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The project is another significant step in the Washington Nanotechnology Initiative (WNI), a collaborative effort by Washington’s technology leaders to position our state as a global leader in the use of nanotechnology for next-generation product development.
“DARPA’s funding of WTC’s nanolithography program provides Northwest companies with the foundation processes they need to evolve their product innovations,” says John Martin, director of the Washington Nanotechnology Initiative (WNI). “Washington state has a solid research and industry base in micro-electronics and semiconductors. These are the building blocks from which many nano-scale technologies are emerging,” explains Martin. “To keep our companies competitive, we need to ensure they are able to act on market opportunities as they arise. WTC’s program provides them with the infrastructure and resources to do this.”
“Nanolithography’s appeal lies in its incredible versatility,” says Eric Miller, manager of the Microfabrication Laboratory at the Washington Technology Center. “It allows virtually any material to be patterned onto a wide range of substrates at an extremely small scale – down to the molecular level,” Miller adds. “This opens up endless possibilities for creating more sophisticated materials, sensors, circuitry, and other applications.”
DARPA supports projects and initiatives where the research and technology development payoff is high with respect to amplifying military operations and missions. Nanolithography is a key component in defense applications and has significant commercial value. Nanotechnology-based products are estimated to generate $1 trillion in sales over the next decade. Many of Washington’s dominant and emerging industries, including life sciences, energy, manufacturing, electronics and agriculture, will directly benefit from nanolithography process development. Current technologies that rely on nanolithography include fuel cells, drug-delivery devices, microelectronics and photonics.
Nano-scale technology demand will most likely emulate microelectronics in that commercial adoption will be driven by price and manufacturability. Robustness and reliability of nano-scale processes will be the benchmark for performance and economy of scale in medical devices, energy systems and materials-based products. The work that WTC will undertake through this grant project will advance these processes to the quality and volume required for commercial use.
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