ECE 498: Semiconductor Innovations
 
COURSE STAFF:

Prof. John Dallesasse 
2114 Micro and Nanotechnology Lab
Email: jdallesa@illinois.edu

Leah Espenhahn  
3221 Micro and Nanotechnology Lab
Email: leahe2@illinois.edu

Welcome to ECE 498 SI (Spring 2025)

  • Course Information
    • Prerequisite: ECE 340 or equivalent
    •  
    • This course explores technology innovation in the semiconductor field, and in particular technologies that have had or show promise for significant technical or commercial impact. Topics include wide bandgap semiconductors, photonic technologies & integrated photonics, and wafer bonding & 3D integration.
  • Course Website
    • Registered students will automatically be enrolled in the course Canvas site. All relevant course documents and information will be hosted there.
  • Course Goals

    • This course aims to prepare students to interface with emerging technologies throughout their career in industry or academia.

      Learning Outcomes:

    • 1. Students will be able to identify and propose commercial leap ahead solutions to current technical problems.
    • 2. Students will be able to identify and assess current and past commercial leap ahead technologies including transistors and vertical-cavity surface-emitting lasers (VCSELs).
    • 3. Students will be able to analyze wide-bandgap semiconductor devices with applications in power electronics and photonics.
    • 4. Students will be able to conceptualize, critique, and compare photonic technologies including silicon photonics, photonic integrated circuits, and electro-optic systems.
    • 5. Students will be able to conceptualize, critique, and compare wafer and chiplet bonding techniques and applications including high temperature direct bonding, plasma-activated bonding, and metal-assisted bonding.
  • Assignments, Exams, & Grading Criteria

    • In-Class Assignments: While attendance itself is not recorded, there will be frequent in-class activities that require your attendance and participation. If you are unable to attend a class, follow the course policy on absences.

      Assignments: Out of class/ homework assignments will be regularly assigned, with deadlines before a class period. The assignments are designed to reinforce understanding of key concepts, to build skills in extending conceptual knowledge in novel ways, or to prepare students for discussions around key topics. In some cases, completion of a homework problem will require independent study of topics related to but not necessarily covered in class. These are designed to advance the skills needed as a practicing engineer or researcher, where encountering new problems is both normal and common.

      Exams: This course will have two, 1-hour exams during class time. The exams will be cumulative and closed book. One hand-written 8.5” X 11” double-sided formula sheet may be brought in for the first exam, and two 8.5” X 11” double-sided formula sheets may be brought in for the second exam. A simple scientific calculator is allowed, but additional formulae must not be stored in the calculator, and it must not have networking capability. You will not be allowed to use your cell phone’s calculator function during quizzes or exams. The format of your exam solutions should be the same as that used for the homework assignments: units must be shown explicitly, your answer must be circled, and your work must be readable. Numerical answers should contain an appropriate number of significant figures.

      Term Project: There will be a group term project [TP] and presentation on a topic chosen from provided examples, or as arranged with the instructor. It will consist of a white paper proposal and 20-minute presentation on the research proposal. This project will be scaffolded across the semester, with opportunities to gain experience presenting and review drafts prior to the final submission and presentation.

      Grading Criteria: Your grade in this course is based primarily on your scores on the in and out of class assignments, the exams, and the final project.

      In-Class Assignments & Participation… 10%
      Out-of-Class Assignments………….….. 10%
      Exams……………………………………. 40%
      Term Project……………………………... 40%
      ———————————————————–—–
      Total……………………………………… 100%

  • Tentative Schedule
    • This schedule is subject to change.
    • Lecture Number Date Topic
      1 Tu 01/21 Intro to course, discussion on what is commercial leap ahead (CLA)?
      2 Th 01/23 Case Study 1: Transistor history, theory, fab
      3 Tu 01/28 Case Study 1: Transistor history, theory, fab
      4 Th 01/30 Case Study 2: VCSEL history, theory, fab
      5 Tu 02/04 Case Study 2: VCSEL history, theory, fab
      6 Th 02/06 What's next: Current drivers of technological advancements
      7 Tu 02/11 Intro to Wide BandGap [WBG] semiconductors
      8 Th 02/13 WBG transistors
      9 Tu 02/18 WBG transistors (TFT)
      10 Th 02/20 WBG power electronics
      11 Tu 02/25 WBG photonics
      12 Th 02/27 WBG photonic integrated circuits (PICs)
      13 Tu 03/04 Ultra-WBG semiconductors
      14 Th 03/06 Exam 1 (Tentative)
      15 Tu 03/11 Silicon photonics
      16 Th 03/13 Pockels electro-optic effect
        Tu 03/18 Spring Break
        Th 03/20 Spring Break
      17 Tu 03/25 Electro-optic applications
      18 Th 03/27 Electro-optic devices
      19 Tu 04/08 Quantum-confined Stark effect
      20 Th 04/10 Electro-absorption devices
      21 Tu 04/15 Integrated photonic systems
      22 Th 04/17 Intro. to heterogeneous integration
      23 Tu 04/22 Metal-assisted bonding, high-temp direct bonding
      24 Th 04/24 Plasma-activated bonding
      25 Tu 04/29 Chiplet bonding, bonding on interposers
      26 Th 05/01 3D stacking
      27 Tu 05/06 Exam 2
        Th 05/08 Reading Day
        Final Exam Period Term Project Presentation

       

 
   

Questions and comments pertaining to the ECE 498 website should be directed to Leah Espenhahn (leahe2@illinois.edu)