Prof. Dr. Jürgen Burger - JP

What made you decide to apply for a grant at the Leading House Asia?
"More-than-Moore" is a new facet of the microelectronic device markets which complements the digital part in which new products emerge by continuous miniaturization. More specifically the “More-than-Moore” takes into consideration the non-digital functionalities of a product - which provide additional value by functional diversification of semiconductor - based devices. This diversification includes the interaction with the outside and outdoor world through appropriate sensors and actuators, powering of the product using autonomous energy harvesting as well as RF communication with the environment.

In 2019, the Sitem center for translational medicine and biomedical entrepreneurship from the University of Bern has established a strategic partnership with the company Coat-X for the development of thin film encapsulations. In the frame of the project, the “swiss” multilayer thin film encapsulation technology aims to protect microelectronic components, subject to harsh environmental conditions, manufactured by Japanese companies. The project includes the validation of multilayers according to Japanese industry requirements and standards. Hence, the encapsulation technology will help to strengthen Japan’s electronics industries after years of shrinking market share and declining profitability.

How did you secure a partner company?
OSG Corporation is a global tool manufacturer with headquarters in Toyokawa and is specialized on products that contribute to enhancing people's quality of life on a fundamental level. Through continuous growth, OSG has established a production, sales and technical support network spanning 33 countries. Now, OSG has acquired new business opportunities in the market segment of coatings for encapsulations. OSG has a worldwide coating center where novel technology of encapsulation solution has been integrated in order to increase the company’s portfolio. The innovative hermetic encapsulation is perfectly in line with this strategy and shows excellent business opportunities.

How would you describe your experience of the programme?
University of Bern
Technical contribution:
Deposition processes and materials for the manufacturing of multilayer encapsulations:
- Development of the multilayer encapsulation process for microelectronic devices and components using Parylene F, high thermal stability property, as organic layer and silicon oxide deposited by as Plasma Enhanced Chemical Vapor Deposition (PECVD) as inorganic layer
- Deposition of the Multilayer encapsulation on PCB test boards and optimization of surface activation including adhesion process
Memorable Experiences:
- Lively technical discussions with some challenges to understand each other during online meetings.
- Discussion and establishment of detailed experimental work program. More than 10 versions and at least the same hours of meeting have been necessary to define a details work plan which at the end did not correspond with the accomplished experimental work.

OSG corporation
Contribution:
Test samples manufacturing:
PCB test boards design, conception, and production Japanese standards validation tests:
- JIS C 60068-20-66: this highly accelerated stress test (HAST) at 121°C and 85% relative humidity at 2.1 atm pressure confirm barrier property against water vapor at high temperature and high humidity of the encapsulation solution
- IPC/JEDEC J-STD-033: this accelerated aging test characterized by cycling thermal validate the behavior of the multilayer coating against long-term harsh environments
Memorable Experiences:
- Visit of OSG R&D center and production factory at Toyokawa and Shinshiro. Sébastien Buchwalder had the opportunity to visit but also to stay few days at one of the biggest OSG’s factories in Japan. Exchanges and discussion were very interesting, especially to discover the Japanese work culture and organization.
- During the Japan trip, Sebastien Buchwalder had also the chance to attend the Medtec trade fair in Tokyo. Unfortunately, due to the covid restrictions, the participants came almost exclusively from Japan and only some of them from other Asian country. However, the interest for the encapsulation technology and the various application fields aroused a great interest.

What were the impacts you made through the project/partners/individual?
University of Bern
Benefits:
The Sitem Center of the University of Bern has established a strategic partnership with the company Coat-X, CSEM and Empa for the development of thin film encapsulations using alternating organic and inorganic layers. The composite thin film encapsulations are used for e.g. electronic PCBs in wearable devices at the wrist and clothing for smart health monitoring, flexible electronics in cell phones and digital watches which are sensitive to moisture as well as for sensors in medical devices. Having a strong collaboration with a key Japanese partner is an incredible visibility for the promotion and the development of this technology, not only in Japan but in the entire Southeast Asia. Furthermore, as some of the most famous electronic and high-tech industries including Hitachi, Hamamatsu, Murata, NEC, Fujitsum and Toshiba are located in Japan, a collaboration with Japan’s high-tech industry in microelectronics is evident.

OSG Corporation
Benefits:
OSG Corporation is a global tool manufacturer with headquarters in Toyokawa and is specialized on products that contribute to enhancing people's quality of life on a fundamental level. Now, OSG has acquired new business opportunities in the market segment of coatings for encapsulations. OSG has a worldwide coating center where novel technology of encapsulation solution has been integrated in order to increase the company’s portfolio. The innovative hermetic encapsulation is perfectly in line with this strategy and shows excellent business opportunities. OSG, via Coat-X Japan plans to establish strategic partnerships with worldwide leading Japanese companies for the encapsulation of electronic devices. As the Japanese electronics industry is one of the largest in the world, OSG is ready to acquire additional partnerships in the Japanese market for the encapsulation of electronic devices which are subject to harsh environmental conditions.

Testimonial: what were your personal experiences/thoughts on the bilateral cooperation experience?
Sebastien Buchwalder, PhD candidate at the University of Bern and partially employee at Coat-X SA, Switzerland:
"The trip in Japan was definitely a highlight of this collaboration. The visit of the production factory of the OSG corporation at Shinshiro and the stay of few days at the OSG R&D center at Toyokawa (picture) were a great opportunity to share and discover Japanese work culture and factory organization. Some of the people met during those visits are not anymore only colleagues but became friends and frequent contact still takes places.
The second major experience has been the Medtec Japan Trade Show in Tokyo. From the technical aspect with the numerous visits to our booth (picture) and the great interest of the technology were certainly not common. Furthermore, this event indirectly allowed me to visit the crazy Tokyo metropolis. The visit of this incredible city with Japanese colleagues was a fantastic remember."