Micromanufacturing

Advanced products such as high-tech devices, mobile phones and modern (bio-)medical devices are manufactured using special technologies. These micromanufacturing methods make it possible to structure and combine materials on a (sub) micrometer scale. Knowledge and experience with these methods is essential for the advanced manufacturing industry, e.g. at companies like ASML, NXP, Philips, but also many medium-sized and small companies developing sensors, actuators, and other advanced components and devices. In this course, you will learn about the most important micromanufacturing methods; the principles, advantages, and disadvantages, will be explained. You will learn about the main application areas of micromanufacring, and about concrete products made with these methods. You will learn how to approach the design of a microsystem and how small-scale effects can be taken into account. Finally, you will apply the knowledge to tackle a micromanufacturing poster challenge in small groups.

The course consists of 6 weeks of lectures and guided self-study, in 2 blocks each with 2 lecture hours and 2 guided self-study hours. The lectures cover the following topics:
1) Applications: where do we need (micro)manufacturing; Scaling: challenges/ opportunities at different scales; Materials overview
2) Cleanroom fabrication processes
3) Replication processes
4) Machining
5) Additive manufacturing
6) Deepen selected methods
For the micromanufacturing poster challenge, students are divided in groups of 4 that need to tackle a specific problem, which will be explained in week 1. The problem, approach and results should be reported in a poster and a 1-minute recorded video pitch, to be uploaded in Canvas in week 7, and to be presented in a symposium organized in the final week (the “poster challenge” in week 8). During the symposium, invited speakers from companies will give lectures on micromanufacturing aspects of their technology/ business.