Final ASCENT+ Newsletter – February 2025
Contents
A last word from the programme coordinator
- What were the key strengths of the ASCENT+ programme?
- There have been two driving forces underpinning ASCENT+ success; first, the complementarity, breadth and depth of the consortium, and second, the synergistic approach between providing Transnational Access to research infrastructure and performing Joint Research Activities to enhance the access. ASCENT+ brought together a unique partnership in the world to respond to emerging challenges in micro-/nano- nanoelectronics. This constellation consisted of significant infrastructure investment and resources from 14 partners with roles classified as ‘Access Providers’, ‘Knowledge Hubs’ and ‘Community Network’. Five key Research & Technology Organisations in Europe —imec, CEA-Leti, Fraunhofer Mikroelektronik, INL and Tyndall— provided simplified user-centric access through a single-entry point to world-leading expertise, advanced equipment/tools and state-of-the-art semiconductor technologies. These Access Providers worked also directly on joint research with academic partners —Johannes Kepler University Linz, Ghent University, University of Padua, TU Bergakademie Freiberg and CNRS— to advance the state-of-the-art of material and device platforms and characterisation methods. Another distinct feature has been the excellent knowledge of the research and technological landscape along with interaction with many different stakeholders complemented by incorporating network organisations such as Silicon Saxony, Minalogic, MIDAS Ireland and SiNANO. Between managing the programme, supporting the networking activities, performing joint research, and carrying out the work for the access projects over 120 people were mobilised overall by ASCENT+ within the partner organisations.
- What has been the main impact of the programme over the past four years?
- When we started the ASCENT+ journey, the consortium partners had the vision and drive to empower users from across the world to address emerging research challenges and accelerate innovation path-finding in micro-/nano- electronics through access to a large-scale distributed research infrastructure. ASCENT+ has not only achieved this objective but has also played a key role towards a consolidated sustainable infrastructure offering. Setting up a management structure through a single-entry point, ASCENT+ has gathered a community of 3,000 members and close to 300 enquiries for infrastructure access from 40 countries around the world. More than half of those enquiries led to focused projects —ranging from delivery of advanced characterisation and modelling/simulation data to state-of-the-art processing, devices and test structures for feasibility studies— benefiting around 600 researchers. A large portion of these Transnational Access projects were driven by early career researchers including approx. 65 PhD candidates and over 30 Master’s students. Another 20% of access was offered to industry users, of which the vast majority are from SMEs. ASCENT+ partners have also carried out Joint Research Activities to improve the access offer.
ASCENT+ impact has been unique in its impact with its focus on supporting early-stage research and emerging technologies. This focus will continue to be supported through the follow-up EU-funded programme of INFRACHIP. Altogether, research enabled by the ASCENT+ infrastructure has already led to 50 peer-reviewed publications in high-quality journals and to at least 10 proof-of-concept technologies. These technologies are to be developed further through established collaborative projects to ensure maximising their potential for innovation. For example, a compact model for GaN-IC developed by Ghent University and validated by imec will be included in existing PDKs and will be disseminated through joint planned workshops and training sessions. In addition, the development of more mature technologies will be supported through the dedicated infrastructure put in place by the Chips JU including the Pilot Lines and incentive actions for third-party access. We estimate that ASCENT+ Access Providers have secured additional investments in excess of €1.6bn to grow and upgrade their facilities. The ASCENT+ programme has helped to define this scenario communicating the evidence that access to capital-intensive infrastructures is a critical mechanism to continue to drive research in these advanced and challenging technologies. Various partners are key in delivering the new offer as reflected in their respective exploitation plans for the ASCENT+ results. - Why is it so important to have a EU-funded access to Research Infrastructures on semiconductor technologies?
- As part of our post-ASCENT+ exploitation plan, we have recently completed a landscape analysis on the access offering of Research and Technology Infrastructures in the field of semiconductors. Semiconductors is one of the most research-intensive industries next to biotechnologies. And research Infrastructures and open-access incentives such as the EU-funded ASCENT+ programme are underpinning Europe’s ability to continuously innovate for the development, design and manufacturing of micro/nano-electronics. Interdisciplinary challenges and rising costs make it impossible for smaller research groups and innovative SMEs to either develop all necessary expertise and platform technologies or to afford multi-million-euro equipment matching their diverse needs. Another struggle for innovators, leading academics and technologists alike, is the increasing complexity of semiconductor technologies that require integration of new non-standard materials into the fabrication process and a full range of heterogeneous components aiming at long-term sustainability and increased functionality. To address these challenges and sustain Europe’s innovation capacity in the growing semiconductor market and increasingly competitive global landscape, it is important to feed the innovation pipeline at all technology readiness levels (TRLs) – from early to medium to higher TRLs.
Notably, the EU funds programmes to supply infrastructure across the whole innovation- and value- chain of semiconductors. Significant resource mobilisation has been achieved via the Chips JU initiatives for the development of more mature platform technologies. However, similar programme-structured approaches are needed to support academic and industry researchers at the early-stage for exploratory and proof-of-concept studies. Such Research Infrastructure is provided via the federation of a handful of distributed infrastructures supported under the Excellence Pillar of Horizon Europe. There are five such platforms operating currently of which only two, INFRACHIP and RIANA, will keep offering Transnational Access supported by the EU after the end of 2025. RIANA supports curiosity-driven research in nanoscience with open research questions for long-term impact, and challenge-driven research in nanotechnology. INFRACHIP implements the first integrated, distributed research infrastructure as a wider European research platform for the sustainable development of next-generation and future semiconductor chips. As such it fills a big gap in the context of the European Chips Act.
To conclude, sustaining the micro/nano-electronics innovation pipeline early-stage research and targeted challenge-driven R&D programmes are needed at low-to-medium readiness levels supported by capital-intensive research infrastructures.
Giorgos Fagas, ASCENT+ Programme Lead
The European Union is financing access for research in semiconductor technologies!
As the ASCENT+ programme comes to an end, we reflect on its impact on advancing European research in micro-/nano- electronics and more broadly in semiconductor technologies. Funded by the European Union, ASCENT+ has been instrumental in providing researchers with access to cutting-edge facilities in micro-/nano- electronics and fostering collaborations across borders. Its conclusion marks the end of an era but also the beginning of new opportunities to drive innovation in the critical field of semiconductors.
The EU remains determined to support research in semiconductor technologies. This dedication led to the launch of INFRACHIP, a new EU-funded initiative that began in early 2024. INFRACHIP is a European research platform designed to promote the sustainable development of next-generation and future semiconductor chips. In addition to INFRACHIP, the EU has launched the EMERGE programme to tackle the challenges of flexible, large-area electronics and photonics. EMERGE addresses the entire development spectrum—from materials synthesis and process design to device architecture and system integration.
The transition from ASCENT+ to initiatives like INFRACHIP and EMERGE underscores the EU’s long-term vision for research and development in nanotechnology, materials and devices for semiconductor technologies.
We invite you to contact the teams for each programme to submit your enquiry and continue to have free access to research platforms. Calls are published regularly and open for PhD students, post-doctoral students, academics, researchers, SMEs.
Numbers behind the access: ASCENT+ programme impact and mobilised resources
Over the course of the programme, ASCENT+ has brought together an impressive community of over 3,000 members and facilitated over 300 enquiries. These efforts have supported 144 successful transnational access projects, leveraging the 70 cutting-edge technological offerings developed by the programme. The programme’s impact is underscored by the collaboration of 14 partner organizations and the mobilization of over 100 experts, all committed to advancing research in disruptive micro- and nanoelectronics.
The programme’s outcomes have benefited more than 550 researchers, including 65 PhD students, by providing opportunities to conduct ground-breaking research. Such achievements were made possible through the engagement of the programme’s teams ensuring visibility by directly connecting with research stakeholders and potential users. ASCENT+ participated in nearly 83 events, alongside countless presentations, conferences, and forums. A wide array of webinars, workshops, booths, posters, and open days helped spread the word about this EU-funded initiative.
The programme’s impact extends beyond internal metrics, as participating users have published articles in prestigious scientific journals and initiated collaborations with access providers and researchers encountered during the programme. The testimonials gathered highlight the significance of ASCENT+ and the transformative value of its access projects.
From Transnational Access to a publication
Discover the open access publication written by Katia Samperi, Urmimala Chatterjee, and Salvatore Pennise entitled “60-dB 70-V/µs Three-Stage Op-Amp With Dual Single-Miller Frequency Compensation in GaN-IC Technology”, and available in IEEE Transactions on Circuits and Systems I: Regular Papers (November 2024). DOI: 10.1109/TCSI.2024.3503071
- Abstract:
- Modern high-performance electronics is pushing Si technology to its limits. Gallium Nitride (GaN) emerges as a promising alternative due to its superior properties in high-frequency and high-power applications. To fully utilize the fast-switching ability of the GaN technology, monolithic integration is a key. A monolithically integrated GaN power IC (Integrated Circuit) reduces the inductive parasitic enabling a fast efficient switching operation. However, GaN basic building blocks, particularly operational amplifiers (Op-Amps), face severe challenges due to the limitations of the GaN technology. This paper presents the first three-stage Op-Amp for high-performance feedback circuits realized in the IMEC’s 200-V GaN-IC technology on a GaN-on-SOI (Silicon on Insulator) substrate. The design utilizes a cascade of three differential stages resistively loaded to achieve a nearly 60-dB DC gain and 25-MHz gain-bandwidth and implements a novel dual single-Miller frequency compensation technique to provide closed-loop stability. The Op-Amp offers a Slew Rate exceeding 70V/µs with 1% settling time of about 120ns at room temperature. The correct circuit functionality from −40°C to 150°C was demonstrated through simulations and experimental test.
Does this work seem familiar? Perhaps it’s because you’ve already come across Katia’s feedback about her experience with ASCENT+. She successfully had access to the GaN-IC MPW infrastructure at imec through a Transnational Access to solve her problem. It can be accessible here: ASCENT+ Success Stories
Highlights on partners and acknowledgements
After four and a half years, the ASCENT+ programme has come to a close. It has been a journey filled with innovation, collaboration, and learning. We are proud of what we have accomplished together.
ASCENT+ mission was to provide researchers with access to cutting-edge infrastructure, to encourage collaboration and, more broadly, to support research, which is what we have been striving to do all these years.
In this newsletter, we want to take a moment to express our gratitude to everyone who contributed to the success of ASCENT+. Behind every milestone achieved, there was a dedicated team working to make it happen. From providing technical expertise to ensuring access to state-of-the-art facilities, every member contributed. We would also like to thank and highlight all the users and beneficiaries who, through their feedback, have contributed to the continuous improvement of the programme’s modalities in order to meet research needs as closely as possible.
Previous Issues:
Oct 2024 | Jul 2024 | Feb 2024 | Oct 2023 | Jul 2023 | Feb 2023 | Sep 2022 | May 2022 | Jan 2022 | Sep 2021 | Jul 2021 | Mar 2021
Jul 2019 / Apr 2019 / Jan 2019 / Oct 2018 / Jul 2018 / Apr 2018 / Jan 2018 / Oct 2017 / Jul 2017 / Apr 2017 / Jan 2017 / Sep 2016 / Jun 2016 / Feb 2016
This project has received funding from the European Union’s Horizon 2020 research and innovation programme under grant agreements 871130 and 654384.