Technology transfer – a win-win situation Michler and Wasmer used a special nanocleaver to investigate how cracks develop during the wafer cleaving process. As they are currently doing for the solar cell project, they proceeded in three steps. “The solution to the problem”, say Michler, “was to stop scribing. Instead we used the diamond pyramid as a wedge, pressing it into the wafer which we then fractured.” The industrial partner was suitably impressed, and was able to optimize the wafer cleaving process appropriately. As a generous thank-you from Bookham, Michler’s laboratory was allowed to keep the instrumentation which the company had made available for the project – hardware to the tune of half a million Swiss francs. This welcome addition to the laboratory infrastructure will be used in future for the benefit of other nanomechanical projects. Editor Dr. Sabine Borngraeber, freelance journalist, Basel Technical information Dr. Johann Michler, Mechanics of Materials and Nanostructures, Tel. +41 33 228 46 05, Dr. Kilian Wasmer, Materials Technology, Tel.+41 33 228 29 71, |