Emerging MEMS and nano technologies: Fostering scholarship, STEM learning, discoveries and innovations in microsystems

Abstract

We report scholarship and learning activities in Rochester Institute of Technology (RIT) in areas of micro electromechanical systems (MEMS) and nanotechnology. Microsystems may integrate microelectronics, nano and MEMS technologies and solutions. To enable integrated transformative scholarship and learning, fundamental and applied research is conducted at the state-of-the-art Microsystems Fabrication Facilities. Contributing to research in core areas of critical importance of science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM), undergraduate and graduate MEMS and Nanotechnology courses are developed and offered. The MEMS curriculum includes MEMS Design, MEMS Fabrication and MEMS Evaluation courses. The Nanotechnology curriculum comprises an undergraduate Nano Science, Engineering and Technology (NanoSET) course, as well as a graduate Fundamentals of Micro and Nano Engineering course. To meet overall and specific educational goals and objectives, we facilitate course and curriculum developments focusing on active learning, scholarship, effective teaching and pedagogy. These activities advance a STEM knowledge base. Our courses and educational activities positively contribute to STEM transformative developments. In order to enable learning and scholarship, faculty, professionals and students are engaged in discoveries, innovations and knowledge base generation. These attributes are achieved by means of advanced designs, analyses, fabrication and test of various MEMS and microsystems. Methods, concepts, tools and algorithms of computational and applied mathematics are used. Our research, capstone and laboratory projects enable STEM education, advance fundamental findings, facilitate research, support discoveries and enrich training. High-performance microsystems and MEMS are devised, designed, analysed, fabricated and evaluated. We advance technology readiness levels, ensure technology transfer and enable commercialization capacity.