Steve May, Megan Creighton, Yong-Jie Hu
Steven May, PhD, professor and department head of materials science and engineering, Megan Creighton, PhD, assistant professor of chemical and biological engineering, and Yong-Jie Hu, PhD, assistant professor of materials science and engineering, have received a two-year NSF-FuSe (Future of Semiconductors) grant to develop research capabilities and collaborations centered around germanium oxide-based semiconductors that are of interest for applications such as power electronics and infrared detection. Together with faculty from the University of Minnesota, University of Michigan, Washington State University and University of Texas, El Paso, they will address fundamental scientific and engineering challenges associated with material design, manufacturing, property control and device integration, all of which are required to move germanium oxide semiconductors from academic laboratories into society-benefiting technologies such as electric vehicles and autonomous systems.
The project makes parallel progress on the development of new materials and devices by infusing co-design principles in the coordinated activities of the team, which consists of 12 investigators from five different universities representing five disciplines within physical science and engineering.
Concurrent with research activities, the project pilots workforce development initiatives to help bolster the United States technical workforce in the semiconductor sector. These include providing students from traditionally under-represented groups with summer research experiences focused on oxide semiconductors and creating educational and training opportunities for students at technical-focused colleges in geographic proximity to the teaming institutions. Additionally, the team builds inter-institutional and industrial partnerships to ensure the research and workforce development activities are aligned with national technological needs.