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BiographyMichael Waltl is an University Professor of Robust Microelectronics, an IEEE Senior Member, and the director of the device characterization laboratory at the Institute for Microelectronics. He obtained his doctoral degree in technical sciences (summa cum laude) from TU Wien in 2016. Furthermore, he currently leads the Christian Doppler Laboratory for Single-Defect Spectroscopy and several FFG projects. In addition, Dr. Waltl heads several research projects with international industrial partners imec, ams OSRAM AG, Infineon, and more. In 2018 Dr. Waltl was a visiting researcher at imec, Belgium, Europe, and Stanford University, CA, USA. ). He also received a best paper award at IRPS 2014, a best poster award at the ICPTDC 2019, and co-recipient of the best student paper awards at the IIRW 2019, IEDM 2019, and DRC 2020. Dr. Waltl serves in the management committee of the IIRW, is a member of the technical program committee of various conferences in Europe (ESREF and the ESSDERC/ESSCIRC) and in the USA (IRPS and IEDM). He is an Associate Editor in the Microelectronics Engineering Journal and is a reviewer of numerous renowned Journals including Nature Electronics, IEEE TED, Microelectronics Reliability, Journal of Applied Physics, and many more. Research Interests:Michael Waltl’s overall scientific focus is on the robustness of microelectronic devices and circuits. In this field, he investigates reliability issues – characterization and modeling – in semiconductor devices and circuits. His research covers evaluating performance limitations and aging issues in silicon devices, devices employing wideband-gap materials, power electronic systems, and transistors built on novel 2D materials. Dr.Waltl also studies hot carrier degradation and stress-induced leakage currents of various transistor technologies. Another research pillar of Dr. Waltl is the high-performant operation of integrated circuits built from scaled devices, where he investigates the impact of defects on the performance of circuits. Also, his research focus is on radiation hardening of various technologies, i.e. SRAM cells, and integrated electronic circuits. Furthermore, Dr. Waltl has a strong background in measurement technology and is leading the development of novel characterization tools and techniques. Research Topics:Robust Electronic Circuits Projects:CDG - Christian Doppler Laboratory for Single-Defect Spectroscopy in Semiconductor Devices |
Preface
Welcome to the 36th annual research review of the Institute for Microelectronics! Our permanent staff members, financed by the Austrian Federal Ministry of Education, Science and Research, have changed from last year and now consist of nineteen full-time employees: six professors, four senior scientists, one administrative manager, one full-time secretary, two part-time secretaries, three full-time technical assistants, and two apprentices. Additionally, twenty-five scientists, nine post-doctoral researchers, and one part-time project assistant are currently funded through projects supported by our industrial partners, the Austrian Science Fund (FWF), the Austrian Research Promotion Agency (FFG), the Christian Doppler Forschungsgesellschaft (CDG), and the European Commission (EU).
Over the last year, several projects have been successfully completed, including one funded by the FWF ("General Nano-Electromagnetic Quantum Phase Space Model"), three funded by the FFG ("Process-Aware Structure Emulation for Device-Technology Co-Optimization," "Technology Computer Aided Design of Negative Capacitance and Ferro-Electric Transistors," and "Innovative, civil UAV Control Platform ReLoaded"), one H2020 project ("Modeling Unconventional Nanoscaled Device FABrication"), and three direct cooperation projects covering topics such as the highly efficient characterization of transistor arrays, quantum mechanical calculation of electronic material parameters, and modeling the reliability and microstructure of metallic microheaters. The ERC project on "Fluorides for 2D Next-Generation Nanoelectronics", the H2020 Project "European Master For High Performance Computing," the three CDG laboratories on "Nonvolatile Magnetoresistive Memory and Logic," "Multi-Scale Process Modeling of Semiconductor Devices and Sensors," and "Single-Defect Spectroscopy in Semiconductor Devices," two projects funded by the FFG ("First-principle simulation of material properties enabling high-performance infrared detectors and emitters" and "Nanoelectronic Device Simulation"), as well as three projects funded by the FWF ("Adsorbate-Dependent Conductivity of MoS2 FETs", "Semiconductor/fluoride structures on Si for 2D electronics", and "Numerical Constraints for the Wigner and the Sigma Equation") are progressing according to plan.
We are very pleased that our industrial partners have continued and extended their support for projects dealing with a wide range of topics, such as device degradation and recovery for circuit simulation, defect spectroscopy of integrated photo diodes, reliability at cryogenic temperatures, fundamental fluctuations in spintronics, noise in semiconductor devices, 2D semiconductors obtained by surface rubbing on various insulator substrates for next-generation electronics, insulators for 2D nanoelectronics, multidisciplinary characterization and modeling for innovative process and product integration of power semiconductors, as well as reliability of oxides in SiC MOSFETs.
It is a great pleasure for us to report that one directly funded project on the reliability of SiGe/Si heterostructures at cryogenic temperatures and two projects funded by the FWF, "Wigner Transport Dynamics of Spatial Electron Entanglement," and a doctoral program for 2D materials have likewise started during the past year.
We are exceptionally proud of our institute's continually high academic and scientific output, evidenced by our large number of long-term projects and our high rate of publications — especially regarding our contributions to, and participation in, leading international conferences. However, we recognize that this success would not have been possible without the ongoing support of our collaborators in academia and industry. Therefore, we wish to express our sincere gratitude for their trust in our scientific endeavors. As we embark on the following year, we maintain high expectations and look forward to continued progress and achievement.