Fraunhofer in Japan

The Fraunhofer Project Center at Tohoku University (FPC at Tohoku University) is a platform for common research and development activities of Tohoku University and Fraunhofer Institute for Electronic Nano Systems ENAS.

The FPC at Tohoku University runs to the benefit of both partners as a vehicle for:

• R&D cooperation in advanced manufacturing technologies as well as development and applications of new materials for microelectronic systems with a focus on NEMS/MEMS and micro/nano manufacturing technologies,
• Facilitating and expediting the commercialization of research and the transfer and adoption of new materials manufacturing technology by industry, particularly manufacturers of microsystems and semiconductor devices,
• Exploitation of  new markets in the field of micro/nano systems manufacturing sectors,
• Introducing methods and standards of Fraunhofer-Gesellschaft for industrial collaboration to the research community in Japan and vice versa,
• Training the next generation of researchers, engineers and technicians through joint research programs.

Fraunhofer ENAS and the Tohoku University have been cooperating in the field of new materials for microelectronic systems just for many years. Fraunhofer-Gesellschaft concluded a cooperation agreement with the City of Sendai in 2005, 2010 and 2013. Since 2008, the director of Fraunhofer ENAS Prof. Gessner works as principal investigator within the World Premier International Research Center Initiative – Advanced Institute for Materials Research at the Tohoku University. He was invited to establish a research group in the field of NEMS/MEMS devices and micro/nano manufacturing technologies at the Tohoku University within the Esashi-lab.

To intensify their cooperation, the Fraunhofer ENAS and WPI-AIMR of Tohoku University did set-up a joint strategic research initiative by establishing a research and development unit at Tohoku University. The Fraunhofer Project Center “NEMS / MEMS Devices and Manufacturing Technologies at Tohoku University” has effectively started on April 1, 2012

The Fraunhofer Project Center for NEMS / MEMS Devices and Manufacturing Technologies at Tohoku University offers research and development services in the following fields:

• Smart systems
• MEMS/NEMS from design to prototype
  • Silicon based
  • New materials based  (e.g. palladium based amorphous metal, gallium,...)
• Technologies for MEMS/NEMS, smart systems and system integration
  • Silicon based technologies for MEMS/NEMS
  • Polymer based technologies
  • System integration (wafer bonding, 3D integration and packaging)
  • Basic technologies (e.g. lithography, layer deposition, etching,...)
• Test, modeling and analysis for design, characterization and reliability