INUP-i2i
Indian Nanoelectronics Users’ Programme
Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology – MeitY, with the long-term vision of improving skilled manpower in the areas of micro and nanoelectronics had established the Indian Nanoelectronics Users’ Programme (INUP) about a decade back. The initiative enabled the researchers to travel from the country's remotest locations and implement their ideas at the state-of-art nanofabrication and characterization facilities available at Centres of Excellence established at the Indian Institute of Science Bangalore and Indian Institute of Technology Bombay. Over the years, the brand INUP has caught the imaginations of the scholars from numerous technical colleges and universities who could not afford to have such facilities to perform research. The user base grew from the first (2008-2014) to the second 2014-2019) phases of implementation. Thousands of researchers have received hands-on training at various levels in such state-of-art facilities in the multi-disciplinary areas of micro/nanoelectronics. Hundreds of them could implement their research ideas and produce scientific and technological outputs. The initiative resulted in unprecedented benefits to the budding scholars in developing cutting-edge research prototypes, which was found to be way beyond the traditional soft-teaching pathways through textbook knowledge. The initiative also helped the participants write and submit research proposals, budget the same, implement ideas at the ground level, schedule project work, submit project reports, prepare scientific manuscripts, and develop the devices.
This has laid the necessary foundation for the next phase of the program: Indian Nanoelectronics Users’ Programme - Idea to Innovation - INUP-i2i, that would run from 2021 – 2024. The primary objectives of the proposed initiative are
- Expand the program to six state-of-art Centre of Excellences in the areas of nanoscience and nanotechnologies from Indian Institute of Science Bangalore, Indian Institute of Technology Bombay, Indian Institute of Technology Delhi, Indian Institute of Technology Madras, Indian Institute of Technology Kharagpur, and Indian Institute of Technology Guwahati.
- Conduct year-round training programs at various levels for academia, startups and industry
- Develop training modules to teach the fundamentals in the area of nanoelectronics and provide practical information on the state-of-the-art fabrication and characterization tools.
- Enable hands-on training on the cutting-edge areas of micro/nanoelectronics, micro/nanofabrication and characterization.
- Encourage the development of prototypes and technology development targeting societal benefits.
- Mentor the budding entrepreneurs by offering access to technological know-how in the field of micro/nanoelectronics
- Develop a highly skilled workforce to catalyze the GOI initiatives such as Make in India, Start-Up India, Skill India and Atmanirbar Bharat.
INUP-i2i
Objectives
- Enhance R&D ecosystem in the area of nanoelectronics by leveraging the Nano centres established by MeitY.
- Conduct training/workshops in the field of Nanoelectronics for wider dissemination of knowledge.
- Support the exploratory and innovative research for development of technologies in Nanoelectronics
- Mentor startups for commercialization of nanotechnologies.
- Conduct Hackathons/Grand Challenge targeting societal applications to develop Nano engineered solutions.
INUP-i2i Features
Salient Features
INUP-i2i organizes various training programs across all the six Centre for Excellence in Nanoelectronics for all potential users across the country in the area of nanofabrication/ characterization/ simulation techniques. Researchers comprising of faculty, students (M.Tech./ Ph.D.), scientists and engineers from academic and research institutions are trained at three different levels.
Level 1
Familiarization Lecture
Introduces different aspects of Nanoelectronics and provides exposure to the research infrastructure available at the Nano Centers. The lecture series is organized as modules, such as MEMS cantilever, microfluidics, spintronics, 2D MoS2 transistors, interdigitated electrode devices, GaN LEDs, photovoltaics and nanophotonics.
The lecture series would be available on NPTEL as well as any IT-enabled platform preferred by MeitY. Apart from modules, there would be a series of lectures and application notes on equipment available at the Nano Centers. These would provide in-depth information about the equipment and their capabilities.
Level 2
Hands-on Training
Program will be conducted at the Nano Centers for selected researchers. We envision providing the researchers 10-15 days of rigorous training on equipment and the processes that are likely to be used for their project execution.
In addition to academic users, we would initiate programs for industry and the strategic sector. In INUP-i2i, we will conduct a special level-2 training workshop for the new IITs joining the INUP-i2i programme. This workshop will transfer INUP-related knowhow, for smooth launch of the INUP-i2i programme at their respective institutions.
Hands on training workshop are organized on the following different themes:
- Sensors and Microfluidics
- Organic Electronics
- 2D materials and devices
- Logic & Memory Devices
- Spintronics
- Compound Semiconductor Devices
- Photovoltaics
- MEMS
Level 3
Research Projects
The selected projects from researchers trained at Levels 1 and 2, will be executed at the Nano Centers in Level 3. Professional experts at the Nanocenters employed under this project (in addition to faculty) will provide the required support and guidance.
In the INUP-i2i, two classes of Level-3 projects will be supported.
- Research and Innovation Projects
- Startup Support
Types of Programs at INUP-i2i
There are two kinds of interaction with external users for the Nanoelectronics facilities under INUP-i2i:
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Medium-term projects:
Medium-term projects duration is 3-24 months and may involve device modelling or fabrication or characterization, or a combination of two or more of these aspects.
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Short-term measurements/ fabrication:
Short-term projects duration is 1 week - 3 months and may involve device modelling or fabrication or characterization, or a combination of two or more of these aspects.