The "virtual" cleanroom: microelectronics processing education through interactive multimedia

Integrated circuits (ICs) are fabricated by a sophisticated series of processes steps. Education in the field of semiconductor processing requires a thorough understanding of the fabrication process. However, due to space, equipment, and budget constraints hands-on microelectronics instruction is limited. To alleviate these resource limitations and to enhance the educational experience, an environment which simulates IC fabrication instruction in a physical laboratory using interactive multimedia is currently being developed at the Georgia Institute of Technology Microelectronics Research Center. This Virtual Cleanroom will allow students to use a high-performance multimedia workstation to simulate the fabrication of an IC. Simulation modules for each of the unit process steps used in IC fabrication are being constructed on the X-Mosaic platform, making the courseware accessible through Internet via the World-Wide Web. This has allowed the incorporation of IC process simulators (such as SIMPL) into the Virtual Cleanroom environment, enabling the student to visualize the results of performing a step while simultaneously learning the physical activities involved.