ATE Regional Center for Nanofabrication Manufacturing Education

An ATE Regional Center in Nanofabrication Manufacturing Education is being established to meet the increased demand in Pennsylvania and nationally for associate degree-level workers in the field of nanofabrication, including semiconductor manufacturing. The ATE Regional Center is built upon a unique educational consortium, the Pennsylvania Nanofabrication Manufacturing Technology (NMT) Partnership, and the ATE Regional Center will capitalize on Penn State's state-of-the-art Nanofabrication Facility.

The NMT Partnership involves Penn State, Pennsylvania industry, Pennsylvania community colleges, and public school districts throughout the state. Key to the NMT Partnership is the Penn State Nanofabrication Facility, a $23 million investment in class 10 cleanrooms and equipment, and its engineering staff. This Facility is part of NSF's National Nanofabrication Users Network (NNUN). It is shared among Pennsylvania community colleges and secondary schools and with Pennsylvania industry through the Partnership. Initial funding from the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania for the Partnership has supported facility expansion and has supported resident instruction at the Facility for a small number of students, allowing community colleges across Pennsylvania to offer NMT degrees and certificates. It has also supported NMT workshops for community college and secondary school educators, "chip camps" for secondary school students, and assistance for Pennsylvania industry in nanotechnology development.

The ATE Regional Center is being built on the current NMT program in order to strengthen and institutionalize collaboration among all 15 Pennsylvania community colleges, the 14 comprehensive universities comprising the Pennsylvania State System of Higher Education (PSSHE), secondary schools (including vocational-technical schools), private industry, and the Penn State Nanofabrication Facility. New activities address

(1) continued improvement and expanded delivery of resident instruction in NMT at the Facility,

(2) creating curricula and strengthening NMT capacity at Pennsylvania's 15 community colleges,

(3) strengthening NMT capacity at PSSHE institutions,

(4) strengthening professional development of secondary and post-secondary educators and industry personnel in NMT,

(5) promoting awareness among secondary and post-secondary school students and educators of NMT career opportunities, and

(6) promoting increased participation in NMT educational programs by underrepresented groups.