Title  : $10 MILLION RESEARCH CENTER AIMS TO ADVANCE ENVIRONMENTALLY BENIGN
Type   : Press Release
NSF Org: OD / LPA
Date   : April 25, 1996
File   : pr9618



Media Contact:
George Chartier                         April 25, 1996
(703) 306-1070/gchartie@nsf.gov
                                   NSF PR 96-18

Program Contact:
Lynn Preston
(703) 306-1379/lpreston@nsf.gov

"$10 MILLION RESEARCH CENTER AIMS TO ADVANCE ENVIRONMENTALLY BENIGN
SEMICONDUCTOR MANUFACTURING"

One of the most concerted efforts to study the environmental, health and
safety aspects of the semiconductor manufacturing process is being
initiated through a partnership with the National Science Foundation (NSF)
and the Semiconductor Research Corporation (SRC).

The NSF/SRC Engineering Research Center (ERC) for Environmentally Benign
Semiconductor Manufacturing will be housed at the University of Arizona and
led by chemical engineer Farhang Shadman. Through the ERC, engineers and
scientists from Arizona, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Stanford
University, and the University of California-Berkeley will cooperatively
address the semiconductor industry's concern for a more environmentally
sound manufacturing process.

NSF and the SRC will each commit $1 million a year for five years.
SEMATECH, the semiconductor industry's manufacturingtechnology development
consortium, will contribute $750,000 in start-up funds.

The semiconductor industry makes electronic components for products that
fuel the information age, such as cellular phones, personal computers, VCRs
and televisions. Complex electronics also play an integral role in a
variety of other products, including automobiles, medical instruments and
children's toys. The global semiconductor industry alone supports an annual
worldwide market of $150 billion, and it provides essential resources for
much larger markets. The U.S. share of the global semiconductor market is
approximately 40 percent and growing each year. The market is expected to
grow to $183 billion in 1996 and exceed $238 billion in 1998. The U.S.
semiconductor industry employs 272,000 workers and provides the enabling
technology for an electronics industry that employs 2.5 million U.S.
workers.

An essential issue for the semiconductor industry is the development and
use of environmentally sound manufacturing processes. One focus is the
large amount of highly purified water required to rinse and clean a silicon
wafer. The semiconductor industry is interested in reducing water use
through innovative technology development. There is also a need to minimize
the amount of energy required to manufacture microchips.

Most semiconductor manufacturers have voluntarily ended the use of
ethylene-based glycol ethers -- fluorocarbons used as cleaning solvents. To
replace them, the industry is looking for safe solvent alternatives.
Although the semiconductor industry's share of total fluorocarbon use is
small, the industry is still concerned about its possible impact on the
earth's ozone layer.

The Arizona ERC will work in partnership with firms from the semi-conductor
industry that will contribute to strategic planning of the research
program. These firms will interact with faculty and students in research,
and provide opportunities for student interns both to learn the
manufacturing process firsthand and also to contribute solutions for
industrial problems while they are still in school. ERC graduates will be
part of a new generation of engineers capable of integrating
environmentally conscious concepts up-front in the design of manufacturing
processes.

The Engineering Research Centers Program, established in 1985 by NSF,
builds partnerships among universities and industry. These Centers support
long-term fundamental research, integrate the knowledge of engineering and
scientific disciplines in research designed to advance technology systems,
and educate a new generation of engineers capable of using knowledge across
disciplines to enhance the competitiveness of industry.

The SRC, the research arm of the Semiconductor Industry Association, was
created in 1982. It plans and implements an integrated program of
pre-competitive research conducted at 48 North American universities,
national laboratories and research institutions. The SRC is located in
Research Triangle Park, N.C.

SEMATECH, created in 1987, is a consortium of 10 major U.S. semiconductor
companies and the U.S. Department of Defense. It seeks to develop
semiconductor manufacturing technology to keep the U.S. semiconductor
industry competitive. SEMATECH is located in Austin, Texas.

                                   -NSF-