Post-Learning Journey Reflections

The visit to Applied Materials was truly an eye-opener. Not only did we get to tour the Applied Materials building, we also got a peek into some engineers' minds and what makes them tick.

First we had a talk from several engineers like Naz, Dr Wond, Mr Leong and Mr Birdsell, and their manager Mr Avi (apologies if I spell any names wrong here - do clarify if you spot any). They talked about managing a team, and how the engineers had to work as a team to get things done, no one-man shows allowed. Each engineer also presented the different aspects which Applied Materials specialises in and some also showed us their products, like the Endura or the array of solar panels.

We also got to visit their factory, which meant we had to suit up in suits, masks and all to ensure we did not contaminate the place. It was my first time in a clean room of this size and it was pretty cool to actually enter a factory like that and learn what processes Applied Materials has to create and test products.

I learnt quite a bit during our visit there, like how the prices of transistors have fallen drastically. An iPod created with transistor prices from 30 years ago would cost $3 billion, but it costs only hundreds now, showing the improvements in technology over this period of time.

I also learnt about what and who makes a factory floor work at optimum efficiency. I always thought that you only needed engineers to design the products, technicians to make the products and QC staff to check the products. Apparently not. Other than those I just listed, there are more than 10 other different groups of people needed to design the product to suit clientele needs, to make sure everything in the factory goes like clockwork, to ship the products among others.

A lot of the things we learnt at Applied Materials ultimately starts from what we learn at school. We know that metals like copper are good conductors of electricity and it is copper that forms the gate in a transistor. We also know that black colours absorb the most light and heat, and that is also applied in solar panels. What we learn in school forms the foundations of what you will do if you work in a company like Applied Materials and it would be good if you get the basics right in order to get the more advanced stuff on track.

An engineer can specialise in different fields, but the one thing that unites all engineers is that they see the problems and they fix it before you even know there's a problem. That summarises (oversummarises?) what an engineer does: fixing future problems.

In the end, this has been a very enriching experience and I would like to thank everyone who made this experience possible.

Pre-Learning Journey Reading and Reflection

===About me===
I am Fabian Tan and am 15 years old this year. I like Angry Birds, badminton and computer hardware. Computer hardware? In what ways, you may ask. This is what I do to my computer when I am extremely, extremely bored.






I started doing disassembly on desktops about 2 years ago by total happenstance, and moved on to laptops last year. Of course, this is not what most people would do, since mishaps do happen and may sometimes end up with a non-functioning computer. However, the thrill of discovery when first opening up a computer and examining its components never quite disappears. For desktops, the motherboard is usually of a standard dimension and contain the same slots at more or less the same place. However, laptops are different, and usually different laptops have different motherboard sizes, which makes them such a marvel of engineering since each laptop has to have its own motherboard custom made to fit its chassis and has to be designed from the ground up. Having said that, some of my friends also do this with me, but for those who want to try, it is of course a risk, but a risk worth taking if you are interested in computers. Start slow with desktops since they are easier, then gradually work your way up to laptops since they are generally more complex to disassemble. The biggest adversary you will face will be the screws, since they come in different shapes and sizes, and using the wrong ones at the wrong places can sometimes result in disaster. Similarly, some are very well hidden and attempting to pry something off with these screws intact will also create problems. With all that said and done, you might be able to learn more about your computer and how it runs.

In the future, I hope I can study computer engineering in university. I'm quite interested with memristor technology and how it will help to overcome limitations as semiconductors get smaller due to electrical leakage as normal semiconductors have a tendency to leak electrical current as they get smaller. If memristors mature fast enough to overcome that problem, Moore's law will probably hold true for years to come.


===About the MNCs===


First, I will talk about Intel, specifically its Mobile Communications division. It was formed this year when Intel completed its acquisition of the Wireless Solutions division of Infineon Technologies, and produces chips for mobile devices, for example GPS chips, mobile phone platforms, mobile phone baseband ICs, cellular RF transceivers and bluetooth products. It can also license these chips to other companies for them to modify the chips to suit demand.


Applied Materials was founded in 1967 and creates technology used to produce semiconductors for various applications, for example semiconductors. It sells this technology to other companies, primarily leaders in semiconductors, computer chips, wireless communications and TVs. In this regard, it can be said that it helps in the process of innovation and invention as it gives companies a method to experiment without having to research and build the technology from ground up.


===Wows and unwows===
I read in a computer magazine a few months ago that Intel spent 8 billion pounds in the UK alone in research and design, which is a lot of money in terms of the sheer amount of resources Intel is pumping into innovation and invention. Intel's acquisition of Infineon's Wireless Solutions division for US$1.4 billion already shows that it's expanding into the mobile sector and also shows its investment and trust that mobile communications will be an important sector in the future. However, Intel does not seem to be a major player in the mobile sector yet, instead other companies such as Nvidia, Texas Instruments, ARM and Qualcomm have revolutionalised the mobile sector with smartphones and tablets, but expect that to change in the near future.

However, Intel as a company has had its fair share of complaints, primarily of anti-competitive behaviour. After all, how could a company which has a 80.2% market share (as of Q3 2011) of the worldwide processor market not be called a monopoly? In the end, it had to settle for US$1.25 billion with AMD to settle all complaints.

Applied Materials on the other hand is not a household name when compared to, say, Intel, but their work helps to speed up the process of innovation for other companies. As stated above, they commercialise their technology and license it to other companies, earning money for themselves and speeding up innovation for the other party. Because they are behind the technology used to create the technology seen by consumers, few consumers know of Applied Materials even though it is the largest supplier of equipment to the semiconductor industry. In fact, Applied Materials claims that 60% of tablet PC components are manufactured using their equipment. Is that awesome or what?

However, I feel that Applied Materials could use more publicity, since they are the real driving force behind the current smartphone and tablet boom. Given that their equipment is used to manufacture 60% of tablet PC components, surely some publicity can do more good than harm to a company like Applied Materials?

Related articles: http://newsroom.intel.com/community/intel_newsroom/blog/2011/01/31/intel-completes-acquisition-of-infineon-s-wireless-solutions-business
http://techcrunch.com/2010/08/30/intel-acquires-infineons-wireless-solutions-business-for-1-4-billion/
http://www.businessweek.com/technology/content/nov2009/tc20091115_692400.htm
http://www.appliedmaterials.com/about/company
http://www.technologyreview.com/tr50/appliedmaterials/


===Impressions===
To be honest, I did not know about Intel's Mobile Communications division before embarking on this learning journey. The Intel most people know about would be the processor division, and to a lesser extent its networking and solid state drive products. However, after researching the predecessor of Intel Mobile Communications, Infineon Wireless Solutions, I feel that Intel made a good choice since they bought over almost all the technology required to assemble a mobile phone, which leads me to believe Intel might break into the smartphone or tablet industry with products from its acquisition as well as its own technology.

I had heard of Applied Materials before this learning journey, but I was not really clear about what it did and where its products were. I also did not understand how they could be such a large MNC with almost no presence in the consumer market. After research, I know that most of their technology does appear in consumer technology, just that it is marketed under another company which licensed their technology or that its technology played a part in the consumer products we see today.


===Science principles===
I think that Intel uses the concept of optics which its GPS products use to communicate with satellites. It also uses chemistry in order to get silicon, as well as the various metals used in semiconductors to behave in a certain way under certain circumstances. Electrical conductivity is also used as the metals used cannot conduct too much nor too little current when a current is passed through them.

Applied Materials on the other hand also uses optics in order to develop its solar photovoltaic products and flat panel displays. It also uses chemistry in its semiconductor division, where it manufactures machines that carry out the primary steps in making semiconductors. It also uses the concepts of thermal physics in its energy division to manufacture solar panels.


===Project ideas===
After learning about Intel, I feel that a project about life at Intel could be possible, since it is a company that is dedicated to research and development, it might take months or years to invent and refine a new product, and finding out from the engineers what the feeling of success is when they finally release a product is a viable project.


===Expectations===
I hope to learn from both companies the current trends in the computing industry as a whole and how their products can revolutionalise the industry. I also want to learn more about their work ethics and how a typical day at each company might go. Learning about the entire manufacturing process from research to production is an item on my list as well, since most people only know about the end result and not the starting point.