![Students in protective clothing from head to toe work at a machine in the Mantei Center clean room.](https://www.uc.edu/news/articles/2023/09/n21199174/jcr:content/image.img.cq5dam.thumbnail.500.500.jpg/1695647245992.jpg)
NSF: Investing $45M in future of semiconductors
UC research project is among 24 that will benefit from federal investment
The National Science Foundation announced $45 million in funding to support 24 semiconductor research and education projects, including one at the University of Cincinnati.
UC College of Engineering and Applied Science Assistant Professor Sarah Watzman is studying “spin gapless semiconductors” in collaboration with four other academic institutions.
UC Assistant Professor Sarah Watzman. Photo/Andrew Higley/UC Marketing + Brand
The grants are designed to spur semiconductor development and manufacturing in the United States as part of the 2022 Chips and Science Act.
“Our investment will help train the next generation of talent necessary to fill key openings in the semiconductor industry and grow our economy from the middle out and bottom up,” NSF Director Sethuraman Panchanathan said.
“By supporting novel, transdisciplinary research, we will enable breakthroughs in semiconductors and microelectronics and address the national need for a reliable, secure supply of innovative semiconductor technologies, systems and professionals.”
At UC, Watzman is studying the next generation of materials used in nanoelectronic devices called spin gapless semiconductors.
“These materials focus on spintronic applications, which combine electronics with spin, which is an intrinsic property of electrons,” Watzman said.
“Focusing on the spin of an electron, rather than on the whole electron, makes it possible to make smaller devices that operate at higher speeds and consume less energy,” Watzman said.
Watzman is collaborating on the research project with two professors in UC's College of Arts and Sciences.
Evgeny Mikheev, an assistant professor of physics, will work on the device development portion of the project while Assistant Professor Melissa Jacquart in philosophy will oversee technology communications. Jacquart is the associate director of the UC Center for Public Engagement with Science, which supports researchers in achieving broader impacts of their work on students and society.
“This project will also promote development of the semiconductor workforce through technical communication coursework and credentialing,” Watzman said.
UC is among 47 institutions that will use the NSF grants to support their two-dozen projects.
Featured image at top: UC College of Engineering and Applied Science students wear protective clothing while working with semiconductors in the Mantei Center's 8,000-square-foot clean room. Photo/Corrie Mayer/CEAS Marketing
Innovation Lives Here
The University of Cincinnati is leading public urban universities into a new era of innovation and impact. Our faculty, staff and students are saving lives, changing outcomes and bending the future in our city's direction. Next Lives Here.
Related Stories
NSF: Investing $45M in future of semiconductors
September 22, 2023
UC's semiconductor project is among 24 the National Science Foundation is supporting with $45 million in grants.
UC to receive over $1.5 million from the National Science Foundation
September 14, 2022
UC receives $1.6 million in federal funding from National Science Foundation.
Spectrum News: High school students learn STEM in UC program
July 6, 2022
Spectrum News highlights UC's Biology Meets Engineering program which gives high school students an introduction to STEM fields in a project sponsored by the National Science Foundation.
Business Courier: UC wins public-private grant for microchip research
October 6, 2023
The Business Courier explains how the National Science Foundation will fund 24 research projects on semiconductors, including one at the University of Cincinnati.
Science Daily: Bat calls contain redundant information
July 20, 2021
UC assistant professor Dieter Vanderelst in UC's College of Arts and Sciences and College of Engineering and Applied Science digitally compressed the echoes of Mexican free-tailed bats and found they lost little valuable information.
Phys.Org: How can computer chips predict the future of gene synthesis?
March 4, 2022
News outlets highlight a study by the University of Cincinnati that used the evolution of the microchip to predict advances in synthetic biology.
Dayton Inno: UC alumni develop wearable safety device for runners
October 28, 2021
University of Cincinnati biomedical engineering graduate Jack Randall is developing a wearable safety device for runners and cyclists. Zoza, a small, wearable SOS device, can be attached to a shoe or zipper and is intended for endurance athletes who often don’t carry a phone or who travel through remote areas. A user can press a button to send an emergency alert and the device even works in locations where cell service is unavailable.
WCPO: UC's 3D printers help young engineers change the world
January 14, 2021
WCPO talks to UC College of Engineering and Applied Science professor Sam Antoline and UC student Arshad Mohammed about the growing use of 3D printing for research and manufacturing.
News Record: UC Engineers Without Borders makes impact
January 22, 2021
The University of Cincinnati student chapter of Engineers Without Borders makes a life-changing impact at home and abroad by helping to build schoolhouses and bring clean water to people who need it.
Forbes: Telehealth drones bring health care to you
March 30, 2021
Forbes highlights the work of four UC inventors who are exploring how drones can be applied to telehealth.