Business Finland funded R&D program Chip Zero was launched in December 2022 and is now halfway through its four-year period. R&D work is actively on-going with a strong ecosystem comprising of 49 member companies and institutions. The program has seven ongoing co-innovation projects.
The Chip Zero co-innovation projects
CIRCELEC - Advancing circular economy of electronics
The project studies how to enhance the sustainable circular economy of electronic devices by focusing on reuse, repair and recycling options.
Finnish Environment Institute (Syke) is the coordinator of this program. The other research partner is VTT. Funding partners include DNA, Kuusakoski, Recser and Serty.
Circularity in semiconductor fabrication – ZeroChip
ZeroChip strives to develop in-depth understanding of the global semiconductor supply chains’ eco-efficiency and find ways to lower the emissions of semiconductor manufacturing and to create competitive circular solutions. The program will generate a roadmap for achieving circularity in semiconductor fabrication.
The project is coordinated by VTT and other partners are Applied Materials, Murata Electronics, Eurajoen Romu, Sofi Filtration and Kyocera Technologies.
Efficient Photonics for Sustainable Imaging and Sensing (EPheS)
The Efficient Photonics for Sustainable Imaging and Sensing (EPheS) project brings together two research organizations (VTT and Tampere University) and five partner companies (Applied Materials, Emberion, Gasera, Schott and Vaisala), to merge function and form for the next generation spectral imaging and sensing. Photonics technologies generate groundbreaking information on the chemical composition of materials and gases by interacting with them optically without contact. This project creates novel spectral imaging and optical gas sensing technologies for process and environmental monitoring, textile and plastic inspection and sorting, and agricultural and food monitoring.
New chemistries for resource efficient semiconductor manufacturing (CHEMI-SEMI)
CHEMI-SEMI aims to develop sustainable zero-emission chips, and to improve semiconductor manufacturing from chemistry perspective. Objectives include development of new ALD/CVD precursors following the principles of green chemistry, taking a machine-learning approach to accelerate precursor and process development and search for potential ways to minimize environmental impact of the precursors.
The project is driven by Aalto University. The other project companies are Applied Materials, PiPond and Volatec.
Time Zero - Next Generation MEMS Timing for Advanced & Efficient Communication Systems
The timing circuit is often the critical component for system efficiency, performance and speed. Time Zero program’s objective is to transfer the MEMS timing and applications based on it to the next level by exploring and developing new materials from substrates to thin films, new manufacturing methods of MEMS devices and novel timing resonators.
The project is driven by VTT, other research organizations being Aalto University and Turku University. Partner companies are Applied Materials, Koherent, Nokia, Okmetic, Saab and SiTime.
UltraGreen HESS
The motivation behind this program is the target that by 2030, 700,000 electric cars should be on Finland's roads, the majority of which would be all-electric cars and also Finland’s plan to achieve the carbon neutrality target in 2035. The solution for energy storage challenges is HESS, Hybrid Energy Storage Systems.
VTT is heading this program. Other partners are Aalto University, ABB, Bamomas, Danfoss, SanRex, Tampere University, Vensum and Volue.
Wide band-gap semiconductor power electronics
WIBASE program’s goal is to bring together the expertise of Finnish semiconductor and power electronics industries and establish a national R&D program with prototyping and testing capabilities for WBG semiconductors and power devices. The programs also aims to address reliability concerns of WBG power devices and modules, to evaluate emerging UWBG materials and device structures for power electronics and to initiate international collaboration with leading research groups.
The project is headed by VTT. The other research organizations are Aalto University, Lappeenranta University of Technology and University of Helsinki. Partner companies are ABB, Applied Materials, Comptek, Danfoss, Okmetic, Kempower and SanRex.