3-29-2002 | Institute for Physical Research and Technology
Students make their own semiconductor devices
Matt Welsh, an ISU senior in electrical engineering, is making semiconductor electronic devices. He shows up for class at a laboratory at the Microelectronics Research Center, dons white coat and gloves and proceeds to convert raw silicon wafers into working transistors and diodes.
Welsh, an ISU senior in electrical engineering, is among an increasing number of Iowa State students gaining hands-on experience in a lab course taught at the microelectronics center. Making a semiconductor requires students to learn more than 15 different process and testing sequences, said Vikram Dalal, MRC director and ISU professor in electrical and computer engineering.
"A joy to behold"
"The thrill on the face of students when they see their experimental devices work just the way they are supposed to is a joy to behold," he added.
Matt Welsh, a senior in electrical engineering, is one of the many students excited by the opportunity. "In this lab we're not just wiring a circuit together, but actually making the transistors that go into the circuit," he explained.
Lab popularity soars
Job opportunities in the semiconductor industry, word-of-mouth advertising by students, and an increasing number of ISU faculty with interests in electronic materials and devices have contributed to the lab's soaring popularity.
The course is taught by professors Gary Tuttle, electrical and computer engineering, with help from professors Dalal; Robert Weber, electrical and computer engineering; and Alan Constant, materials science and engineering.
(The Microelectronics Research Center is part of the Institute for Physical Research and Technology.)
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