Cleanroom
Name of Presenter:
Mr. Colwill
Department: MNCR
(Micro and Nano Clean Room), Process Engineer
Social Value: The
use of nanotechnologies is in many of the items people use in their day to day
lives. This leaves a large impact on our society. This technology also has
allowed the development of cleaner means of getting energy : photovoltaic cells.
Economic/ Government:
Nanotechnology is part of the backbone of our economy because of the large chip
fabrication industry in the United States. this technology is found in any of
the products we use today such as computers, cell phones and newer cars. The
government has had its impact on this technology by lowering taxes for new
business to develop new plants (such as in nearby Malta NY) and create more
jobs.
“Economies of scale” play an enormous role in chip fabrication.
One chip fab plant can cost billions of dollars, so plants must manufacture
billions and billions of chips.
Some say that just four companies in the world (Intel,
Samsung, TMSC, and Global Foundries) are now responsible for almost all
microchip manufacture, meaning every one of these companies has immense
economic power.
The government has a direct and powerful impact on the
adaptation of photovoltaics. In countries where incentives, tax reductions, and
rebates are high, the adaptation of solar energy is much higher. Governments can also penalize companies for
externalities such as pollution, to level the playing field for greener
technologies such as solar.
Concepts
Class 100 Clean room-
Has a particle count less than 100 per cubic foot, because dust or dirt can
damage projects, wafers/chips.
Photovoltaic Cell-
a semiconductor device that converts solar energy into electrical energy
Semiconductor-
any solid substance having greater conductivity than an insulator but less than
a good conductor
Electrical Energy-
moving charge carriers (electrons or holes)
N-type- part of a
pn junction and is made up of atoms with extra electrons, compared to silicon
P-type- part of a
pn junction and is made up of atoms that are short electrons, compared to Si
Holes - are the absence of an electron – essentially a positive charge carrier
PN Junction- the most basic building block of the semiconductor
industry. Creates an electrical field between the N and P materials, called a “depletion
zone”. When a positive voltage is applied, to the P-side, the depletion zone is
overcome, and electricity flows. When a negative voltage is applied, the
depletion zone increases and no current flows.
In the case of a photovoltaic cell, the PN junction helps to
set up a directional path for holes and electrons to flow as seen in diagrams
below.
How PV Cells work:
World’s Need- by
2050 we need 4 gigawatts of power
Connections:
Dr. Borton – solar energy advocate
MILL/Dr. Ruff – mass production, economies of scale
RNA Institute – nanotechnology and making the nanoscale ‘visible’
and manipulable through high tech microscopy and other procedures
