Dozens of scientists, engineers and doctoral candidates from hospitals, industry and universities from across Canada and in Korea and the Middle East dove deep into the world of electron-beam nanolithography recently at the Emerging Communications Technology Institute (ECTI), the University of Toronto’s state-of-the art facility in the Faculty of Applied Science & Engineering.
The students were the first to take an innovative nine-hour e-beam nanolithography training session, and will go on to apply their new skills in the fields of biomedicine, micro- and nano-electro-mechanical systems (M/NEMS), microfluidics, opto-electronics, microelectronics, energy and pharmaceuticals.
Opened last year, the research lab allows scientists and engineers to create next-generation devices that could make a large-scale impact on health care, information technology, clean technologies, digital media and the automotive industry. It is built around a $6.5-million electron beam lithography system, a tool able to define features as small as 10 nanometres: about 10,000 times smaller than the width of a human hair.
The facility is one of only two of its kind in Canada. Students in the course used the tool to create a nano-device they could take away with them. Many may be part of an exploding nanotechnology market, projected to be worth $1 trillion by 2014.
“This training opportunity demonstrates the Faculty of Applied Science & Engineering’s leadership role in providing researchers with the cutting edge tools they need to do world-class work,” said Dr. Aju Jugessur, the training instructor and manager of the facility.
“Providing researchers with the tools they need to undertake leading-edge research is what the Emerging Communications Technology Institute is all about,” added Professor Stewart Aitchison, Vice-Dean, Research, at the Faculty of Applied Science & Engineering. “Sometimes, when you want to make grand changes in the world, you have to start very, very small.”
For more information about the University of Toronto’s electron-beam nanolithography facility, please go to www.ecti.utoronto.ca, or contactstewart.aitchison@utoronto.ca or aju.jugessur@utoronto.ca
