News

Unique opportunity for Professor Hele Savin to carry out academic research at company premises

The Finnish Research Impact Foundation funding allows professors to concentrate on research and utilize the practical expertise of companies.
Professori Hele Savin ja tuotannon kehitysinsinööri Katja Mustonen valitsemassa piikiekkoja Okmeticin tuotantolinjalta yhteiseen tutkimukseensa. Kuva: Anniina Ojanperä.
Professor Hele Savin and Product Development Engineer Katja Mustonen selecting silicon wafers from Okmetic production line for their joint research. Photo: Anniina Ojanperä.

Hele Savin, a Professor of Micro- and Nanoengineering at Aalto University, is piloting a unique research collaboration format with the silicon wafer manufacturer, Okmetic. The novel funding instrument, established by The Finnish Research Impact Foundation, allows professors to conduct academic research at company premises for 12 months while remaining employed by the university.

The Finnish Research Impact Foundation opened a new Tandem Industry Academia Professor (TIA Professor) call in autumn 2022. Among the six professors awarded TIA funding is Savin, who started a research project with Okmetic in August. 

“I have spent my entire career in a purely academic environment, so I am thrilled to have the opportunity to experience daily work in the private sector. I hope to get further inspiration for my research and to find solutions that have an immediate impact on society“, Savin says.

At Okmetic facilities, Professor Savin will explore fundamental properties of silicon wafers, i.e. the products that serve as the foundation for current microchip fabrication. She believes that the novel characterization methods originally developed for photovoltaic applications could enable scientific discoveries in semiconductor products as well. 

"We believe that this even closer combination of academic research and commercial production of silicon wafers will benefit both parties, and are looking forward insights from an academic standpoint," says Atte Haapalinna, CTO of Okmetic.

More information:

Hele Savin
Professor, Aalto University, Department of Electronics and Nanoengineering
[email protected] 

Atte Haapalinna
CTO, Okmetic
[email protected] 

Hele Savin Group

Electron Physics

Professor Hele Savin

Department of Electronics and Nanoengineering
valoanturi

Black silicon photodetector breaks the 100% efficiency limit

The efficiency was so high that at first the researchers had a hard time believing the result. Now Aalto University spin-off company ElFys Inc. already supplies the record detectors for several industry sectors.

News
  • Published:
  • Updated:

Read more news

Copper
Research & Art Published:

Battery demand is growing exponentially – BATCircle3.0 provides a leap in battery material and recycling research in Finland

The three-year BATCircle3.0 project, led by Aalto University, offers a strategic focus on new openings for battery materials refining and battery recycling.
Learning Centre graphics
Research & Art, Studies Published:

Artificial intelligence tools to support information retrieval

Artificial intelligence is also going to change information retrieval and many databases are developing their own AI-based add-ons.
Computer component, School of Science, photo: Matti Ahlgren, Aalto University
Research & Art Published:

Aalto computer scientists in EMNLP 2024

Department of Computer Science paper accepted to the Conference on Empirical Methods in Natural Language Processing.
""
Press releases, Research & Art Published:

Physicists unlock transformative new way to transmit huge amounts of data via laser light

The discovery, centred around controlling tiny hurricanes of light and electromagnetic fields, could revolutionise how much information we can deliver over cables.