Listen to this article 4 min
The University at Buffalo is launching a Center for Advanced Semiconductor Technologies, tapping into the region’s momentum as a tech hub is built from Buffalo to Syracuse that will serve the growing industry.
In a Monday announcement, UB named Jonathan Bird, professor and chair of UB’s electrical engineering department, as the center’s executive director. Bird said that as the industry grows in this region, with significant investments from companies like Micron and Edwards Vacuum, the new center will be a means for the school to showcase the research and workforce development its doing in semiconductors.
“There were a number of us on campus that saw there was growing momentum behind federal support for microelectronics and the semiconductor industry,” Bird said. “We knew that as a university, we would need to play a role as part of that ecosystem.”
Internally, the center will act as an umbrella organization that will “synergize research in semiconductors” across several different areas and departments on campus. Externally, the goal is to build community partners and a workforce.
“We want this to build stronger relations with community colleges and other SUNY schools, so we can create a pipeline to meet the needs of the industry,” he said, adding that the industry has “overwhelming” talent needs at all education levels.
With Micron building a $100 billion investment in Syracuse, Edwards Vacuum building a $319 million factory in Genesee County, and the Buffalo/Rochester/Syracuse region being federally designated as a tech hub for semiconductors, UB will have many opportunities to form regional partners in both research and workforce.
“The long-term vision is that we become a partner with these companies, and through that, we also accrue benefits where these companies make investments in our program,” Bird said.
The center, for now, is funded through the university’s budget for research and economic development, but the plan is to eventually seek external funds through grants.
“One thing is clear — that no single organization can meet the needs of the industry,” Bird said. “It’s going to require partnerships among multiple institutions. We want to position UB as the leader. We can attract global talent at UB. We can bring the best and the brightest from around the world to work in our programs.”
Bird said many graduates of semiconductor programs and engineering would move away to Boston or California to pursue careers in the industry.
“But that doesn’t need to happen anymore,” Bird said. “We can play an important role in bringing that talent to the region and get them to stay in the region.”
Bird, whose background is in semiconductor engineering, has been with UB since 2004. He said the national efforts to onshore microelectronics manufacturing and the federal funding through the Chips and Science Act is a “moonshot program.”
“It is incredibly satisfying on a personal level,” he said. “It’s an area I’ve worked in for my own interest, but it hasn’t always been a high priority for funding nationally. This is a once-in-a-lifetime investment, and to be a part of it is incredibly exciting.”
UB’s new center will be headquartered in Davis Hall on North Campus. The center will be co-directed by Hao Zeng, professor of physics, and Ian Sellers and Uttam Singisetti, professors of electrical engineering.