Interdisciplinary Laboratory Course: “ Chemistry and Transport in Semiconductor Materials Synthesis ”

Semiconductor fabrication technologies (including those at the nanoscale) draw upon a wide variety of disciplines, and rest upon a correspondingly diverse scientific and mathematical base. Few courses on device fabrication address “process science”: the scientific and mathematical fundamentals underlying the design and optimization of plasma and thermal processes. There are relatively few universities with undergraduate programs focusing on nanoscale materials processing. This situation results partly from the exceptionally interdisciplinary nature of the field, which makes it difficult for any one department to claim “ownership.” To address this lack, we are developing a laboratory course for upper-division undergraduates and graduate students called “Chemistry and Transport in Semiconductor Materials Synthesis.” The course provides students with hands-on experimental and computational experiences in the processes and fundamentals that govern semiconductor device fabrication.