On 31 May 2023, the kick-off meeting took place of the NWO KIC project ‘REGENERATE’. Jannis Teunissen of CWI's Multiscale Dynamics research group was one of the co-applicants. Within this public-private partnership, knowledge institutions and industrial partners are working on reliable high-tech motion systems, for example lithography machines that are used for the production of computer chips. At CWI, one PhD student will start in this programme early 2024.
Jannis Teunisse: “This project is exciting for several reasons: there will be many new collaborations, there is potential for direct impact on industry, and it is an opportunity to learn more about the relation between (unwanted) electric discharges and material degradation”. Co-applicants of REGENERATE are Eindhoven University of Technology (project lead), CWI, and Delft University of Technology. Co-funders are ASML and Tecnotion.
Nanometer precision
The programme name ‘REGENERATE’ stands for ‘Reliable Next Generation Actuation Systems’. So-called linear electromagnetic actuators are used in high-tech motion systems. They can, for example, enable the positioning of wafers in lithography machines with nanometer precision. Increasing requirements for acceleration and precision are causing higher mechanical, electromagnetic and thermal stresses and non-recoverable failures. Reliability has therefore become a major concern. However, failure mechanisms are currently poorly understood. In this multidisciplinary project the researchers will study the main failure mechanisms, using theoretical models combined with experimental measurements. The outcomes are used to improve future linear actuator systems and reliability at partners ASML and Tecnotion.
Group picture: REGENERATE kick-off meeting on 31 May 2023. Jannis Teunissen (CWI) second from right; project leader Prof. Elena Lomonova (TU/e) 6th from right.
Header picture: clean room with wafer machines for chip production (source: Shutterstock).
Source: https://www.nwo.nl/en/news/two-ppp-consortia-will-kick-improving-cyber-physical-systems.
