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August 23, 2012 — The MEMS & NANO free 2-day conference, presented by JEMI, Nanotechnology KTN, and MANCEF, will cover advances in micro electro mechanical systems (MEMS) and nanoscale processes for electronics, industrial and biomedical applications.

This seminar program notes the strong trade bodies and active supply chain for MEMS and nanotechnology in the UK. It takes place September 25-26 at NEC, Birmingham, UK.

Presenters come from diverse companies and leaders in nanotechnologies and MEMS, such as the presenting bodies and Freescale Semiconductor, Interposers GmbH, Diamond Hard Coatings Ltd, Kelvin Nanotechnology, Oxford Instruments Plasma Technology, Microfluidic Chipshop, and others from industry and academia.

Learn more at www.mmnliveuk.com.

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August 21, 2012 — Heptagon, wafer-level optics maker, ordered an advanced DWL 2000 maskless lithography system from Heidelberg Instruments. The tool has sophisticated Gray Scale Exposure capability. 

Heptagon will use the system for production of micro optical components for applications in smart phones, mobile devices, gaming consoles, telecoms equipment and supercomputers.

“Gray Scale lithography technology can produce complicated, random, and smoothly or discontinuously contoured material surfaces with a variety of applications in modern optical systems. This order is a significant step to solidify our position as a global leader in production of direct write systems for applications in Gray Scale Lithography,” said Alexander Forozan, head of global sales and business development, Heidelberg Instruments

Heptagon is a developer and manufacturer of advanced micro-optics solutions, making wafer-level micro optics in large volumes for sophisticated applications in smart phones, mobile devices, gaming consoles, telecoms equipment and supercomputers.  

Heidelberg Instruments GmbH produces high-precision maskless lithography systems for direct writing and photomask production in the areas of MEMS, BioMEMS, Nano Technology, ASICS, TFT, Plasma Displays, Micro Optics, and many other related applications. Internet: www.himt.de.

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August 21, 2012 – Marketwire — Silex Technology, maker of wired and wireless networking technologies, appointed Joseph Virginia to vice president of sales and a member of the company’s executive team.

Virginia will oversee Silex’s sales activities and be responsible for executing aggressive revenue growth objectives. With over 25 years’ of electronics and technology experience, Virginia will lead the sales team to provide exceptional customer service by managing individual relationships and account needs.

David Smith, president and CEO of Silex Technology America, says Virginia will lead the expansion of Silex’s embedded wireless business while finding new applications for device servers/connectivity and AV networking product lines.

Virginia has a background in sales as well as applications engineering, business development, and marketing and product management, most recently from Qualcomm MEMS Technologies. Prior to that, he was responsible for global supply chain management for flat displays, touch screen solutions and MEMS inertial sensors at Cisco Systems. Virginia also held senior-level positions at iFire Technology Group, Samsung Semiconductor and Synaptics. He began his sales career at Fujitsu Microelectronics and is credited with the first commercial installation of large screen color plasma display technology as part of the New York Stock Exchange’s $200 million technology investment. Virginia holds a BS in Industrial Engineering from Cleveland State University.

Silex Technology America Inc. is a subsidiary of Silex Technology Inc., a network technology company specializing in network and wireless technology, providing hardware, software, embedded modules and turnkey connectivity products. For more information, please visit www.silexamerica.com.

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August 20, 2012 – Marketwire — The second annual SensorsCon 2013, the conference for Sensors Technology, Design and Applications, March 6, 2013, Techmart Center, Santa Clara, CA, is accepting applications for exhibitors, sponsors and speakers.

The event is an important forum for presenting and showcasing the latest research, development, application, and business opportunities in sensors technology and applications. The conference attracts researchers, developers, industry stakeholders and practitioners from many diverse fields active in this arena.

SensorsCon focuses on micro and nano electro mechanical systems (MEMS/NEMS), semiconductor and other technologies for sensor design and integration for optical, magnetic, magneto inductive, electronic and inertial applications.

Additional topics include sensor apps for mobile devices, medicine, biology, smart grid, chemical and gas, motion, position, control, entertainment, gaming, biometrics, power management, energy, environmental monitoring, consumer, military, automotive, robotics, data acquisition, integrated systems, interfaces, intelligent sensing, integrated actuator systems, remote sensing, telemetry, communications, wireless sensor networks (WSN), oceanographic & nautical, aeronautical and space.

The conference on Sensors – Technology, Design, and Applications (SensorsCon) is the forum to present, highlight and discuss the latest research, development, application, and business opportunities in sensors technology and applications in various fields.

Applications for SensorsCon sponsors and exhibits are located at  http://www.sensorscon.org/English/For_Sponsors/Sponsor_Opportunities.html.

Speakers are invited to send inquiries to [email protected].

Suggested topics are at http://www.sensorscon.org/English/Conference/About.html.

To register, please visit www.sensorscon.org.

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August 20, 2012 — With growing demands from smart phones, tablets and other applications, combined with the Taiwan’s developing foundry and device industry, the region has become the center of many important developments in micro electro mechanical systems (MEMS) technology. To meet the needs of the booming MEMS market, Taiwan has built a comprehensive supply chain and plays a critical role in the MEMS industry. SEMICON Taiwan 2012, held September 5-7 at the Nangang Exhibition Hall, will feature both Taiwan MEMS suppliers and global MEMS elites — including Asia Pacific Microsystems, Freescale, InvenSense, and STMicroelectronics — who will discuss innovation in MEMS design, manufacture, packaging, testing and equipment.

More on SEMICON Taiwan: SEMICON Taiwan to spotlight growing market opps in Taiwan and Second annual SiP Global Summit

The latest Yole Développement market research report pointed out MEMS reached a size of US$ 10 billion in 2011, a growth of 17 percent. The industry is expected to grow at a compound annual growth rate of 13 percent over the next few years to reach $20 billion by 2017. Market research firm IC Insights reported that embedded applications including accelerometers, gyroscopes, magnetic sensors and other IC-based sensors will see CAGR of 18 percent before 2016, indicating a bright future for the MEMS industry.

"In addition to the demands from the consumer market, MEMS has applications in other arenas including manufacturing, medicine, energy, optic communications and air defense," said Terry Tsao, president of SEMI Taiwan and Southeast Asia. "To meet these niche markets mentioned above, this year SEMICON Taiwan, along with related local and international companies, will showcase MEMS Pavilion, MEMS Forum, MEMS Innovative Technology Center, and University MEMS Research. The goal is to boost Taiwan’s MEMS industry, make inroads into the international market, and capitalize on the technology’s growth."

The SEMICON Taiwan 2012 MEMS Pavilion, organized by SEMI and the Industrial Technology Research Institute (ITRI) and co-organized by the Nanotechnology and Micro System Association, will feature Asia Pacific Microsystems, Ardic Instruments and Keyence, among others, and display the most advanced MEMS technology and solutions. In addition, to strengthen industry-academic collaboration, SEMI is organizing a University MEMS Research area showcasing the latest from academic institutions.

The MEMS Forum held on September 6 will be co-hosted by Min-Shyong Lin, honorary chairman and founder of Asia Pacific Microsystems; Chih-Kung Lee, president of Institute for Information Industry; and Robert Tsai, director of TSMC MEMS Program.  In the morning session, Jean-Christophe Eloy, president and CEO of Yole Développement, will speak on MEMS industry trends and outlook; Steve Nasiri, chairman, CEO and founder of InvenSense, will address tracking systems; Benedetto Vigna, MEMS group executive vice president and general manager of STMicroelectronics, will speak on mobile applications; Stéphane Gervais-Ducouret, Global Marketing director for Sensors at Freescale, will talk about MEMS at all levels; and Heinz Ru, vice president of Marketing and Innovation at Tong Hsing Electronic Industries, will focus on MEMS packaging.

In the afternoon session, Yii-Tay Chiou, Cloud Service Application Center executive assistant at  ITRI, will introduce MEMS applications in personal care; Chii-Wann Lin, professor of National Taiwan University, will discuss MEMS applications in biotech; Markus Wimplinger, Technology Development and IP director at EVG will speak on mobile applications from a manufacturing perspective; Michael Hornung, technical marketing manager of SUSS MicroTec and Andreas Bursian, product manager of Multitest, will address challenges in MEMS production and testing respectively.

Register SEMICON Taiwan 2012 at: www.semicontaiwan.org. SEMI is a global industry association serving the nano- and microelectronics manufacturing supply chains. For more information on SEMI, visit www.semi.org.

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August 16, 2012 — STMicroelectronics (NYSE: STM), a global semiconductor and micro electro mechanical systems (MEMS) manufacturer, launched the 2012 iNEMO Design Contest for Singapore. The contest invites final-year engineering students from the National University of Singapore and the Nanyang Technological University (NTU) to develop innovative applications using ST’s iNEMO smart multi-sensor MEMS technology.

ST has run the competition for North America, Taiwan and China.

ST’s iNEMO is a unique evaluation and development tool that offers up to 10 degrees of freedom, using combinations of 3-axis linear acceleration, 3-axis angular rate and 3-axis motion sensing through a magnetic field, together with barometric/altitude readings, managed by an STM32 32-bit microcontroller. MEMS sensing technology is one of the fastest growing segments of the semiconductor industry and has become ubiquitous in cars, smartphones, gaming devices and many IT products. The integration of multiple sensors with processing capabilities, dedicated sensor-fusion and application software and wireless connectivity in a single platform enables leaps in functionality and performance in a wide variety of applications, including Gaming, Human Machine Interface, Robotics, Portable Navigation Devices, and Patient Monitoring.

“Sensing technology has enabled your smartphone to know your movements and is the technology responsible for the physical excitement of motion-based video games,” said Patrick Boulaud, STMicroelectronics Regional Vice President, Analog, MEMS and Sensor, Greater China and South Asia Region. “Sensors have the potential to augment many aspects of human and technology interaction, particularly in quality-of-life enhancement. We are challenging these students to think out-of-the-box and create new applications in lifestyle, recreation, healthcare and wellness, using the most advanced sensor technology available today.”

“Advanced sensor technologies are important in enhancing the apps we have in all our personal devices,” said Prof Loh Ai Poh, Deputy Head of the Department of Electrical & Computer Engineering, National University of Singapore. “This contest is a great opportunity for our students to use leading-edge sensors to design creative apps that improve our interaction with the physical world.”

“At NTU, we want our students to be able to apply their scientific knowledge and engineering expertise to design and build innovative products for real-world applications,” said Prof. Cheng Tee Hiang, the Acting Chair of the School of Electrical and Electronic Engineering, Nanyang Technological University, Singapore. “Students using ST’s award-winning iNEMO smart multi-sensor technology in their projects will now have the opportunity to pit their skills against other talented teams. Great innovations are usually developed in a competitive environment, so we see this contest as a good platform to raise the bar for our students in a fun but challenging way.”

The iNEMO Design Contest will run in parallel to the final-year project of participating students. ST will sponsor the iNEMO boards, documentation, software drivers, and technical support, as well as cover 3rd-party costs for the projects. The students will submit their projects to the contest for judging in May 2013. The iNEMO Design Contest offers a top prize of SGD10,000 to the winning team, evaluated on functionality, practicality, implementation, creativity, presentation and final demonstration.

ST is a global leader in the semiconductor market serving customers across the spectrum of sense and power technologies and multimedia convergence applications. Further information on ST can be found at www.st.com.

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August 15, 2012 — The MEMS Industry Group (MIG) is planning webinars on micro electro mechanical systems (MEMS) from packaging challenges to how MEMS can benefit healthcare.

MEMS Packaging — Transforming the Challenges into Solutions will take place August 21 with Charles Richardson, director of roadmapping, iNEMI and Bill Bottoms, 3MTS and International Electronics Manufacturing Initiative/International Technology Roadmap for Semiconductors (iNEMI/ITRS) & Packaging TWG Chair. Register today!

Learn more about MEMS in the ITRS in these articles:

2012 ITRS update: Back-end packaging and MEMS

Roadmapping More than Moore: When the application matters

Health Care is Brimming with Opportunities for MEMS will take place September 11, with Mehran Mehregany, Ph.D., director of the Wireless Health Program & Goodrich Professor of Engineering Innovation at Case Western Reserve University. Register today!

MIG will also present 2012 Status of the MEMS Industry on October 3. Eric Mounier, Ph.D., senior analyst, MEMS Devices & Technologies, Yole Développement will speak, with moderators Jeff Perkins, president of Yole Inc. and Karen Lightman, managing director, MEMS Industry Group. Details on this webinar will be released shortly.

Read Karen Lightman’s blog!

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August 13, 2012 — MEMS Industry Group (MIG) will host MEMS Executive Congress 2012, the annual business conference and networking event for the MEMS industry, November 7-8, 2012 in Scottsdale, AZ. Keynote speakers include: Ajith Amerasekera, TI Fellow, IEEE Fellow, in Texas Instruments’ Kilby Labs, who will discuss how immersive intelligent systems will change the management of our cities, buildings, personal life, health, transportation, safety and security; and Robert Brunner, founder, creative director and partner, Ammunition. Brunner, who first made his name as director of industrial design at Apple Computer, will explore the critical connection between brand identity and connection to consumers — going far beyond the typical form-and-function paradigm of classic industrial design. Industry panels and the MEMS Technology Showcase, featuring MEMS applications, complete the MEMS Executive Congress 2012 program.

Read Karen Lightman’s MEMS blog here!

“MEMS is everywhere. From smartphones, tablets and video games to automotive stability control systems, airbag crash sensors and blood-pressure monitors, we are using MEMS to improve our everyday lives in ways that we could have scarcely imagined just a few years ago,” said Karen Lightman, managing director, MIG. “At MEMS Executive Congress 2012, we will take a collective look beyond the mainstream applications of MEMS. Will smartphones become intelligent aids for people with Alzheimer’s or autism? Will we still ‘drive’ or will MEMS-enabled automobiles safely guide us to and from our destinations on MEMS-enabled roads? And where is my MEMS-enabled personal robotic assistant? At MEMS Executive Congress, we will tap some of the most influential, innovative minds in the industry to examine the most pressing business issues affecting the future of MEMS. We will also get up close to some of the best examples of the MEMS inside the machine during our popular MEMS Technology Showcase.”

MEMS EXECUTIVE CONGRESS KEYNOTES

Ajith Amerasekera, TI Fellow, IEEE Fellow, Kilby Labs, Texas Instruments, will address how electronics technology innovation is driving a shift toward more intelligent systems that enable immersive environments. Small in size and deployed in vast numbers, these new systems will dramatically change how our cities, buildings, personal life, health, transportation, safety and security are managed in the future.

Robert Brunner, founder, creative director and partner, Ammunition, will share his philosophy behind positive user experience, one based not on a set of features, advertising or a company logo — but on an emotional affinity for a product that makes the whole far greater than the sum of its parts. Brunner will explore the connection between consumer product design and the user experience, considering the role of technology in consumer satisfaction and market success.

MEMS EXECUTIVE CONGRESS PANELS

MEMS Market — analysts from leading research firms will present their outlook for future growth and trends in MEMS, addressing factors affecting MEMS in specific market segments. Moderated by Jeffrey Hilbert, president and founder, WiSpry, with panelists:

Jérémie Bouchaud, director and senior principal analyst, MEMS & Sensors, IHS iSuppli

Jean-Christophe Eloy, president and CEO, Yole Développement

Tony Massimini, chief of technology, Semico Research

Steve Ohr, analog and power semiconductors, Gartner, Technology and Service Provider Research

MEMS in Medical/Quality of Life — sponsored by Tronics, this panel will examine ways in which MEMS is promoting better health/quality of life (QoL) in the medical sciences, exploring technologies and commercial opportunities in clinical care, patient monitoring, management, personal fitness, rehab, replacement and drug delivery. Moderated by Jeanette F. Wilson, product line manager, Sensor and Actuator Solution Division (SASD)/AISG, Freescale Semiconductor, with panelists:

Robert Farra, president and COO, MicroCHIPS

Paul Gerrish, senior director, technology and design, Implantable Microsystems Technology, Medtronic

Ivo Stivoric, CTO and vice president of new products, BodyMedia

MEMS in Consumer Products — if it seems like we have an iPad in every house, that’s because a massive proliferation of consumer electronics — enabled by MEMS — is filling our homes, schools, places of work and places of recreation with hundreds of millions of interactive mobile devices. Panelists will offer an insider’s look at what’s next on the horizon. Moderated by Evgeni Gousev, senior director, Technology R&D, Qualcomm MEMS Technologies, with panelists:

Dragan Mladenovic, director of business management, Maxim Integrated Products, Sensor Division

Will Turnage, vice president, Technology and Invention, R/GA

MEMS in Emerging Technologies — sponsored by OEM Group, this panel will examine new areas in which MEMS has either bridged the divide from R&D to commercialization — or is close to doing so. Moderated by Stephen Whalley, director, Sensors, Intel Architecture Group, Intel Corporation, with panelists:

Steve Arms, president and CEO, MicroStrain

Hughes Metras, vice president, strategic partnerships, North America, CEA-LETI

Todd Miller, lab manager, MicroSystems and MicroFluidics, GE Global Research

MIG will host the second annual MEMS Technology Showcase at this year’s Congress. Sponsored by SVTC Technologies, the MEMS Technology Showcase will give Congress attendees an intimate look at some of the most unique MEMS-enabled products ever invented. Attendees will vote on the best product, and Moderator Shawn G. DuBravac, chief economist and senior director of research, Consumer Electronics Association, will “crown” the winner.

MEMS Executive Congress is an annual event that brings together business leaders from a broad spectrum of industries: automotive, consumer goods, energy/environmental, industrial, medical and telecom. It is a unique professional forum at which executives from companies designing and manufacturing MEMS technology sit side-by-side with their end-user customers in panel discussions and networking events to exchange ideas and information about the use of MEMS in commercial applications. For more information, visit MEMS Executive Congress at: www.memscongress.com.

Premier sponsors of MEMS Executive Congress 2012 include: Platinum Sponsor EV Group; Gold Sponsors Applied Materials and SPTS Technologies; and Silver Sponsors Analog Devices, Freescale Semiconductor, STMicroelectronics and SUSS MicroTec.

Event sponsors include: ACUTRONIC, Akustica, A.M. Fitzgerald & Associates, Bosch Automotive Electronics, Bosch Sensortec, Coventor, Fries Research & Technology (FRT), Global Semiconductor Alliance (GSA), IHS iSuppli, Maxim, MEMS Journal, MEMS and Nanotechnology Exchange, OEM Group, Okmetic, Plan Optik, Silex Microsystems, SVTC Technologies, Teledyne DALSA, Tronics and Yole Développement.

MEMS Executive Congress 2012 will be held November 7-8, 2012 at the Westin Kierland Resort & Spa, Scottsdale, AZ, with a group golf outing on November 9.

MEMS Industry Group (MIG) is the trade association advancing MEMS across global markets. More than 150 companies comprise MIG, including Analog Devices, Applied Materials, Bosch, Freescale Semiconductor, GE, Honeywell, HP, Intel, InvenSense, Murata Electronics Oy, OMRON Electronic Components, Qualcomm, STMicroelectronics and Texas Instruments. For more information, visit: www.memsindustrygroup.org.

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August 13, 2012 — Apple Inc. and Samsung Electronics Co. Ltd. remained the two largest buyers of micro electro mechanical systems (MEMS) devices for consumer and mobile applications in 2011, solidifying their command and expanding their influence over the market, according to an IHS iSuppli MEMS Market Tracker report.

Apple and Samsung combined bought 37% of the consumer and mobile MEMS devices in 2011, mainly on the strength of their smartphones and tablets integrating MEMS devices like accelerometers, gyroscopes, MEMS microphones and bulk acoustic wave (BAW) filters.

Top 10 Buyers of Consumer & Mobile MEMS Devices Ranked by Expenditures (in Billions of US Dollars)

Company

2011

2010

Apple

$499.8

$209.2

Samsung

$291.3

$201.2

LG Electronics

$91.7

$100.9

Sony

$85.4

$100.4

Nintendo

$81.8

$124.6

Nokia

$76.5

$79.2

HTC

$57.6

$34.5

Motorola

$44.8

$38.1

Canon

$32.3

$32.1

Sony Ericsson

$32.3

$42.0

Others

$824.3

$677.8

Total

$2,117.8

$1,640.0

Source: IHS iSuppli Research, August 2012

 

Apple, the top buyer, made MEMS purchases equivalent to $499.8 million, or roughly 23%, of the $2.1 billion consumer and mobile MEMS market. Samsung, in second place, was worth $291.3 million to the industry, or 14%. Apple’s total last year was up 139% from $209.2 million in 2010, while Samsung’s MEMS expenditure was up 45% from $201.2 million for the same period.

“The dominance of Apple and Samsung is due in to their successful smartphone and tablet offerings, which contrast dramatically with other Top 10 buyers who do not share the same level of success in either product offering or both,” said Jérémie Bouchaud, director and senior principal analyst for MEMS & sensors at IHS. “In the smartphone market, for instance, Apple’s iPhone is a category killer, while Samsung’s various smartphone models collectively enjoy massive share. Apple’s lead in the tablet space is formidable given the unmatched dominance of the iPad. While Samsung’s unit share of the tablet market still hovers around 10%, its success in the smartphone market coupled with its technological and marketing prowess position Samsung as one of the strongest potential challengers to Apple’s long-term dominance in tablets.”

With the overall consumer and mobile MEMS market continuing to grow because of smartphones and tablets, and given that both Apple and Samsung are the principal players in those product lines, the two companies are in no danger of seeing their influence wane for at least a few more years, IHS believes.

The size of both Apple and Samsung was such that none of the eight companies making up the Top 10 last year individually contributed more than $100 million to the overall consumer and mobile MEMS space. The rest of the Top 10 included LG Electronics, Sony Corp., Nintendo Co. Ltd., Nokia Corp., HTC Corp., Motorola Inc., Canon Inc. and the now-dissolved Sony Ericsson.

The purchasing landscape for consumer and mobile MEMS changed with the arrival of mobile handsets—especially smartphones—and tablets. The two popular consumer electronics devices combined accounted for 60% in value of the consumer and mobile MEMS market in 2011, and their share is projected to reach an even higher 67% by 2016. In contrast to the new-found prominence of handsets and tablets,

gaming is no longer as important compared to that segment’s primacy in 2007, when Nintendo reigned as the top buyer for consumer and mobile MEMS.

Beyond influencing the market share of suppliers, the authoritative presence of Apple and Samsung also gives them incredible purchasing power and outsized negotiating power. As a result, they command different prices than the rest of the industry, with both companies paying significantly less for accelerometers and gyroscopes. Apple and Samsung currently spend 20 to 25% less on accelerometers than other handset makers, and 10 to 15% less on gyroscopes.

Such low prices are a hurdle for companies trying to win designs with the two giants. Failing that, MEMS suppliers do business instead with other manufacturers. In so doing, these suppliers are able to command better prices than if they dealt with Apple and Samsung, but choosing to supply other partners besides the two majors also means being resigned to much smaller sales volumes.

The combined weight of Apple and Samsung in the consumer and mobile MEMS market translates into palpable advantages for both. Conversely, the MEMS suppliers must make concessions in order to accommodate the giants’ heft.

For instance, suppliers know that they can only hope to win significant share by catering to at least one of the two behemoths. Otherwise, one contends with crumbs and is saddled with middling sales volumes unsuitable for large-scale market competition.

By all accounts, winning business from Samsung is easier than securing sales from Apple. Consistent with Samsung’s approach to be many things to many people, Samsung uses multiple MEMS suppliers even for the same handset platform. Bosch of Germany, French-Italian STMicroelectronics and New York-based Kionix all supply accelerometers to the South Korean electronics giant, while InvenSense from California and STMicroelectronics supply Samsung with gyroscopes. Illinois-based Knowles Electronics was the sole trusted supplier of MEMS microphone to Samsung for some time, but Goertek from China has made inroads into Samsung cellphones this year.

Supplying into Apple is more challenging. Until now, the firm has stayed loyal to STMicroelectronics for the supply of accelerometers and gyroscopes to the iPhone and iPad. Apple, in turn, accounted for roughly half of the MEMS sales of STMicroelectronics last year. There is no indication that Apple will switch suppliers anytime soon, even though other manufacturers have yearned to be let in. But Apple has also slightly widened its pool of suppliers in the last year or so. Already, it uses U.S. entity Knowles and AAC of China for MEMS microphones in the iPhone 4 and 4S; Analog Devices Inc. of Massachusetts for the iPod nano 5th as well as the iPad 2; and AAC again for the new iPad.
IHS (NYSE: IHS) is the leading source of information and insight in critical areas that shape today’s business landscape, including energy and power; design and supply chain; defense, risk and security; environmental, health and safety (EHS) and sustainability; country and industry forecasting; and commodities, pricing and cost. Learn more at www.ihs.com.

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August 8, 2012 — Lab-on-a-chip (LOC) devices are micro-chip-sized systems that prepare and analyze very small volumes of fluids — from a few ml to sub-nl. They hold promise for disease diagnostics and forensic evidence investigation. These devices are fabricated by microfluidics makers, a segment of the micro electro mechanical systems (MEMS) industry.

The National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) believes that before LOC technology can be fully commercialized, testing standards need to be developed and implemented. These will define the procedures used to determine if a lab on a chip device, and the materials from which it is made, conform to specifications, said Samuel Stavis, NIST physical scientist.

Standardized testing and measurement methods, Stavis said, will enable MEMS LOC manufacturers to accurately determine important physical characteristics of LOC devices such as dimensions, electrical surface properties, and fluid flow rates and temperatures. These must be calculable at all stages of production, from processing of raw materials to final rollout of products.

Figure. A microfluidic lab on a chip device sitting on a polystyrene dish. Stainless steel needles inserted into the device serve as access points for fluids into small channels within the device, which are about the size of a human hair. Credit: Cooksey/NIST.

Stavis focuses on autofluorescence, the background fluorescent glow of an LOC device that can interfere with sample analysis. Multiple factors must be considered in the development of a testing standard for autofluorescence, including: the materials used in the device, the measurement methods used to test the device, and how the measurements are interpreted. For meaningful sample analysis, all autofluorescence factors must be controlled for or excluded from the measurements.

Quality control during LOC device manufacturing, Stavis says, may require different tests of autofluorescence throughout the process. The raw block of plastic may be measured for autofluorescence, then the substrate the block has been fabricated into, then the final device with functional microfluidics and substrate, Stavis said.

Stavis also emphasizes that it is important not to confuse testing standards with product standards, and to understand how the former facilitates the latter. "A product standard specifies the technical requirements for a lab on a chip device to be rated as top quality," he says. "A testing standard is needed to measure those specifications, as well as to make fair comparisons between competing products."

The argument for testing standards is proposed in a paper in Lab on a Chip: Stavis, S.M. A glowing future for lab on a chip testing standards. Lab on a Chip (2012), DOI: 10.1039/c2lc40511c

Learn more at www.nist.gov.

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