A Webinar with Silicon Catalyst, ST Microelectronics and an Exciting MEMS Development Contest

Most MEMS and sensor companies struggle to find an industrialization partner that can support early-stage research and help develop and transition unique concepts to high-volume production. The wrong partner means delays and increased development costs as the design moves between various facilities. Recently, Silicon Catalyst joined forces with ST Microelectronics and a few other partners in a webinar to discuss these challenges. Silicon Catalyst also announced an exciting contest that helps new entrants to the MEMS market to get off the ground. If your product plans include MEMS devices, you will want to watch this webinar. A link is coming, but most importantly you’ll also want to check out the contest – this could be your big break. Read on to learn about a webinar with Silicon Catalyst, ST Microelectronics and an exciting MEMS development contest.

Webinar Background – the MEMS Development Dilemma

The event contained several parts:

• A webinar introduction Paul Pickering, Managing Partner, Silicon Catalyst
• A useful MEMS industry highlights presentation from Pierre Delbos, Market and Technology Analyst, Yole Group
• An overview of the unique ST Lab-in-Fab fabrication concept from Dr. Andreja Erbes, Director, STMicroelectronics
• Details of the contest
• An informative Q&A session

I highly recommend you watch this webinar; there is a lot of very useful information. A link is coming, but first let’s take a quick look at the key points.

Silicon Catalyst Introduction

Paul began the event by reviewing the incredible ecosystem Silicon Catalyst has built to foster semiconductor-related innovation. The organization does have a focus on advanced materials, so the MEMS topic fits quite well. The organization has a list of high-profile strategic partners, as shown in the graphic below.

You can learn more about Silicon Catalyst’s impact and the impact of its incubator companies on SemiWiki here.

MEMS Overview from The Yole Group

Pierre provided an eye-opening tour of the MEMS industry. Yole has been tracking this market for 20 years and the diagram below shows the steady growth over that time. Pierre reported that there were 30 billion units in the MEMS market in 2023.

Paul went on to review the players, markets and growth areas. You will likely learn a few things about this market by listening to Paul’s overview.

Addressing MEMS Development With “Lab-in-Fab” Approach

Next, Dr. Andreja Erbes discussed the challenges of MEMS development and presented a unique approach being pioneered by ST Microelectronics. The challenge Andreja described is one of too many hand-offs in the MEMS development process as a concept moves from idea to production. Each handoff (e.g., research, low-volume production, high-volume production) introduces delays, new learning curves and opportunities for errors. This flow is depicted in the figure below.

ST Microelectronics, in cooperation with the Institute of Microelectronics (IME) has built a unique MEMS development facility in Singapore. By bringing all phases of MEMS product development into one location, ST is delivering leading-edge competence and access to a global ecosystem. The figure below summarizes the elements of this rapid product development strategy.

Andreja went on to describe the substantial physical campus layout, including a virtual connection to a fab in Italy. The development capabilities of the unique Lab-in Fab are reviewed in detail, along with example applications and third-party collaborations. It’s a very impressive overview. The figure below summarizes the engagement model and accelerated timeline that is enabled.

To Enter the Contest and Learn More

And now for the key item – entering the contest. Silicon Catalyst and STMicroelectronics announced the 2024 Lab-in-Fab development contest during the webinar.

The contest affords companies of all sizes an opportunity to align with one of the premiere MEMS manufacturing companies and benefit from its development expertise and world-class fabrication. Silicon Catalyst will conduct the screening and selection process that will include various MEMS experts as judges.

The contest offers the opportunity to engage with the Lab-in-Fab team for a free project evaluation. This includes:

• Expense paid visit to meet the teams in Singapore (reimbursable expenses up to $10K USD)
• Work with world-class teams to scope out the manufacturing plan
• Participate in various PR activities ST, IME and Silicon Catalyst
• Receive introductions to investors and VC’s to help fund your project

The deadline for submission to the contest is Monday, June 3, 2024. The winner will be notified by Wednesday, June 12th.

Click here to take you to a page with a link to watch the webinar replay and to access the short contest entry form. Click on it today! And that’s the details on a webinar with Silicon Catalyst, ST Microelectronics and an exciting MEMS development contest.