Lam Research Joins US-India Partnership, Will Train 60,000 Indian Engineers In Semiconductor Tech
In a significant development aimed at tackling the growing need for semiconductor talent, semiconductor equipment company Lam Research, has unveiled its plans to implement a virtual-physical ecosystem.
This initiative, announced in a joint statement and fact sheet issued by the governments of the United States and India at the White House, aims to address one of the major challenges facing the semiconductor industry today – the development of a pipeline of future semiconductor engineers.
The role of semiconductors in various fields, including artificial intelligence and electric vehicles, has led to an increasing demand for nanotechnology expertise worldwide. Recognising this need, Lam Research President and CEO, Tim Archer, expressed the company's commitment to collaborating with the Indian government to expedite the education and training of the next generation of semiconductor engineers.
The semiconductor industry faces a significant shortage of skilled professionals to meet the expected future demand. Educating future semiconductor engineers becomes even more challenging due to the cost constraints associated with providing physical access to advanced nanotechnologies within academic institutions. Furthermore, the inherent risks involved in working with semiconductor manufacturing equipment and volatile chemistries make it difficult to offer hands-on experience to students safely.
To address these hurdles, Lam Research's Semiverse Solutions leverages virtual simulation to replicate real-world labs, enabling greater accessibility, safety, sustainability, and democratisation of engineering skills training. This technology has already been successfully employed by Lam Research, its customers, and partner academic institutions in the United States.
Lam Research's Semiverse Solutions, in conjunction with SEMulator3D®, will deliver a cutting-edge virtual nano fabrication environment to facilitate the training of the next generation of semiconductor engineers in India. The programme will be complemented by program management and customisable course curriculum, providing an opportunity to educate up to 60,000 Indian engineers in nanotechnologies over a ten-year period. The objective of this endeavor is to support India's semiconductor education and workforce development goals.
The collaboration between Lam Research and the governments of the United States and India marks a significant step in bridging the talent gap within the semiconductor industry.
