TNO and TU/e HTSC join forces in Nano Opto-Mechatronics Instruments
NOMI: solving future’s challenges in data, energy and life sciences with miniaturization devices to atomic scale
TU Eindhoven’s High Tech Systems Center (HTSC) is joining forces with TNO in the NOMI (Nano Opto-Mechatronics Instruments) collaboration. Together they will drive technology innovations to develop instruments to image, measure and fabricate devices at the level of individual atoms. NOMI innovations is based on the vision of the future where humanity will solve many of future’s challenges in data, energy and life sciences by a continuous miniaturization in device fabrication down to an atomic scale. The applications include nanometrology and nanomanufacturing for nanoelectronics, bio-medical and scientific explorations.
The collaboration in NOMI was given the nod of approval by Arnold Stokking, Managing Director Industry of TNO and Katja Pahnke, Managing Director of TU/e’s High Tech Systems Center by signing a memo of understanding at the Annual 3D Nano-Manufacturing Dissemination Workshop in Delft on the 6th of November.
Solving challenges by miniaturization
NOMI innovations is based on the vision of the future where humanity will solve many of future’s challenges in data, energy and life sciences by a continuous miniaturization in device fabrication down to an atomic scale. It will develop the technologies that enable exploration and exploitation of the atom-scale world leading to real-world applications. The ambition is to turn inventions into innovations (and valorize on the ecosystem investments) by collaboration with existing commercial partners but also act as an incubator to start new/joint ventures (example: Nearfield Instruments B.V.). These ventures make use of the NOMI-ecosystem technology research to create the instruments to image, measure and fabricate devices at the level of individual atoms at a humanly acceptable and economically attractive level. NOMI will continue to seek expansion on its current partnership in industry and the scientific community in the near future.
Technology breakthroughs needed
Dr. Hamed Sadeghian, principal scientist at TNO, Scientific director of NOMI and since November 1st, 2017 associate professor at TU/e: “We are now at a point where further scaling down in for instance Semiconductor industry is as much a manufacturing as it is a metrology challenge, which cannot be tackled anymore by existing technologies. Also for the other fields such as bio-medical and scientific explorations there is this need for disruptive technology development that drives NOMI. It will bring new technologies from world leading fundamental research towards the industrial applications that need it.” TNO’s Nano Opto-Mechatronics Instrumentation program has an existing ecosystem in opto-mechatronics system design for nano-metrology and nano-manufacturing. With a strong track record in nano-scale physics NOMI is linked to mechatronics instrumentation and (market) applications and a solid IP background. Sadeghian: “We are confident that this collaboration will pave the way for new discoveries in Instrumentations and tools for emerging applications, e.g. Cognitive computing, Internet of Things and Quantum Computing”. TU/e HTSC will bring fundamental research and scientific excellence in this collaboration. The focus is in the areas of a.o. advanced control and dynamics, mechatronics systems design, nano- and micro-manufacturing, and relevant physics and biomedical expertise.