Chairholders
Profile
Luc Fréchette
Department of Mechanical Engineering
Université de Sherbrooke
Chair title
NSERC/Teledyne DALSA Industrial Research Chair in Next Generation MEMS and Microphotonics
Chair program
Industrial Research Chairs program
Role
Senior Chairholder since 2019
Related Chair
Summary
The revolution brought on by the microelectronics industry over the past decades has yielded a wide range of miniaturized systems that are now part of everyday life. Two of the most important branches of these technologies are microelectromechanical systems (MEMS) and integrated photonics (“light on a chip”). They are at the heart of modern telecommunication networks and growing Internet of Things (IoT) applications.
This Senior Industrial Research Chair, jointly held by Dr. Paul Charette and Dr. Luc Fréchette, aims to introduce new and improved materials, fabrication processes and components for the industrial production of next generation high-performance MEMS and microphotonics devices. Functional materials will be developed on industrial-grade 200 mm wafer processing tools, such as advanced lead-free piezoelectric thin films for integrated MEMS sensors, actuators and energy harvesters, as well as thermoresistive thin films for low-cost infrared imagers. Fabrication processes for wafer-level integration and packaging will be enhanced through the development of direct bonding with thin films and methods to provide low-cost wafer-level vacuum packaging. Photonic microstructures for imaging will be developed to increase the sensitivity of thermal imagers using plasmonic antennae and to introduce wavelength selectivity for infrared hyperspectral imaging. Integrated photonic structures will be developed to leverage high-quality aluminum nitride and silicon nitride material platforms for mid- to far-infrared coherent photonics and quantum photonics applications, respectively.
This research program takes full advantage of the highly complementary expertise of the two Chairholders, encompassing microfabrication (materials and processes), device physics and microsystems design. Dr. Charette is an expert in integrated photonics for imaging and sensing. Dr. Fréchette is an expert in MEMS fabrication and design. The Chair is the result of a history of intense and fruitful collaboration with Teledyne DALSA spanning over a decade, recognized in 2019 by an NSERC Synergy Award for Innovation.
Teledyne DALSA brings its world-class expertise in semiconductor manufacturing of MEMS and imaging devices to this partnership, as well as a path for commercialization of the novel materials, processes and devices that will result from the Chair’s research program. The partnership is greatly enhanced by the facilities at the neighbouring MiQro Innovation Collaborative Centre (C2MI), where daily interactions between students and their industrial counterparts favour knowledge transfer and professional training using a state-of-the-art industrial infrastructure.
Teledyne DALSA will benefit from access to trained highly qualified personnel, advanced materials and processes, and new MEMS, imaging and integrated photonics technologies. This research program will provide a unique training environment for students that includes an industrial R&D context and multidisciplinary projects.
This program will also bring important scientific and technological advances ranging from materials science to new MEMS and photonics technologies and new applications, resulting in important economic benefits to Canada through the training of highly qualified personnel and an expanded product offering by Teledyne DALSA. The program will also result in important social benefits to Canada in this increasingly digital age, through greater accessibility of connected intelligent technology for health care and environmental monitoring, resulting from lower manufacturing costs and greater embedded device intelligence.
Partners
- Teledyne DALSA
- PROMPT
Contact information
Department of Mechanical Engineering
Université de Sherbrooke
Email: Luc.Frechette@USherbrooke.ca
Website:
https://www.usherbrooke.ca/recherche/fr/expertus/?getSpecialist=865329&page=1
