I-Corps: On-chip Integration of Optoelectronic Devices

有一种被称为物联网的运动正在兴起，它涉及到创建一个由相互连接的智能设备组成的庞大网络。这包括从自动驾驶汽车到可以直接与人交流的冰箱。智能手机。这将使许多不同类型的工作实现自动化，从而提高几乎所有行业的效率。可穿戴技术和自动售货亭是这类技术的早期采用者。然而，在这一概念充分发挥作用之前，传感器技术需要优化并变得更实惠。设备使用传感器与周围的世界互动，就像人使用五种感官与环境互动一样。在许多情况下，为了使某项任务自动化，计算机或自动化设备需要配备不同类型的传感器。传感器需要足够小，不显眼，但应该需要很少的电力来操作。理想情况下，它们不需要任何外部电源。目前，材料和加工步骤太多，对广泛采用构成了障碍。该项目旨在显著降低传感器制造成本，包括太阳能电池、发光设备或光电探测器等项目。该技术的直接采用者将是传感器制造公司。这项技术的好处包括新型智能设备，可以改善企业对企业和机器对机器的信息网络。该技术的核心是利用纳米结构将光电器件与传统的硅CMOS芯片集成在一起。该团队开发的工艺包括在现有逻辑芯片上沉积多晶薄膜，并直接在其上生长光学有源器件。这既使传感器更薄，又消除了昂贵的电线粘合步骤。通过项目的客户发现部分，团队希望实现两件事：确定其客户群和商业化方法，并确定可行的产品供应。客户发现过程将帮助团队确定在当前阶段哪个市场最容易进入。团队成员计划采访这两个领域的主要和次要参与者。该项目的另一个目标是确定团队应该原型的光电器件类型。

There is a growing movement known as the Internet of Things which involve creating a massive network of interconnected smart devices. This includes everything from self-driving cars to refrigerators that can communicate directly with one?s smartphone. This will enable the automation of many different types of jobs, improving the efficiency in practically every of industry. Wearable tech and automated kiosks are examples of early adopters of this type of technology. However, before this concept can take full effect, sensor technology needs to be optimized and become more affordable. Devices use sensors to interact with the world around them, much like how a person uses their five senses to interact with the environment. In many cases, in order to automate a certain task, the computer or automation device needs to be equipped with different types of sensors. The sensors need to be small enough to be inconspicuous, yet should require little power to operate. Ideally they would be powered without any external power source. Currently, the materials and processing steps are too many and pose a barrier for widespread adoption. This project aims to significantly reduce the cost of sensor manufacturing when it includes items such as solar cells, light emitting devices, or photodetectors. Immediate adopters of the technology would be sensor manufacturing companies. Benefits of this technology include new types of smart devices which could improve business to business and machine to machine informational networks.At its core, the proposed technology is a method of integrating optoelectronic devices with conventional silicon CMOS chips using nanostructures. The process developed by this team involves depositing a polycrystalline film on top of an existing logic chip, and growing the optically active device directly on top. This both makes the sensor thinner and eliminates costly wire-bonding steps. Through the customer discovery portion of the project the team hopes to achieve two things: to identify its customer base and commercialization method, and to identify a viable product offering. The customer discovery process will help the team determine which market will be easiest to enter at its current stage. The team members plan on interviewing both major and minor players in both fields. Another goal for this project is to identify the type of optoelectronic device the team should prototype.