By Arizona State University and Applied Materials, Inc.
Arizona State University and Applied Materials, Inc. have announced an alliance, aided by the Arizona Commerce Authority, that brings more than $270M to create a world-class shared research, development and prototyping facility, the Materials-to-Fab Center, in the university’s MacroTechnology Works building at ASU Research Park.
The MTF Center will be designed to accelerate the transfer of innovations from ideation to fab prototype by bringing state-of-the-art semiconductor manufacturing equipment into a collaborative ASU and Applied Materials environment to work with industry partners, startups, government entities and academic institutions. The MTF Center will provide students and faculty with opportunities for hands-on learning and research on the same 300mm equipment used in leading-edge production fabs.
Applied Materials is the world’s largest provider of semiconductor manufacturing equipment. The company in May announced plans to build the Equipment and Process Innovation and Commercialization (EPIC) Center in California’s Silicon Valley. The EPIC Center is planned as the heart of a high-velocity innovation platform that includes a network of hubs at leading universities, each focused on materials and process innovation. The new MTF Center will be home to Applied’s Center of Excellence in materials deposition technology.
The design of the MTF Center has already begun and is expected to be operational within two years. The MTF Center is supported by investments of $30M from the Arizona Commerce Authority, $17M from ASU and $25M in Arizona New Economy Initiative funding and bonds. Applied Materials’ contributions are anticipated to exceed $200M including capital investments, equipment operation and maintenance, and research and scholarship funding.
To build an inclusive talent pipeline, Applied Materials also intends to launch an endowment fund that will provide scholarships to first-generation and/or underrepresented minority students in the ASU Ira A. Fulton Schools of Engineering. In addition, the Applied Materials Momentum Fund will be available to students at ASU and provide grants to women pursuing undergraduate degrees in engineering. (Source)
