Acquisition of Processing Equipment for Advanced Materials Research

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9803113MurphyThe University of Oklahoma (OU) has focused an intense research effort on the electronic and optical properties of semiconductors and polymers. Over the past few years, researchers from the Physics, Chemistry, Electrical Engineering and Chemical Engineering departments have worked together to form the Laboratory for Electronic Properties of Materials (LEPM). The resulting collaborations and the leveraged use of experimental facilities has led to a wealth of innovative materials research. The success of this interdisciplinary effort has also created a major demand for semiconductor device fabrication equipment. Access to such equipment will enable the testing of materials under realistic operating conditions, the fabrication of prototype transistor and laser devices, and the production of specialized devices for studying fundamental quantum phenomena.This award provides support for photolithography (a mask-aligner, photoresist spinner and ovens for photoresist processing), etching (a plasma etcher), and packaging (a ball bonding station). This fabrication equipment will complement the existing growth and characterization facilities. Researchers in four areas will particularly benefit from the proposed instruments: The narrow-gap III-V materials developed by LEPM will be fabricated into improved magnetic-field sensors, high-speed transistors, and negative luminescence devices; Researchers studying fundamental quantum phenomena will be able to produce their own specialized devices; The novel atomic-beam etching technique invented by LEPM will be made compatible with conventional processing techniques; And the mid-infrared laser effort will be extended to include single-mode devices.These instruments will greatly strengthen the materials and device research capabilities at OU. Moreover, the already considerable interaction between the different disciplines represented within LEPM will be enhanced. Ongoing and new collaborations with a number of commercial enterprises (both within Oklahoma and nationwide) will also benefit. Finally, access to these instruments will greatly improve the curriculum and research opportunities for both undergraduate and graduate students majoring in Physics, Engineering Physics, and Electrical Engineering.%%%***