Commercial applications for flexible and hybrid electronics (FHE) are rapidly emerging. Major markets, from automotive, aerospace and military to healthcare, displays and smart packaging, are utilizing flexible and hybrid sensors and wearables in cutting-edge products.

2020 FLEX/MSTC, organized by SEMI-FlexTech, will be highlighting the latest advancements and research in the field beginning Feb. 24-27 at the DoubleTree by Hilton in San Jose, CA. 

Melissa Grupen-Shemansky, executive director, SEMI-FlexTech, said that 2020 FLEX/MSTC could be one of the most successful conferences yet.

“Based on the current registration figures, we expect 2020 FLEX/MSTC to be one of our largest audiences ever,” Grupen-Shemansky reported. “We are sold out in terms of booth space and wish we had more. The exhibits area should be extremely active as we have invited many Silicon Valley companies to visit to see the latest in flexible and printed electronic solutions, as well as MEMS and sensors.”

Grupen-Shemansky said that she is seeing an inflection point in the FHE industry and that will be front and center at FLEX 2020.

“Flexible displays and truly flexible wearable products are emerging,” she added. “FHE and printed technologies are allowing designers and engineers to fashion conformable products, which promise to transform consumer and industrial electronics.

“At this year’s event, you will see a broader spectrum of technologies critical to new FHE product introductions such as design, manufacturing and test,” Grupen-Shemansky said. “At this inflection point, we are seeing more of the other elements of the product life cycle as well, like manufacturing developments and new product applications.

“Perpetual R&D is a MUST to stay on the leading edge,” said Grupen-Shemansky. “FLEX 2020 will bring leading-edge developments and premier technologists front and center.

“There is concerted development effort underway to make chip-scale packaged or non-packaged silicon devices extremely thin and more robust. This is a combination of device packaging and PCB subsystem integration, opening up the opportunity for traditional OSATs and EMS companies to populate this new arena from either side,” she added.

“Additive or semi-additive processes are emerging – enabling faster cycle times and quickly customizable subsystems. Although there is more work to be done, particularly on high-performance interconnects, products are using a blend of traditional technologies (like copper flex) and new advances (like ultra-thin flexible silicon and printed conductors and dielectrics) to bring flexible solutions to the market now.
The manufacturing sector is taking notice with flexible PCB outsource services cropping up and thin flexible integrated battery manufacturers emerging to power wearable devices and mobile sensor systems,” Grupen-Shumansky concluded.

Grupen-Shemansky noted that this year’s theme is “See the Future with 20/20 Vision.”

“This is what the event will bring to the attendees,” she added. “It remains a space to talk technology with the technical experts who are there for the program and are out on the show floor and in the TechTalks area.

“There are so many ways to learn about the latest developments at FLEX,” she added. “The networking is always critical as collaborators connect on the next steps. Student papers will remain a highlight – it is always wonderful to see the next generation of ideas and research directions.”

The MEMS & Sensor Technical Congress (MSTC) will again be co-located with FLEX. Carmelo Sansone, manager of SEMI-MSIG (MEMS & Sensors Industry Group), noted that this year’s focus for MSTC is on technology innovation affecting the MEMS and sensors value chain from manufacturing to end product to solution.

“We have four main sessions at MSTC that align with high-interest topics specified by our industry committee,” Sansone added. “The first focuses on emerging manufacturing innovation for MEMS and sensors, with a spotlight on how essential it is to continue innovating (and automating) the manufacturing process. This session also addresses methods of improving process efficiency and creating new types of sensor technology.

“The next always-popular session explores end-user demand in specific markets, including automotive/mobility presented by McKinsey and Lumentum; energy harvesting by Cirtec Medical; and a biological information network overview by Cardea Bio. These are always thought-provoking and level-setting,” Sansone added. “The session titled ‘IOT – from components to solution” will provide a great overview of what type of end-user applications MEMS and sensors enable now and will enable in the near future. This session focuses on industry trends and new applications for sensors – whether MEMS-based or not.

“The panel discussion featuring venture capitalists, investors and start-ups promises to be exceptionally insightful,” Sansone concluded. “This session will explore the dynamics affecting startups when they are in the process of rolling out new products and seeking funding.”

FLEX/MSTC 2020
The conference begins Monday, Feb. 24 with a session on Diversity—Women in Tech and FLEX/MSTC Welcome Reception. The full conference begins with FLEX/MSTC Session 1: Keynotes on Tuesday, Feb. 25. After introductory remarks by SEMI Americas president Dave Anderson, SEMI president and CEO Ajit Manocha will discuss “Sensors, MEMS and FHE: Going Beyond Smart to Realize Imagination.”

Zachary Bolton, head of R&D, North America, Systems & Technology, Continental Corporation, will then discuss “Consumer Applications Driving Smart Mobility Use Cases.” He will be followed by Antti Vasara, president and CEO, VTT Technical Research Centre of Finland Ltd., who will offer insights into “Beyond Flexible Hybrid Electronics: Biodegradable Electronics and Interfacing Bio+Electronics.”

FLEX/MSTC Session 2: Keynotes will start with “The Art of the Possible,” presented by Michael Wiemer, VP of engineering, CTO and co-founder of Mojo Vision. Next up is Zhenan Bao, K.K. Lee Professor of Chemical Engineering, and by courtesy professor of chemistry, materials science and engineering, Stanford University, will offer thoughts on “Skin-Inspired Electronics.” Co-moderators Melissa Grupen-Shemansky of SEMI and Stephen Whalley of Microtech Ventures will then lead a Panel Discussion featuring all of the Keynote speakers.

Grupen-Shemansky said the keynote speakers should all be terrific.

“In terms of individual speakers, it is really difficult to single out individual ones, as all have value to the bigger picture – our electronics industry is so very complicated,” Grupen-Shemansky said. “The keynotes usually set a great tone for the event and get referenced frequently throughout. They will be followed by a panel discussion designed to draw out more observations on the impact of these technologies on broader trends, as well as challenges that still exist on the integration roadmaps.”

The conference breaks into a series of concurrent sessions. FLEX Session 3: FHE Applications, will have insights from Benjamin Leever, technical director for manufacturing technology, Air Force Research Laboratory; John Rogers, senior electrical engineer, The Boeing Company; Michael Mitchell, electrical engineer, The Boeing Company; Gregory Whiting, associate professor, University of Colorado Boulder; and Wei Wu, principal investigator at DuPont.

FLEX Session 4, Materials, will be discussed by Shenqiang Ren, professor, The State University at Buffalo; Morten Lindberget, VP business development, CondAlign AS; SAFI-Tech CTO Ian Tevis; Niveditha Nagarajan, applications engineer, MacDermid Alpha Electronics Solutions; and Nizamidin Jappar, marketing manager, Kimoto Tech.

FLEX Session 4, Displays & Optoelectronics I, will be analyzed by Robert Poser, director of product management, Plastic Logic; FlexEnable Ltd. CEO Chuck Milligan; E Ink Corporation CTO CC Tsai; Antonio Facchetti, CTO and founder, Flexterra; and Erica Montbach, manager, R&D, Kent Display.

MSTC Session 3, Industry Trends and Applications of MEMS & Sensors, will feature talks by Carmelo Sansone, director of MEMS and Sensors Industry Group, SEMI; Dr. Armen Mkrtchyan, senior engagement manager, McKinsey; Andrew Kelly, director of applications engineering, Cirtec Medical; Dr. Brett Goldsmith, co-founder and CTO, Cardea Bio, Inc.; and Angela Suen, director of automotive product line management, Lumentum.

Wednesday, Feb. 26, opens with FLEX Session 6’s Power segment, and will be lead by Elaine Lee, research engineer, Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory; Joe Fleming, assistant professor, Coventry University; Pradeep Lall, MacFarlane Endowed Distinguished Professor and director, Auburn University; and Brian Zahnstecher, principal, PowerRox.

Substrates & Barriers are the topics for FLEX Session 7. Speakers include Takatoshi Abe, technology research manager, Panasonic; Joey Mead, interim associate dean for Graduate Studies, University of Massachusetts, Lowell; Matthias Fahland, Fraunhofer Institute for Organic Electronics, Electron Beam and Plasma Technology FEP; and John Olenick, president, ENrG Incorporated.

FLEX Session 8 will feature Displays & Optoelectronics II, with presentations by Jennifer Colegrove, CEO and principal analyst, Touch Display Research Inc.; Joonhyuk Cho, chief of R&D center/director (CTO), exax Inc.; Michael Hack, VP of business development, Universal Display; and Neil Bolding, technical manager, Seamless Integration of Automotive Displays.

MSTC Session 4, Emerging Manufacturing Innovations for Sensors and MEMS, will be featured throughout the morning. Speakers will include Michelle Bourke, senior director of strategic marketing, Lam Research Corporation; Dr. Boyi Hao, senior process engineer, Lam Research Corporation; Angela Franklin, customer support manager, Okmetic; David Horsley, co-founder, Chirp Microsystems, Inc.; Dr. Thomas Kenny, professor, Stanford University; Amit Lal, interim CEO, professor, Geegah LLC/Cornell University; and Dr. Shenqiang Ren, professor, mechanical engineering, The State University of New York at Buffalo.

FLEX Session 9 covers Sensors and will feature Gregory Otto, professor, University of Rhode Island; Sheng Xu, assistant professor, University of California, San Diego; Michael Brothers, technical program manager, UES Inc./711th Human Performance; and Nathan Pretorius, printing technology engineer, NextFlex.

FLEX Session 10: Printing Technologies, will have talks by Zheng Cui, director, Printed Electronics Research Center; Dr. Reinhard R. Baumann, professor emeritus, TU Chemnitz, Carolyn Ellinger, GM, printed electronics VP, Kodak PE Tech, LLC, a subsidiary of Eastman Kodak Company; and Xiangyang Liu, research council officer, National Research Council Canada.

After lunch, FLEX Session 11 will cover Reliability—Characterization, and have talks by Dr. Yi Zhou, student at Georgia Institute of Technology; Wudyalew Wondmagegn, associate professor, The College of New Jersey; Benjamin Stewart, graduate research assistant, Georgia Institute of Technology; and Robert Malakhov, graduate student, University of New Mexico.

After lunch, FLEX Session 12 will feature talks on FHE Medical/Wearable Applications. Presentations will be given by Steven Lin, RD director, Advanced Semiconductor Engineering; GE Research’s Azar Alizadeh; Dr. Arsalan Alam, researcher from the University of California, Los Angeles; Ahyeon Koh, assistant professor, Binghamton University; and James Turner, research scientist, Binghamton University.

FLEX Session 13 features State of the Art FHE Manufacturing, with talks by Art Wall, director of fab operations at NextFlex; Sai Avuthu, lead advanced technology engineer, Jabil; John Williams, associate technical fellow, Additive Electronics Manufacturing (AET)The Boeing Company; Enid Kivuti, technology director, Sheldahl, a Flex Company; Jeffrey Morse, roll-to-roll fabrication director, University of Massachusetts, Amherst; and Weifeng Liu, technologist/manager, Flex.

Reliability – Metrology will be covered in FLEX Session 14. Presenters will include Rakesh Kumar, VP of technology, Specialty Coating Systems, Inc. and IEEE; Naotsugu Ando, chief designer, YUASA System; Eric Forsythe, program manager, NextFlex Flexible Hybrid Electronics Manufacturing Institute/US Army Research Laboratory; Kalsi Kwan, additive electronics engineer, The Boeing Company; and Pradeep Lall, MacFarlane Endowed Distinguished Professor and director, Auburn University.

On the MSTC side, Session 5 will focus on IoT—From Components to Solutions. Speakers will be Dr. Nicole Kerness of Kionix; Dr. Matteo Fusi, product marketing manager, sensors and actuators, STMicroelectronics; Tzeno Galchev, product marketing manager, MEMS Technology Group, Analog Devices; and Lambdazen CEO Sridhar Ramachandran.

After the break, FLEX Session 15: Heterogeneous Integration of Flexible Electronics, will feature Brian Berland, CTO, ITN Energy Systems; Prashant Agrawal, program manager, imec; Doug Hackler, president and CEO, American Semiconductor; Casey Grenier, materials scientist, Northeastern University; and Nagarajan Palavesam, research associate, Fraunhofer EMFT & Technische Universität Dresden.

FLEX Session 16: 3D Printed Electronics: From Devices to Systems, will offer talks by Laura Ramu, printed electronics tech lead, Parsons; Douglas Schardt of Komori Corporation; Rhul Raut, director, strategy and technology acquisition, MacDermid Alpha Electronics Solutions; Bawa Singh, EVP for technology and corporate development, MacDermid Alpha Electronics Solutions; and Feras Alkhalil, principal scientist and director of R&D, PragmatIC.

FLEX Session 17: Manufacturing USA, will feature Melissa Grupen-Shemansky, CTO and FlexTech executive director, SEMI; Malcolm J. Thompson, executive director, NextFlex; Nicholas Usechak, AIM photonics government program manager, US Air Force Research Laboratory; Mary Clare McCorry, director of technology & process development, ARMI; and Alexander (Sasha) Stolyarov, CEO, AFFOA.

MSCT Session 6 focuses on VC (Investors) & Startups, with an introduction by Steve Whalley, managing director, Microtech Ventures, and presentations by Dr. Maryam Ziaei, co-founder, CEO, iSono Health; Dr. Natalie Wisniewski, founder, Profusa Inc.; Dr. Kevin Shaw, CTO/founder, Algorithmic Intuition; Marc Alexander, founder and CEO, Motusi; Dr. Breanne Everett, CEO, president, and co-founder, Orpyx Medical Technologies; Dr. Yvonne Lutsch, investment principal, Robert Bosch LLC; Laura Oliphant, VC investor, independent board director, and principal, Serendibite Partners; Dr. Kurt Petersen, Band of Angels; Rajesh Ramanujam, investment manager, Applied Ventures; and closing remarks by Carmelo Sansone director of MEMS and Sensors Industry Group, SEMI.

Afterward, the FLEXI Awards and Student Poster Awards will be presented.

Thursday, Feb. 27, the closing day, features four concurrent Tech Courses covering FLEX/MSTC:

• Lab to Fab: A Framework and Case Studies – Robert Praino COO and co-founder, Chasm Advanced Materials; Asad Khan, CEO, Kent Display; Scott Gordon, new business development manager, DuPont Teijin Films; Michael McCreary, chief innovation officer, E Ink Corporation, Dalen Keys site leader and development manager;
• Applying Artificial Intelligence, Machine Learning, and Deep Learning in Smart Electronics Manufacturing – Sang Won Yoon, associate professor, Binghamton University;
• Power Optimization Enables the Deployment of 1T Sensors on Flex – Brian Zahnstecher, principal, PowerRox; Pierre Lohrber, business unit manager, Würth Group; and Kenneth Blecker, research engineer, Army PREES;
• The Rise of Smart Sensor: ML at the Edge – Mahaveer Jain, senior staff engineer STMicroelectronics, and Denis Ciocca, staff applications engineer, STMicroelectronics.

One major change is that the conference moved to San Jose this year.

“Many attendees encouraged us to move the event to San Jose to make it easier for visitors from Silicon Valley to see the exhibits and attend sessions,” said Grupen-Shemansky. “These visitors include integrators and those evaluating flexible hybrid (FHE) components, sensors and new processing tech – and the benefits this technology brings in terms of size and cost-savings to new product designs. We are pleased to see the attendance numbers reflecting the input we received, with the attendee registrations for the event at their highest point we have seen in our 19-year history. If we stay on this pace, we expect to exceed 600 attendees. We are feeling the excitement build for the event and can’t wait for the opening.”

For more information on FLEX2020, see FlexTech’s web site at flex.semi.org.