Microelectronics Group

The Microelectronics Group conducts internationally leading microelectronics research that impacts our daily life by collaborating with industry

The work the Microelectronics Group undertakes can be broadly divided into the following areas:

• New materials and devices for future microelectronic industry: the research team are investigating high-mobility channel semiconductors (Ge and III-V), resistive switching random access memory (ReRAM), and 3D electronic devices
• Qualification, modelling, and prediction of instabilities and ageing of nanoscale transistors: members of the Group are developing new models for predicting device instability and lifetime induced by Random Telegraph Noise (RTN), bias temperature instability (BTI) and hot carriers. The researchers are also working to improve the standard industrial test procedure
• New characterisation techniques: the Group has developed novel measurement techniques. These techniques are implemented at research and development centres, such as IMEC, and on the industrial standard test equipment, such as Keithley Instruments
• Quantum Computing: the Group researches into deep cryogenic error and failure mechanisms in IC devices operating at sub-4 Kelvin to optimize integrated controller for its Qubit control capacity
• Hardware security of IoTs: the Group is developing True Random Number Generators and Physical Unclonable Functions (PUF) for encryption and authentication of resource-constrained IoTs

In the latest research assessment (Research Excellence Framework 2021), the group submitted one of the four Impact Case Studies for the Unit of Assessment of Engineering, which were assessed as 50% world leading and 50% internationally excellent.

In addition to this success, the Group regularly publishes its results in high-impact journals and flagship conferences, such as: the Institute of Electrical Electronics Engineers (IEEE) Transactions, International Electron Device Meetings (IEDM), and the Symposium of VLSI Technology. Since 2005, the Group has co-authored 17 IEDM papers. This is more than any other university in the UK.

The Microelectronics Group also has an exceptional track record with regards to the quality of its PhD students’ theses. Over the last 20 years, each student has, on average, published 4 journal papers. External examiners have also recommended several theses from the Group for Faculty Awards and a PhD student won the Prestigious Innovation Award in the Academia, which was granted by the Malaysian Government.

The research that the Microelectronics Group conducts is supported by grants from the UK Engineering and Physical Science Research Council (EPSRC). Recently, the Group was awarded two grants from the EPSRC – one for Variability-aware Resistive Memristor design and one for realistic fault modelling to enable optimization of low power IoT. For these projects, researchers from the Group are working in collaboration with Arm Holding, Synopsys, and an IMEC-based industrial consortium, which has members from Intel, TSMC, and Samsung.

In the future, the Microelectronics Group intends to develop novel qualification techniques and models that will go on to become the new industry standards. The Group also plans to expand its research in Quantum Computing and Hardware Security.