Micro-Nano Technology Center Provides Virtual Tour of Its State of the Art Capabilities

Speed School of Engineering’s Micro/Nano Technology Center (MNTC) core facility provides micro and nanotechnology processing that supports research and training in the fields of microelectronics, optics, micro-fluidics, advanced materials, biotechnology and MEMS.

You can virtually visit the MNTC with its new self-guided audio tour.

The 10,000 ft² cleanroom facility is used for fabrication of novel materials and devices.  After devices are fabricated the Huson Imaging & Characterization Laboratory (HICL) is a support lab that houses a complete suite inspection systems including Scanning Electron Microscopy, Atomic Force Microscopy, Infrared Thermal imaging for micro and nanofabricated devices.

“The MNTC is privileged to be part of the National Science Foundation’s prestigious National Nanotechnology Coordinated Infrastructure (NNCI) network with Harvard, Stanford, Cornell, and Georgia Tech and other prestigious universities,” said MNTC Director and Electrical and Computer Engineering professor Kevin Walsh. “Our $30M cleanroom has extensive processing capabilities that rival these other prestigious institutions.”

University of Louisville faculty, other academic institutions and external businesses utilize the facility for research, while the MNTC also provides micro and nanofabrication services well beyond its borders.

The Center offers a wide array of capabilities, an experienced engineering team, protection of intellectual property and competitive pricing. It features a bay configuration within the cleanroom for thin film deposition, photolithography, photomask generation, wet processing, dry etching, high-temperature processing and PDMS processing.

The MNTC has been instrumental in gaining $55M of research awards for the University of Louisville. In 2008, Dr. Walsh and his team started the “KY nanoNET Initiative” which is an NSF-funded statewide network for the coordination of all the micro and nanotechnology efforts in the Commonwealth. Walsh credits Julia Aebersold, PhD and Manager of the MNTC, and her professional engineering team with much of the center’s growth over the last eight years of her tenure. Aebersold said, “It takes a village to successfully run a center of this magnitude and each of the Center’s personnel are THE key element of its success.”

What kinds of industries employ the services of MNTC? They include medicine, defense, automotive applications and space research to name a few.  NASA and Zin Technologies are an example of external clients that have utilized the MNTC to develop devices for spaceflight experiments onboard the ISS.

“In developing microfluidic devices for NASA, we’re helping scientists research advanced colloidal materials in the unique microgravity environment of the ISS,” said Aebersold.