Sandia National Labs Academic Alliance Collaboration Report 2020-2021

CONTRIBUTOR SPOTLGHT

Nathan Nowlin

Nathan Nowlin has 25 years’ experience in advanced microelectronics and radiation effects research and is leading Sandia’s efforts to advance collaboration and talent development in radiation- hardened microelectronics. At Sandia, Nowlin led R&D efforts for radiation hardening by design, advanced circuit modeling of radiation effects, and product engineering for high-reliability, high-consequence systems. His efforts in Application Specific Integrated Circuit (ASIC) design enabled Sandia to successfully begin its largest ASIC production mission in its history at the MESA complex.

Theresa Mayer, Purdue University executive vice president for research and partnerships, said secure and resilient microelectronic systems “underpin advanced technologies critical to national security, including artificial intelligence, hypersonics, advanced communications networks, autonomous systems and others. Cutting- edge education and research are at the heart of meeting these national security needs.” In a virtual meeting on April 17, 2020, Sandia and Purdue signed a new MOU that extends the research partnership until 2030. “Sandia National Labs is a recognized world leader in technology research and implementation,” Mayer said. “This partnership will allow us to work together to solve significant national issues and problems that no one institution could address alone.” Ken Patel is helping to shape the partnership through internships at Sandia. “Internships are essential ingredients when it comes to training the workforce of the future. By giving students meaningful mission work, they learn how to truly apply their knowledge.” One area of focus for the partnerships will, of course, be microelectronics. Purdue has deep expertise in developing trusted microelectronics through efforts such as the National Science Foundation-supported Network for Computational Nanotechnology and the Purdue Quantum Science and Engineering Institute. Sandia and Purdue are partnering on programs for the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) through the Semiconductor Research Program, including the Joint University Microelectronics Program (JUMP), the Center for Heterogenous Integration Research on Packaging, and the nanoelectronics Computing Research Program (nCORE).

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2020-2021 Collaboration Report

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