LONDON — IMEC, the nanoelectronics research institute based in Leuven, Belgium, has begun a 70 million euro (about $100 million) to expand its research labs with an additional 2,800 square meter clean room. The expansion is set to create an extra 300 engineering jobs of various profiles.
The extension will enable IMEC to expand its research on 22-nm CMOS and beyond, while moving research into solar cells and biomedical electronics. IMEC also plans to build a new office building starting later this year.
The extra lab space includes 1,200 square meters of ultra-clean processing area as an extension of its current 300-mm clean room. The clean room will be ready for research into 450-mm diameter wafers. About 1,600 square meters of lab space will be earmarked for research on silicon and organic solar cells and on biomedical electronics.
IMEC employs about 1650 people and the expansion is expected to create about 300 extra jobs researchers, equipment operators and lab assistants in several domains.
The total cost of the extension amounts to 70 million euro (about $100 million). The Flemish Government is paying 35 million euro towards the project and IMEC is set to cover the rest with a 35 million euro loan.
"In 2009, IMEC lights 25 birthday candles. Thanks to the unbridled commitment of our researchers and the continuous vision and support of the government of Flanders, we succeeded in putting Flanders on top of the world in nanoelectronics research," said Gilbert Declerck, CEO of IMEC, in a statement.
"IMEC today is addressing the major challenges of our planet: environment, energy and the ageing population. Concrete programs in areas such as solar energy, smart-grid, energy scavenging and in several biomedical and medical applications address those challenges. We are proud that we can further expand IMEC's activities so that we continue to offer valuable R&D programs to the industry that will contribute to Flanders, Europe and the world of tomorrow," Gilbert concluded.
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