Nanofabrication

Penn State's Center for Nanotechnology Education and Utliization

By Jamie Oberdick

A key to America's future semiconductor success story will be building a skilled workforce, a well-prepared set of workers to address the needs of the chips industry. Workforce development is an essential part of the Chips and Science Act, designed to meet the needs of the semiconductor industry.

Read more about Penn State has a head start on building America’s semiconductor workforce

Man and two women in a lab readying a sample of cellulose

By Maria R. Lucas

UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. — Cellulose nanocrystals — bio-based nanomaterials derived from natural resources such as plant cellulose — are valuable for their use in water treatment, packaging, tissue engineering, electronics, antibacterial coatings and much more. Though the materials provide a sustainable alternative to non-bio-based materials, transporting them in liquid taxes industrial infrastructures and leads to environmental impacts.

Read more about Researchers uncover mechanisms to easily dry, redisperse cellulose nanocrystals

Image of a semiconductor chip in a motherboard

By Ashley WennersHerron

UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. — The Semiconductor Research Corporation (SRC)’s Joint University Microelectronics Program 2.0 (JUMP 2.0), a consortium of industrial partners in cooperation with the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA), has announced the creation of a $32.7 million, Penn State-led Center for Heterogeneous Integration of Micro Electronic Systems (CHIMES).

Read more about Penn State leads semiconductor packaging, heterogeneous integration center (JUMP 2.0)

By Gail McCormick

A new X-ray instrument, designed, fabricated, and prepared for flight by a team from Penn State, recently scanned an exploded star while testing technology for future NASA missions.

Read more about Penn State’s high-precision X-ray instrument makes its first trip to space

Penn State researchers will fabricate membranes with different surface pattern geometries and sizes to use in membrane capacitive deionization. The full membrane is seen at left, and at right, a portion of the membrane is seen under an electron microscope. The tiny wells allow sodium and chloride ions be filtered out of unclean water Credit: Arges Lab. All Rights Reserved.

Penn State researchers, led by Chris Arges, are working toward a realistic purification option that is portable, lightweight and easy to operate.

Read more about Electricity-driven water purification method may extend to saltier waters

By Adrienne Berard

President Joe Biden recently signed into law the CHIPS and Science Act, a $280 billion package to support domestic semiconductor manufacturing capabilities and increase research and development in the sector.

Read more about Q&A: The CHIPS Act and strengthening the US workforce

By Mariah Chuprinski

Digital information is everywhere in the era of smart technology, where data is continuously generated by and communicated among cell phones, smart watches, cameras, smart speakers and other devices. Securing digital data on handheld devices requires massive amounts of energy, according to an interdisciplinary group of Penn State researchers, who warn that securing these devices from bad actors is becoming a greater concern than ever before.