Binghamton University's Electronics Research
Plexus to Build Plant in Wisconsin
Rensselaer Opens Manufacturing Learning Lab
New Nanotechnology Center Opens in Little Rock
The Graphene Research Centre was set up in August 2010 as part of the NUS Faculty of Science. The Centre is involved in projects totaling over S$100 million (US$78 million), and aims to be a world leader in the emerging field of graphene research. Helmed by Professor Antonio H. Castro Neto, who is one of the world leaders in the area of graphene research, the Centre is set up under scientific advising by Professor Andre Geim and Professor Konstantin Novoselov, from Manchester University in United Kingdom and winners of the 2010 Nobel Prize in Physics for the discovery of graphene.
NUS President Professor Tan Chorh Chuan, who inaugurated the new research facility, said, "Graphene is one of the most interesting and promising materials of our time although its unique properties have yet to be fully explored. NUS already has substantial strengths in this field and the establishment of the Graphene Research Centre will provide state-of-the-art facilities and expertise to advance our work and develop new applications. We look forward to seeing novel discoveries and innovative breakthroughs emerge from the Centre, putting Singapore in the forefront of research in revolutionary new materials."
There is currently an intensive global drive towards graphene commercialization. Graphene grown by chemical vapor deposition (CVD) has the potential to be a game changer in the industry of transparent conductive coatings (TCC) essential for the modern display, lighting touch panel, and photovoltaic industries. This market is expected to reach annually US$55 billion by 2020. On the other hand, solution-processed graphene is expected to have a major impact on batteries, catalysts and composite materials, reaching a projected market value of US$675 million in 2020.
Elaborating on the mission of the Centre, Prof Neto said, "The Graphene Research Centre will play a globally leading role in studying graphene and its derivatives. Our research addresses immediate growth, synthesis, transfer and doping problems of existing approaches. We aim to break current technological bottlenecks for industry adoption by meeting the industrial benchmarks of conductivity and optical transparency for graphene and by improving size and conductivity of graphene flakes from solution at a low cost. Our long-term goal is to create a strong patent portfolio that will allow for start-up spin-offs and for commercialization via the route of IP licensing to industry leaders."
The Graphene Research Centre comprises a state-of-the-art cleanroom facility (800 m2 of operational space, 8,608 sq. ft., and 200 m2 of office space) and laboratory space (1,000 m2, 10760 sq. ft.). The Centre currently has 19 researchers spearheading 16 research projects that look into areas ranging from medicine to nanotechnology.
To bring materials research in Singapore to a higher level, scientists at the Graphene Research Centre are studying a new class of atomically thin material that has functionalities that graphene does not. The Centre is also expanding to bring in more researchers to expand the scope of research work.
SEMI-GAS® Systems, a division of Applied Energy Systems, Inc., and a manufacturer of industry-leading ultra-high purity gas source and distribution systems, announced that the University of Nebraska - Lincoln has selected the company's high purity gas equipment for use in the university's new Nanoscience Metrology Facility. SEMI-GAS' high purity products and Applied Energy Systems' field services will be used throughout the new labs and cleanrooms at the facility.
The current contract includes the installation of numerous fully automatic Centurion gas cabinets, automatic switchover gas panels, wall mount systems and manual manifolds, as well as an exhaust scrubber and hazardous gas detection system for the facility.
Applied Energy Systems will support all of the SEMI-GAS equipment with an extensive installation and gas piping project, which includes installing high purity single wall and coaxial gas lines from the source systems to their designated points-of-use, including a reactive ion etch and krypton fluoride laser.
As the job approaches completion, Applied Energy Systems' certified technicians will perform quality and safety checks, including analytical testing and line labeling. The final phase, in conjunction with the university, will require system validation, equipment commissioning and personnel training.
Funded in part by a grant from the National Institute of Standards and Technology, the university's new 32,000 square foot center will provide a modern facility for nanofabrication, electron microscopy, scanning probe microscopy and other synthesis and characterization units. These labs require reliable delivery of ultra-high purity gases to complete and research various semiconductor processes such as wafer etching, photolithography and thin film deposition.
Applied Energy Systems president, Steve Buerkel, said, "Our high purity equipment delivers the quality gases needed to aid in the advancement of science and technology; we're always excited to be a part of projects for research and lab facilities."
Linde LienHwa (LLH), The Linde Group's joint venture with LienHwa MiTAC Group of Taiwan, a leader in electronics gas supply and solutions, announced a significant long-term deal with Samsung Electronics to supply gases for its latest 8.5 generation TFT-LCD manufacturing plant in Suzhou Industrial Park (SIP), China. Industrial gases are essential to the production of transistors that control the pixels in LCD screens.
This major gas supply contract marks a further milestone in Linde's continuing expansion in Asia and is strategically significant for Linde LienHwa's position in eastern China. It also strengthens Linde's leading position as a gas supplier for the electronics industry, demonstrating the increasing demand for the company's gases and solutions from electronics manufacturers across the world. Linde has become the first choice gas supply partner for TFT-LCD manufacturing in China with substantial gas contracts in place with the three largest flat panel display manufacturers.
Very large volumes of ultra-high purity gases play a critical part in the manufacture of TFT-LCD screens. They are used to create the microscopic thin-film transistors (TFT) required to control each of the thousands of pixels that make up the visible image.
According to IHS iSuppli, global large panel area capacity is set to increase by 78 percent in the next four years, reaching 283 million square meters by 2015. In 2012 alone, the analyst specialist predicts a 30 percent growth in large panel area capacity globally, with an increase of 151 percent in China.
Under this agreement, Linde LienHwa will provide Samsung Electronics with a turnkey installation of the TFT-LCD plant's bulk gases supply systems, with a gas-on-line date of the end of 2012. Linde LienHwa's extensive scope includes the construction of a new on-site SPECTRA-N 30,000 series nitrogen generator supplying gas to Samsung via an underground pipeline. Overall investment is in the region of EUR 50 million (RMB 500 million). This will double Linde LienHwa's capacity in Suzhou Industrial Park, and demonstrates the significant growth potential of this market.
"This new project significantly strengthens our industry references and reinforces our leading role in the TFT-LCD industry. The agreement with Samsung Electronics demonstrates our commitment to help our customers develop state of the art manufacturing solutions. It also shows we are confident about the growth of the electronics market in Asia," said Andrew Lau, President and General Manager of Linde LienHwa China.
Peter Owen, Head of Linde's Global Electronics business and Asia Joint Venture Management, concludes "This significant contract is further acknowledgement of our global capability to supply and service leading TFT-LCD manufacturers with a full portfolio of gases and equipment. We look forward to building a strong working relationship with Samsung Electronics at their Suzhou site."
Samsung's new panel facility is constructed by Suzhou Samsung LCD (SSL). SSL was established in April 2011 as a joint venture between Samsung, SIP and TCL Corporation. SIP is expected to become China's largest advanced LCD production cluster.
The new factory and R&D center will focus on the design, development and full scale production of semiconductor packaging and test services for the semiconductor and electronic manufacturing companies, the company said. "We are making a strategic, long term investment in our core manufacturing and research infrastructure. It is a commitment to the future," said Ken Joyce, Amkor's president and CEO. "Korea is a worldwide center of excellence for the semiconductor and electronics industries, and with our new site we will be able to attract top engineering talent and a highly skilled workforce."
After a worldwide search for a premier location, Entegris, a Billerica-based supplier to the semiconductor and microelectronics industries, has announced its plans to create the Entegris i2M Center for Advanced Materials Science ("i2M Center") in Bedford, Massachusetts.
The i2M Center will be one of New England’s leading R&D and manufacturing centers for filtration media, electrostatic clamps (E-Chucks) and proprietary advanced, low-temperature coatings. These technologies are needed to develop critical components used in the world’s most demanding and stringent semiconductor manufacturing environments. Entegris’ products, which control nano-level contamination so small it is measured in widths of atoms, enable the production of advanced semiconductor devices and other electronics used in computers, smartphones, TVs and cars.
“As next-generation devices - which are at the heart of tomorrow’s computers, tablets, and mobile phones - become smaller, more powerful, and consume less energy, the technologies used to make these devices are pushing the boundaries of physics,” said Gideon Argov, president and chief executive officer of Entegris. “To support the manufacturing of these devices, the Entegris i2M Center will focus on solving the most difficult purification, process control, and material protection challenges, something only a handful of companies in the world can do.”
Entegris recently purchased land and an existing 80,000 square foot building at 9 Crosby Drive in Bedford, Massachusetts to house the i2M Center. It expects to invest approximately $45 to $50 million in building infrastructure upgrades and equipment over the next two years. Entegris, which reported a record $749 million in sales in fiscal 2011, expects the first phase of the Center to be operational in early 2013.
The i2M Center will consolidate certain existing Entegris operations in Massachusetts and house approximately 100 professional and skilled employees who will transfer from those existing sites. The company also plans to add 10 new engineering and development positions specializing in membrane science and E-Chucks. Entegris currently employs approximately 350 employees in Massachusetts, and approximately 2,700 employees worldwide. “i2M denotes ‘ideas to market.’ This facility will be our flagship innovation center for developing breakthrough materials science technologies to support our global customers, many of which are in Asia. “Given our long history in the region, local employee talent, and the concentration of material science and engineering experts in New England, there is no better location than right here in Massachusetts for our i2M Center,” said Bertrand Loy, chief operating officer of Entegris.
"We are excited that Entegris chose Massachusetts as home for its innovative new center," said Massachusetts Governor Deval Patrick. "Companies like Entegris know that the Commonwealth is second to none in innovation, technology and life sciences and projects like this help Massachusetts win the future."
Laboratory Los Alamos National Security, LLC (LANS) is seeking Construction Subcontractors who have the ability to construct a fully designed new nuclear facility at the Los Alamos National Laboratory (LANL) located in Los Alamos County, New Mexico,
Estimated Value: $112,500,000
Binghamton University opened two new laboratories at the New York State Center of Excellence in Small Scale Integration and Packaging (S3IP) in a ceremony attended by elected officials, local leaders, and university representatives. The ceremony celebrated the opening of the Center for Autonomous Solar Powers (CASP) solar laboratory and the colocation of the Integrated Electronics Engineering Centers (IEEC) reliability and failure analysis laboratory. Both laboratories are housed in the Biotechnology Building at Binghamton Universitys Innovative Technologies Complex (ITC).
CASP is a national leader in the research and development of new thin film solar cells. Its new laboratory will focus on using inexpensive, non-toxic and abundant materials to develop new solar cell and energy storage technologies. The Integrated Electronics Engineering Center (IEEC) conducts cutting-edge research in electronics packaging and provides the results to affiliated companies. The newly relocated Reliability and Failure Analysis Laboratory provides expertise in electronics packaging.
Binghamton has a strong research tradition that is crucial to the growth of the University and our region, said Binghamton University President Harvey Stenger. These new laboratories provide us with world-class facilities and usher in an era of collaboration and partnerships that will expand the future of our region, and act as a catalyst to reinvent and enhance the technology focus of the Southern Tier.
Supporting the new CASP facility is $8.5 million in federal funding secured by US Senators Charles E. Schumer and Kirsten E. Gillibrand, and US Representative Maurice D. Hinchey.
Binghamton University has secured its place on the map as a prestigious research center, said Schumer. The Center for Autonomous Solar Power enhances that tradition and is a perfect combination of the top-notch faculty and facilities Binghamton is known for. I am pleased we delivered critical resources that will not only create the next generation of solar technology, but also boost to the region’s economy. There is no doubt the University has a bright future.
Offering new opportunities to develop innovative electronics, the labs will boost Binghamton Universitys ability to serve as the nexus of faculty research and industry needs.
As we celebrate the opening of two new laboratories at Binghamton Universitys Center of Excellence in Small Scale Integration and Packaging (S3IP), we are witnessing world-class research and development right here in the Southern Tier, launching us into the next generations of innovative technologies, said Gillibrand. This successful partnership between government, the University and industry leaders will help to grow the economy in the region and to further advance future initiatives.
An integral part of the S3IP, the labs will bring together government, academia, and industry partners to collaborate in areas such as electronics, healthcare and energy all of which have national and global impact.
The research that will be done within these walls has the potential to reshape our energy future, said Hinchey. Changing the way we produce and consume energy is an environmental, economic, and national security imperative. That's why it is so critically important that our government make substantial investments in laboratories just like this one at Binghamton University. I am very pleased I was able to secure $8.5 million in federal funding to help get this laboratory up and running and am so proud of the early successes of CASP. I know it's just the beginning of many great achievements that will happen at this new facility.
The opening of the labs was met with enthusiasm from the Empire State Developments Division of Science, Technology and Innovation (NYSTAR) , which supports S3IP and its initiatives.
The Center for Small Scale Systems Integration and Packaging is a proven innovation leader," said Ed Reinfurt, director of NYSTAR. These labs will build on that track-record of supplying systems integration and packaging expertise to industry and play a major role in ensuring that New York remains a leader in high-technology academic research and economic development.
Plexus Corp. says its new $50 million high-tech manufacturing plant in Neenah will create 350 jobs.
Plexus says construction of the plant that will manufacture high-tech electronic components will begin in July. The company will receive up to $15 million in tax credits over a seven-year period through the state's Wisconsin Economic Development Corp. The tax credits will be tied to the company's capital investment, job retention and creation.
Neenah community development director Chris Haese says the new plant will also retain 1,000 jobs. Plexus will also build a $7 million data and development center near its global headquarters in downtown Neenah in 2013.
Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute has revealed its new Manufacturing Innovation Learning Lab (MILL), which will be focused on educating the next generation of manufacturing leaders and pioneers.
According to the institute, the MILL builds upon the many successes of its predecessor, the Advanced Manufacturing Laboratory (AML).
"The evolution from AML to MILL reflects changes in the field and in the marketplace. Industry is looking for future leaders who are versed in time-tested manufacturing techniques, yet experienced and fluent in micro, nano, bio, and other leading-edge manufacturing technologies," said David Rosowsky, dean of the Rensselaer School of Engineering. "Advanced manufacturing is essential to reinvigorating American innovation and to creating high-paying jobs across all technology sectors. The MILL positions Rensselaer and its graduates to make bigger, bolder contributions toward these important national goals," Rosowsky added.
Located in the George M. Low Center for Industrial Innovation, MILL is a forward-looking manufacturing learning environment. Leveraging the instructor expertise and industry-grade equipment in MILL, sophomores and seniors taking Introduction to Engineering Design, the new Manufacturing Processes and Systems I and II, and senior capstone design courses can practice and master manufacturing processes. In these classes, students undergo the same design, process engineering, technical documentation, and rapid prototyping used in industrial research and development teams.
Looking forward, MILL will be an important foundation for infusing micromanufacturing, nanomanufacturing, and other advanced manufacturing technologies into the Rensselaer undergraduate engineering curriculum and graduate student experience. Additionally, MILL will enable new course work and advanced study on robotics systems development, manufacturing systems simulation, and emerging machining technologies. The Rensselaer School of Engineering expects to establish new undergraduate and graduate courses focused on these areas.
"Not just anyone can get a job at a leading high-tech manufacturing company. To succeed, thrive, and become a leader at these companies, you need to know the ins and outs of how to make stuff quickly, smartly, and competitively. This is precisely what Rensselaer teaches undergraduate students in the MILL," said Sam Chiappone, manager of fabrication and prototyping in the Rensselaer School of Engineering.
MILL is sponsored by several industrial partners, including Applied Robotics; Ensign-Bickford Aerospace & Defense Company; Emerson; Energizer; Haas Automation; LoDolce Machine; RBC Bearings; and SABIC.
MILL's predecessor, the AML, was established in 1980. For the past few years, several student teams using the AML and taking the related course, Advanced Manufacturing Lab, have won or placed high in the American Society of Mechanical Engineers (ASME) Student Design and Manufacturing Competition held at the ASME annual conference. Rensselaer students won top prize at the competition in 2011, 2010, and 2009.
This year, graduating seniors who studied in the AML over the past two semesters have already secured manufacturing-related jobs at Apple, Boeing, Pratt & Whitney, RBC Bearings, and many other top-tier employers. The evolution of AML into MILL stands to make Rensselaer students even more prepared and more attractive to leading international manufacturing and technology companies.
MILL is an important cornerstone of the overall advanced manufacturing enterprise at Rensselaer. Leading the university's advanced manufacturing research program is the Center for Automation Technologies and Systems (CATS). CATS is a New York state designated Center for Advanced Technology and receives annual funding of nearly $1 million from the Empire State Development (ESD) Division for Science, Technology and Innovation (NYSTAR). Since 1988, CATS has worked with partner companies to leverage the knowledge and expertise of Rensselaer faculty and students toward solving real-world advanced manufacturing challenges.
UALR - The University of Arkansas at Little Rock - has opened its new home for the Center for Integrative Nanotechnology Sciences. The five-story, $15 million building is a working symbol of Arkansas' major stake in atomic-sized technology that will make a giant difference to the future of central Little Rock.
Arkansas Gov. Mike Beebe, U.S. Sen. Mark Pryor, and U.S. Congressman Tim Griffin were on hand for the May 2 opening ceremonies, citing the center's mission to take discoveries in the lab and turn them into new products, new businesses, and new jobs.
"We no longer have to take a backseat to any state in the nation,"Gov. Beebe said. "The United States has invested more than any other nation in nanotechnology, and Arkansas has kept pace. We are one of the few states in the nation where it is really happening."
The new center combines three major roles of the university -education, research, and economic development - to recruit and inspire a generation of scientists, nurture their research, and apply it to create new marketable products that launch new businesses and create new jobs for Arkansas.
"What we are doing here is quite unique. It is to combine education with research and economic development," said Dr. Alexandru Biris, director of the new center and the UALR Sturgis Chair in Nanotechnology. Students - from the high school to the post-doctoral level - are already interacting with researchers and representatives of local companies to find answers and expand the understanding of how the properties of elements behave at the atomic scale and apply knowledge to development new products, enterprises, and jobs.
"We are trying to grow the next generation of scientists in Arkansas," Biris said. "We are taking students we have met and turning them into scientists, doctors, researchers - highly educated individuals(without whom) it will be very difficult to advance economically.
"Scientists and students at the new UALR center are wrapping a few atoms of gold in a graphite nanotube a few atoms thick to hunt and kill cancer cells without affecting healthy tissue. Working with colleagues at the cross-town sister school, the University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences, they already have succeeded with rats.
Although she is only a freshman, Natasha Sra of Cherokee Village in northeast Arkansas, is learning and discovering along with doctors and post-docs on the project.
She never heard of nanotechnology before she enrolled in the Arkansas School for Science, Mathematics, and the Arts and her teacher pointed her to a summer program for high schoolers at the UALR nanotechnology center. Now a freshman at UALR, the chemistry and biology major is working on novel research on how low-levels frequency on nano particles affect breast cancer cells.
The center also offers its research assistance and lab facilities to local companies, making locating and expanding businesses in central Arkansas more attractive to high-tech firms.
Almatis in Bauxite, Ark., a global leader in the development, manufacture and supply of high-quality specialty alumina products, leans on the UALR center to help test samples.
"Part of product development is working experimentally to produce samples to see what we've got and make sure it meets the requirements that the customer needs," Timothy Bullard, the company's applications and market development engineer and a UALR graduate.
"With the nano center right up the road, I can sit there with the operator and get the analysis while I wait. That allows us to develop the product quickly and get it to the customer. And in business, time is money.
"In less than a decade, the state of Arkansas and UALR have developed a major research thrust in the areas of nanotechnology, nano medicine, and nano toxicology in partnership with 12 universities in the state and region, as well as the FDA's Center for National Toxicological Research. Fifty researchers around the globe are affiliated with CINS.
Biris and his research team have produced more than 260 scholarly publications and presentations. Their research discoveries have generated eight issued patents with 27 patent applications pending. Two spin-off companies in Arkansas, Orlumet, LLC and Poly Adaptive, LLC, have been established to commercialize some of these technologies.
Ongoing projects focus on the application of nanotechnology on: Dust mitigation: UALR has developed nanoscale materials for transparent and flexible electronic dust shields. Poly Adaptive, an Arkansas nanotechnology startup company, has received a $100,000National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) contract to use new nanoscale materials to drastically reduce dust on spacecraft surfaces. Possible commercial applications of the technology include solar panels, windows, windshields, optical devices, pharmaceutical devices, and other products that are impacted by the build-up of dust particles.
Tissue regeneration: UALR research has patented nano scaffolding structures that allow living tissue growth offering the possibility of regrowing severed spinal connections, lost limbs, and more. The first spin off company from the research is based in North Little Rock and focusing on regrowing lost teeth. Other industries interested in the research?
Industrial coatings: UALR researchers are developing coatings on metals that will repel water, thus protecting aircraft from ice buildup, a technology in which both the military and commercial airlines are interested.
Two companies founded last year to patent the technology developed by a UALR nanotechnology team are constructing working prototypes to provide anti-counterfeiting solutions for manufacturers. Making counterfeit products is one of the most pressing issues affecting global businesses. Ultra-thin solar cells: UALR teams are developing ways to make solar panels so thin they could be painted on buildings.
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