\u201cLooking at defects in semiconductors and being able to detect them quickly so that we can help the industry is a very important topic,\u201d said Chawla, Purdue\u2019s Ransburg Professor in Materials Engineering<\/a>. \u201cWe\u2019re hoping to accelerate the entire process by using new imaging techniques and faster algorithms.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n The research looks at several aspects of defects, including how they form and if any particular phase of semiconductor packaging is more susceptible to defects during the manufacturing process. Packaging refers to multiple chips that are connected electrically. Advanced packaging aims to revolutionize packaging by enabling complex functionality while reducing cost.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Chawla said the work is broken down into three areas, starting with high-resolution imaging that must be able to see the smallest defects possible. For that, he is working with X-ray imaging and X-ray tomography at the Advanced Photon Source, a DOE Office of Science user facility at Argonne, to create a 3D microstructure of the chip. Once defects are located, the technique works backward through the process to determine where the defects may have initially formed.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The second step utilizes artificial intelligence to make sure the detection technique is quicker and smarter with more efficient algorithms to process the imaging data and ensure automatic defect detection so the manufacturing process isn\u2019t hindered.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cThe third part is to understand which category of defects is going to cause trouble for the chip in the field,\u201d Chawla said. \u201cBy understanding which ones are really going to cause problems in the device, we can catch them in the manufacturing cycle and prevent failures from happening with the customer.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n The team on this project also includes Purdue\u2019s Charles Bouman, the Showalter Professor of Electrical and Computer Engineering and Biomedical Engineering; Greg Buzzard, professor of mathematics; and Hany Abdel-Khalik, professor of nuclear engineering, as well as Francesco de Carlo from Argonne, Erdogan Madenci from the University of Arizona, and Martin Gall from GlobalFoundries.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Purdue\u2019s national leadership in microelectronics and semiconductors is a cornerstone of Purdue Computes<\/a> \u2014 a comprehensive initiative that spans computing departments, physical AI, quantum science and semiconductor innovation. The university\u2019s cutting-edge research, transformational investments in infrastructure and workforce development programs are setting a national benchmark for excellence and spearheading a growing semiconductor cluster in West Lafayette.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Chawla\u2019s research with Argonne is being done as part of the National Science Foundation<\/a>\u2019s Future of Semiconductors program. Chawla said he expects the work to be published as early as the end of the year.<\/p>\n\n\n\n For industry, the technique could offer a new way of handling chip issues for semiconductors.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cThe semiconductor industry is used to taking a defective component and cutting it up, which is very laborious and time consuming, plus then you\u2019ve also lost the part,\u201d Chawla said. \u201cWith a nondestructive imaging technique, we\u2019re hoping to have something to get snapshots of the chip structure as it\u2019s going through the manufacturing process so you know the condition of a component.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n Data from this technique research could lead to future probability uses, such as using the imaging data to help determine the timeframe in which a defect could cause a device like a cell phone to fail.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Purdue University is a public research university leading with excellence at scale. Ranked among top 10 public universities in the United States, Purdue discovers, disseminates and deploys knowledge with a quality and at a scale second to none. More than 106,000 students study at Purdue across multiple campuses, locations and modalities, including more than 57,000 at our main campus locations in West Lafayette and Indianapolis. Committed to affordability and accessibility, Purdue\u2019s main campus has frozen tuition 14 years in a row. See how Purdue never stops in the persistent pursuit of the next giant leap \u2014 including its integrated, comprehensive Indianapolis urban expansion; the Mitch Daniels School of Business; Purdue Computes; and the One Health initiative \u2014 at https:\/\/www.purdue.edu\/president\/strategic-initiatives<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n![\"A](\"https:\/\/www.purdue.edu\/newsroom\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/semiconductor-chipdefects.jpg\" "\\"\\"")
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