Project

# Title Team Members TA Documents Sponsor
29 Modular Wafer Track for Semiconductor Fabrication
 Hayden Kunas
Jack Schnepel
Nathan Pitsenberger
 Shengyan Liu proposal1.pdf
Modular Wafer Track for Semiconductor Fabrication

Team Members:
-Jackks2
-nmp5
-hkunas2

# Problem

In today’s world, where semiconductors drive nearly every aspect of technological innovation, little room is left for small-scale fabrication and experimentation. Commercial wafer processing equipment ranges from tens of thousands to hundreds of millions of dollars, putting it far out of reach for hobbyists, educational laboratories, and early-stage researchers. Existing systems are not only cost-prohibitive but also lack the flexibility and modularity needed for experimentation on a smaller scale. As a result, innovation outside of large industrial fabs is limited, leaving students, independent researchers, and small labs without access to tools that enable exploration of semiconductor device fabrication.

# Solution

Our team’s solution to this problem is to design, build, and demonstrate a modular, cost-effective wafer track system that lowers the barrier to entry for small-scale semiconductor processing. The idea is to create a track that will:

Transport wafers between the interchangeable processing modules,
Execute repeatable fabrication recipes that ensure process consistency,
and communicate standardized instructions to each module through a defined packet interface, enabling true modularity and user-created modules.

The system architecture will be layered:
A Raspberry Pi will serve as the front-end controller, providing recipe management, a user interface, and real-time monitoring.
An ESP32 Microcontroller will delegate low-level instructions to each module and control the stepper motors for wafer transport.
Individual modules (demonstrated through a wafer alignment station that reorients a wafer’s major flat at the start of each recipe) will showcase the modular framework and mechanical precision of the track.

By defining a standardized track-module interface and releasing the system as open source, our design will empower hobbyists, students, and small research labs to reproduce, extend, and customize the platform. This solution not only addresses cost barriers but also promotes accessibility, flexibility, and innovation in semiconductor fabrication education and prototyping.

# Solution Components
User Interface: This will be the subsystem that the user interfaces with to create a series of steps, or recipes, that will be sent to the ESP32 for execution. This system will be based around a Raspberry PI 4B with an Anyuse 15.6” portable monitor built into the system for the user to interact with.

Main mover: This will be the primary subsystem responsible for moving the wafer to the various modules. Components include two linear actuators and a rotational axis to transport the wafer to the modules, limit switches for the linear actuators, and proxy sensors (APDS-9930)to detect when the wafer has reached a certain location. Included with this is a power distribution PCB, which will be used to step down and rectify the wall voltage into the necessary DC voltages required for all of the motors and other components.

Wafer Alligner: This module will have a small vacuum to hold the wafer down to a disc while it is spun with a motor. A proxy sensor (APDS-9930) will be able to detect the flat edge which can be aligned in a certain area. A linear actuator will be used here as well to raise and lower the wafer onto this platform.

”Black Box”: This is the subsystem that will act as a symbol of potential future modules that can be added, such as a spin coater or hot plate modules. In our project, this idea will be executed with an Arduino R4. The “black box” should not be considered as part of the project, but only as a showcase for the functions and abilities.

# Criterion For Success
This project will be labeled as a success if:
The track can recognize and adapt to new modules being loaded,
Accept user recipes and execute those systematically,
Rotate wafers to the correct orientation,
Automatically transport wafers to the correct module slot depending on module position

Smart Frisbee

Ryan Moser, Blake Yerkes, James Younce

Smart Frisbee

Featured Project

The idea of this project would be to improve upon the 395 project ‘Smart Frisbee’ done by a group that included James Younce. The improvements would be to create a wristband with low power / short range RF capabilities that would be able to transmit a user ID to the frisbee, allowing the frisbee to know what player is holding it. Furthermore, the PCB from the 395 course would be used as a point of reference, but significantly redesigned in order to introduce the transceiver, a high accuracy GPS module, and any other parts that could be modified to decrease power consumption. The frisbee’s current sensors are a GPS module, and an MPU 6050, which houses an accelerometer and gyroscope.

The software of the system on the frisbee would be redesigned and optimized to record various statistics as well as improve gameplay tracking features for teams and individual players. These statistics could be player specific events such as the number of throws, number of catches, longest throw, fastest throw, most goals, etc.

The new hardware would improve the frisbee’s ability to properly moderate gameplay and improve “housekeeping”, such as ensuring that an interception by the other team in the end zone would not be counted as a score. Further improvements would be seen on the software side, as the frisbee in it’s current iteration will score as long as the frisbee was thrown over the endzone, and the only way to eliminate false goals is to press a button within a 10 second window after the goal.