STMicro and Politecnico di Milano expand R&D capabilities

Building on a long-standing collaboration between the two organisations, the PoliFab’s clean room has received equipment from STMicroelectronics to boost joint R&D efforts in Micro Electro-Mechanical Systems (MEMS) and motion control, as well as in power electronics and galvanic isolation, a press release reads. The new clean-room infrastructure aims to make Politecnico di Milano more attractive for talented researchers and students and contribute to fuel ST’s advances and development roadmap in semiconductor technologies including MEMS. With the core of ST’s global MEMS R&D operations located in Lombardy, close to Milan, the cooperation with PoliFab aims at setting up a center of excellence for studies and research on advanced materials for MEMS in the region. With the new space inaugurated, PoliFab's total classified area now spans 610 square metres. “We are pioneering a new model for “fast technology transfer” based on the realization of a joint research and innovation infrastructure where top-class semiconductor equipment, the very same used in a semiconductor fab, is made available to researchers and students,” says Riccardo Bertacco, director of Polifab in the press release. “Polifab 2.0 is a physical site where exciting scientific ideas can meet state-of-the-art semiconductor technology, thus speeding-up both fundamental research and its technology transfer.” “Today’s event marks a significant milestone in building an Italy-unique, world-class semiconductor innovation hub that can contribute to ST’s R&D efforts in multiple areas including MEMS and sensors, one of the most promising technologies that enable digital transformation and the Internet of Things,” adds Anton Hofmeister, Group Vice President and General Manager, R&D and Strategy for the Analog and MEMS Sub-Groups, STMicroelectronics. “The successful collaboration with Politecnico is part of our global innovation strategy to foster high-caliber talent and facilitate industry-academia joint research programs as key elements of success in the global semiconductor market.”