Meet the Instructors
Meet the Instructors
Ralf Bandorf
born 1973, studied Physics at Friedrich-Alexander University Erlangen/Nuremberg, Germany and received his diploma in 1998. His work focused on preparation of metastable ironsilicides and phase characterization by LEED. In 1998 he joined Fraunhofer IST for his PhD thesis. Ralf Bandorf received his PhD in Mechanical Engineering in 2002 from Fraunhofer IST / Carolo-Wilhelmina Technical University Braunschweig, Germany. His thesis focused on sub-micron tribloogical coatings for electromagnetic microactuators. Ralf continued at Fraunhofer IST as a scientist, specifically as Project leader in Group Micro and Sensor Technology with a Focus on PVD and PACVD coatings. He worked in the field of plastic metallization for flexible circuits, piezoresistive materials (especially based on DLC), electrical conductive and insulating coatings as well as magnetic thin films. In 2007, he became Head of Group “Sensoric Functional Coatings” and since 2015 he has been Head in Group “PACVD and hybrid processes” at Fraunhofer IST. His focus is on PACVD with different excitation, plasma sources, hollow cathode processes, especially gas flow sputtering, and HIPIMS.
Ralf Bandorf is internationally recognized expert in the field of HIPIMS. He was session chair of the HIPIMS session at ICMCTF, US from 2009-2012. He has served as assistant TAC Chair at the Society of Vacuum Coaters since 2009. Ralf is the conference Chairman of the International Conference on Fundamentals and Applications of HIPIMS and Action Chair of the COST Action MP0804: Highly ionized pulse plasma processes (HIPP processes, 2009-2013), a European scientific networking activity gathering experts worldwide in the field of HIPP plasmas, especially HIPIMS.
Ralf Bandorf is the instructor for the following courses:
C-338 Application of Reactive Sputtering
C-343 From Basic Aspects to Industrial Components and Applications in HIPIMS Technology
C-333 Practice and Applications of High Power Impulse Magnetron Sputtering
C-310 Sputtering
Hana Baránková
is Professor at the Uppsala University and Research leader of the Plasma group at the Angstrom Laboratory. She is manager/director of several energy related projects/centers. She received her PhD in Electronics and Vacuum Technique from the Czech Academy of Science. Her primary interests are development of plasma sources and processes, innovation in coating technology, and plasma treatment of surfaces, gases and liquids. She has published over 160 scientific papers and conference contributions and holds several industrial patents on plasma systems. She is an inventor of metastable assisted deposition and co-inventor of the Linear Arc Discharge (LAD) source, the Magnets-in-Motion concept in plasma sources and Fused Hollow Cathode and Hybrid Hollow Electrode Activated Discharge (H-HEAD) cold atmospheric plasma sources. Hana Baránková has been serving 6 years on the SVC Board of Directors, and as TAC Chair of Emerging Technologies and organizer of Atmospheric Plasma Technologies session over the years. She is Secretary of SVC, Chair of the Student Sponsorship Committee, TAC Chair of the Coatings for Biomedical and Environmental Applications, co-organizer of Heuréka sessions and member of the Education, Strategic Planning and International Relations, Committees. Hana is 2006 Mentor Award recipient for the development of numerous novel plasma sources. She acts as a consultant and is a co-founder of two companies, BB Plasma HB and BB Plasma Design AB.
Hana Baránková is the instructor for the following courses:
C-306 Non-Conventional Plasma Sources and Methods in Processing Technology
C-324 Atmospheric Plasma Technologies (half day)
C-210 Introduction to Plasma Processing Technology
Ladislav Bárdos
is Professor at Uppsala University in Sweden and Research leader of the Plasma group at the Angstrom laboratory. He received his PhD in 1978 from the Czech Acad. Sci. and a Doctor of Science degree from Charles University in Prague in 1995. In 1984 he was awarded the Czechoslovak State Prize for outstanding research results in the plasma deposition of thin films. He has more than 25 years of experience in the field of applied plasma physics and thin films. He has published over 200 scientific papers and conference contributions, designed several plasma sources for industry and has 15 Czech, 7 Swedish and several international patents. He runs a consulting company in plasma sources and processing technology. His primary interests are microwave plasmas, including downstream ECR and surface-wave generation, and particularly the radio frequency generated hollow cathodes and hybrid sources at both low and atmospheric pressures. Lad Bardos is Program Chair for 2009 and 2010 SVC TechCons, is currently serving on the SVC Board of Directors and is TAC chair of a special session Heuréka at the SVC TechCon and a member of the SVC Publications and Strategic Planning Committees.
Ladislav Bárdos is the instructor for the following courses:
C-210 Introduction to Plasma Processing Technology
C-324 Atmospheric Plasma Technologies (half day)
C-306 Non-Conventional Plasma Sources and Methods in Processing Technology
Rob Belan
Graduated from Rutgers University with a BS in Physics and took graduate courses in Physics at City College of NY. Has worked in Vacuum Science since 1982 specializing in magnetron sputtering and other PVD techniques. He is currently the Technical Director at the Kurt J. Lesker Company and has lectured at many universities and companies across the world in PVD techniques and thin film growth.
Rob Belan is the instructor for the following courses:
VT-230 Design and Specification of Vacuum Deposition Systems
Abe Belkind
has 15 years of research and development experience in industry and more than 30 years in academia. From 1981 to 1996 he was a Lead Scientist for BOC Coating Technology, where he investigated and developed vacuum and plasma technologies for the deposition of thin film coatings. From 1996 to 2005, he was an Adjunct Professor in the Department of Chemical, Biochemical and Materials Engineering and later in the Department of Physics and Engineering Physics at the Stevens Institute of Technology in Hoboken, NJ. In 1997, he created a successful consulting company, now called A. Belkind & Associates, LLC. He is an expert in various technologies for depositing and designing metal alloy, oxide, carbide, nitride and other thin films; plasma surface cleaning and treatment; and methods of film analysis. He has received 10 patents, published a book, and written more than 100 technical papers. Dr. Belkind is the recipient of a BOC Group Technology award and two awards from the Latvian Academy of Science.
Abe Belkind is the instructor for the following courses:
C-207 Evaporation as a Deposition Process
Dr. Christopher Berndt
Chris Berndt graduated in 1977 with a BAppSc. in Metallurgy. His PhD was earned in the Materials Engineering Department of Monash University in mid-1981. His higher doctorate, DEng, was awarded in 2014. Chris was invited to apply for a position at Stony Brook University, NY-USA in 1989 and was promoted to Full Professor with tenure in 1995. Berndt remains as an Adjunct Professor at Stony Brook University as well as being appointed to the Adjunct staff of the Indian Institute of Technology - Ropar. He moved to Swinburne University of Technology in late 2007 as the founding Professor of Surface Science and Interface Engineering. He was elevated to University Distinguished Professor in March 2014.
Berndt’s professional interests gravitate around manufacturing; especially in the area of protective coatings. He was inducted into the Thermal Spray Hall of Fame in 2007. He was the President of Thermal Spray Society (an affiliate of ASM International) in 2002 through to 2004. He was appointed as a Trustee (the Board of Directors) of ASM Int. (aka “the American Society of Materials”) for 2005-2008. Berndt became the Vice-President of ASM Int. and progressed to President in October 2011.
Berndt is a Member of 10 professional societies in the materials, mechanical, manufacturing and bioengineering fields. Berndt is an Honorary Life Member of The Australian Ceramic Society.
Berndt’s major discipline areas are “Materials Engineering” and “Manufacturing Engineering” with a sub-disciplinary expertise in the topics of ceramics, biomaterials, thick coatings, and thermal spray technology. Berndt is especially proud of his students and post docs who have achieved professional prominence and earned good lives over the past 35 years.
Dr. Christopher Berndt is the instructor for the following courses:
C-280 Thermal Spray Technology
Necmi Biyikli
Dr. Necmi Biyikli received his PhD degree in Electrical Engineering from Bilkent University, Ankara, Turkey in 2004, focusing on high-performance III-nitride optoelectronic devices. After his post-doctoral research at Virginia Commonwealth and Cornell University in the fields of III-nitride epitaxy and RF-MEMS, he joined his home institute as an assistant professor. Within 7 years, his team became one of the leading research groups in plasma-assisted atomic layer processing, with significant contributions in III-nitride material growth and templated functional nanostructures. In 2017, he joined the Electrical and Computer Engineering Department of the University of Connecticut, where he currently established and leads his Atomic Layer Engineering Laboratory. Dr. Biyikli’s research was funded by 9 external grants with more than 1.1 million USD cumulative research funding from national and international funding agencies as PI and Co-PI. Being a member of the AVS and MRS, Dr. Biyikli co-authored more than 120 peer-reviewed journal articles and 250 conference presentations. He is the recipient of 2010 Marie Curie – International Reintegration Grant Award and 2013 Parlar Foundation Research Incentive Award. Dr. Biyikli’s current research concentrates on plasma-ALD synthesis of wide and ultrawide bandgap semiconductors, phase-change compound layers, effective encapsulation materials for flexible and implantable electronics, and area-selective ALD for ultrasensitive chemical sensing.
Necmi Biyikli is the instructor for the following courses:
C-316 Introduction to Atomic Layer Deposition (ALD) Processes, Chemistries, and Applications
Pamela Boling
Pamela Boling has a Bachelor’s Degree in Physics from UC Berkeley (’95) and a J.D., magna cum laude, from Washington University in St. Louis (2011). She is a patent attorney, having passed the California bar in 2011 and the patent bar in 2012. She is also a co-founder and officer of Grauling Research, Inc., which provides support for optical thin film companies and other technical industries such as semiconductors. Pamela has spent more than 25 years in the optical coating thin film industry, having worked as an engineer in the field at SOLA Optical, Laser Optik, and Deposition Sciences, Inc. for many years before acquiring a law degree. Her combination of technical, business, and legal experience provides a broad and unique perspective of the industry.
Pamela Boling is the instructor for the following courses:
B-120 Introduction to Patents and Trademarks
Clark Bright
was a Senior Staff Scientist and Group Technical Leader with 3M Corporate Research Laboratory for thirteen years, before retiring, and in 2013 founding a consulting practice - Bright Thin Film Solutions LLC. At 3M he developed roll-to-roll coated, vacuum deposited, organic and inorganic multilayer thin film products for optical, transparent conductive, barrier and other applications. Previously, he was Vice President at Presstek, Inc., and Delta V Technology subsidiary, where he directed the R&D of transparent conductive oxides (TCO), barrier coatings and polymer multilayer (PML) technology. While Director of Product Development at Southwall Technologies, he led teams developing sputter deposited transparent low e and solar control coatings, transparent conductive metal and oxide coatings, and durable conductive (ITO) multilayer antireflection coatings on plastic film. He served 12 years on the Board of Directors and was President of the Society of Vacuum Coaters (SVC). In 2009, he received the SVC Mentor Award, and the Nathaniel Sugerman Award in 2012. He has presented, as an invited, keynote and plenary speaker, at many domestic and foreign conferences. He has published numerous papers on optical thin films, and transparent conductive coatings, including book chapters on transparent conductors in "Transparent Electronics: From Synthesis to Applications" (Wiley, 2010), and "Optical Thin Films and Coatings, from Materials to Applications" (Woodhead, 2013), (second edition, Elsevier, June 2018). He is inventor or co-inventor on 34 U.S. patents in the field.
Clark Bright is the instructor for the following courses:
C-332 Zinc Oxide-Based and Other TCO Alternatives to ITO: Materials, Deposition, Properties and Applications
C-304 ITO and Other Transparent Conductive Coatings: Fundamentals, Deposition, Properties, and Applications
C-337 ITO and Alternative TCO: From Fundamentals to Controlling Properties
Brett Buchholtz
As the cofounder and current owner of Plasma Process Group, an ion beam systems, sources, and components company in Windsor Colorado, Brett Buchholtz is an industry recognized leader in ion beam technology. Brett completed his master’s degree at Colorado State University where he studied under Dr. Paul Wilbers, focusing on Electron Propulsion Systems (ion engines for space propulsion, cool stuff). Brett went on to work at Ion Tech, a Fort Collins, Colorado company that was an early leader in ion beam technology. Following the acquisition of Ion Tech by Veeco Instruments in 1999, Brett moved on and founded Plasma Process Group.
“It’s a small group and we all have to be experts in ion beam systems, sources, and their associated processes. I enjoy the challenges and being on the front line of the most advanced thin film technology in the world,” commented Brett when asked about his motivation and passion for ion beam technology.
His background includes an extensive knowledge of ion beam systems, associated hardware (substrate handling, target assemblies, ion optics/grids, etc.), as well as a limitless amount of process and applications knowledge.
Brett Buchholtz is the instructor for the following courses:
C-240 Fundamentals of Ion Beam Sputtering
Tom Christensen
Tom Christensen is a Professor in the Department of Physics at the University of Colorado at Colorado Springs. He received his B.S. in physics from the University of Minnesota in 1979 and his M.S. and Ph.D. degrees in Applied Physics from Cornell University. After several years at Sandia National Laboratories in Albuquerque he joined the University of Colorado faculty in 1989 where he has served as Department Chair, Dean and Provost. He has worked with vacuum technology, thin film technology and surface characterization since 1980 and has taught local AVS or SVC short courses since 1992.
Tom Christensen is the instructor for the following courses:
C-322 Characterization of Thick Films, Thin Films, and Surfaces
Jean-Pierre Deluca
Retired from LACO Technologies in 2019, he recently started his own consulting Company (www.bdlredwood.com). Holds a bachelor’s degree in science (Electrical Engineering) from Century University NM.
He has over 39 years of experience in the leak testing afield (helium mass spectrometry, hydrogen, pressure decay, vacuum decay and mass flow). He has worked in numerous roles for leak instrument and leak testing equipment manufacturers, specifically as a product manager, applications engineer, international leak detection director and finally vice president of sales. He has extensive experience and expertise in many industries including, automotive, medical, pharmaceutical, refrigeration and air conditioning, semiconductor, aerospace and defense, vacuum industry and assisted thousands of customers with their leak testing applications and projects. Additionally, he has audited hundreds of leak testing equipment/systems and helped customers to improve functionality, reliability, test quality and reduced cycle time.
JP has written many technical articles and contributed to many others. He has presented over 500 training classes at customers facilities and trade shows.
Jean-Pierre Deluca is the instructor for the following courses:
VT-240 Practical Elements of Leak Detection
Dr. Gary Doll
Gary Doll is the Timken Professor of Surface Engineering at the University of Akron. Prior to joining the University of Akron, Dr. Doll was the Chief Technologist of Tribology at the Timken Company, and Staff Scientist of Physics for General Motors Research Laboratories. Dr. Doll was elected as an ASM Fellow in 2009, and as an STLE Fellow in 2016 for his contributions to the field of Surface Engineering. He is a member of the SVC, STLE, ASME, and the ASM International organizations, and is an associate editor for Tribology Transactions. In 2016, he was awarded a Distinguished Fellowship by the Royal Academy of Engineering. Over his career, Dr. Doll has published over 300 articles and book chapters, edited numerous proceedings, and received more than 25 US Patents.
Dr. Gary Doll is the instructor for the following courses:
C-329 Properties and Applications of Tribological and Decorative Coatings
Arutiun P. Ehiasarian
joined the Nanotechnology Centre for PVD Research at Sheffield Hallam University, UK in 1998 where he obtained his PhD in Plasma Science and Surface Engineering. His research within NTCPVD has concentrated on development of plasma PVD technologies for substrate pretreatment prior to coating deposition to improve adhesion, deposition of coatings with dense microstructure, low-pressure plasma nitriding and hybrid processes of plasma nitriding/coating deposition. He has experience with cathodic vacuum arc discharges, dc and pulsed magnetron discharges, and radio-frequency coil enhanced magnetron sputtering. He utilizes plasma diagnostics such as optical emission spectroscopy (OES), electrostatic probes, energy-resolved mass spectroscopy and atomic absorption spectroscopy. Materials characterization includes high-resolution TEM, STEM, STEM-EDS, SEM, and XRD as well as mechanical testing available at NTCPVD. Arutiun is one of the pioneers of high power impulse magnetron sputtering (HIPIMS) technology and his work in the field has been acknowledged with the R.F. Bunshah Award (2002), the TecVac Prize (2002) and the Hüttinger Industrial Accolade. In 2011 he received the AVS Peter Mark Memorial Award as a top young investigator, and in 2012 he received the SVC Mentor Award. He is an author of more than 50 publications, 10 invited lectures, 3 patents and 1 book chapter in the field of PVD and HIPIMS.
Arutiun P. Ehiasarian is the instructor for the following courses:
C-333 Practice and Applications of High Power Impulse Magnetron Sputtering
C-323 Fundamentals of High Power Impulse Magnetron Sputtering (HIPIMS)
John Fahlteich
born 1981, graduated from the University of Leipzig with a diploma in physics in 2005. In 2010, he earned a PhD from the Technical University of Chemnitz with a thesis about a detailed characterization of vacuum deposited permeation barrier layers. In total he has now 9 years of experience in the field of permeation barriers and encapsulation of flexible electronics. John is currently working as senior scientist and expert for permeation barriers at Fraunhofer Institute for Electron Beam and Plasma Technology FEP. Up to today he published over 30 papers, conference contributions and patents as well as one book chapter in the field. He represents the Fraunhofer FEP as leading member in several organizations dealing with flexible electronics encapsulation such as the organic-electronics association and the Flexible Electronics Encapsulation Technologies Cluster in Dresden, Germany.
John Fahlteich is the instructor for the following courses:
C-336 Transparent Gas Permeation Barriers on Flexible Substrates
John T. Felts
John Felts has worked in thin film technologies for 35 years and holds over 35 patents on plasma vacuum equipment, processes and products. He is the founder of Nano Scale Surface Systems, Inc. (ns3) in 1995 and serves as the CEO. Ns3 provides toll coating services and licenses coating technology and equipment for plastics packaging, medical devices, semiconductors and sports equipment as well as source technology for nano composite materials. Ns3 has also developed and commercialized SiO2 coatings for the interior surfaces of bottles and other 3D shapes. Mr. Felts has spearheaded the technology development and commercialization of PECVD processes for large-scale industrial applications including existing SiO2 roll coating production equipment currently producing glass coated PET and BON films for the flexible packaging industry. Mr. Felts served as an SVC instructor, a member of the Board of Directors and as the President from 2002-2004. Mr. Felts was also one of the founding members of the SVC Foundation.
John T. Felts is the instructor for the following courses:
B-101 Creating a Business from your Idea, Product or Service
J. R. Gaines
J.R. Gaines is the Technical Director of Education for the Kurt J. Lesker Company, (Jefferson Hills, PA). The Lesker Company is a global scientific equipment manufacturer supplying materials and tools for vacuum-enabled innovation. Gaines has more than 40 years of experience in the research, development and commercialization of advanced materials technologies including superconductivity, semiconductors, cryogenics, space simulation, energy generation, energy conversion and storage. His experience includes vacuum systems, thin film deposition, inorganic chemistry, nanotechnology and advanced ceramic processing. He currently develops and delivers the Company’s many educational programs through Lesker University teaching events.
J. R. Gaines is the instructor for the following courses:
M-210 Introduction to Solid-State Thin Film Batteries
Holger Gerdes
graduated from the Technical University in Braunschweig with a diploma in Physics in 2004. Afterwards, he was Research Fellow at the Institute of Micro Production Technology (IMPT) at the Leibniz University, Hannover. Since 2008, Holger has worked as a project leader in the group “Highly Ionized Plasmas and PECVD” at the Fraunhofer Institute for Surface Engineering and Thin Films IST. One of his main topics is the development of reactive processes especially in combination with HIPIMS (High Power Impulse Magnetron Sputtering).
Holger Gerdes is the instructor for the following courses:
C-338 Application of Reactive Sputtering
Timothy Gessert
Timothy Gessertis the Principal and Managing Member of Gessert Consulting, LLC, and Adjunct Professor at University of Illinois at Chicago. Tim is also a retired Principal Scientist, formerly at the National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) in Golden, Colorado. He received degrees in physics from University of Wisconsin-River Falls (B.Sc.), Colorado School of Mines (M.Sc.), and University of Wales - College of Cardiff (Ph.D). His 30+ years of research at NREL included leading the Device Development and Fabrication Team, and the Thin-Film Photovoltaic Devices Research Group. Research activities have included development of vacuum and photolithographic processes, transparent-conducting oxides, photovoltaic absorber layers, and related electrical contacts. His present research is directed at understanding how choices in processes and device design affect the ultimate performance, stability, and other application aspects of polycrystalline and crystalline photovoltaic devices. Tim has more than 240 publications, more than 10 issued US Patents, is a Fellow of the American Vacuum Society, and serves as Associate Editor for the journal Thin Solid Films.
Timothy Gessert is the instructor for the following courses:
V-212 Vacuum System Design
C-342 Thin Film Photovoltaic Solar Cells
V-209 Fundamentals of Vacuum Technology and Vacuum Gauging
V-210 Pumps Used in Vacuum Technology
V-211 Vacuum Hardware and Vacuum Leak Detection
David A. Glocker
Dr. David Glocker has more than 35 years’ experience in thin film research, development and manufacturing. He spent 15 years in the Eastman Kodak Research Labs, where he was the group leader of a team responsible for scaling vacuum coating and surface treatment processes from the laboratory into production. In 1993 he founded Isoflux Incorporated to design and manufacture inverted cylindrical magnetron cathodes and develop processes based on their unique features. Customers use the company’s products in R&D and in manufacturing for applications as varied as medical devices, power transmission and sensors. He’s an inventor or co-inventor on 32 U.S. patents and has published a number of research papers in the areas of sputter source design, plasmas and plasma characteristics, sources of substrate heating in sputtering, and the control of sputtering processes and sputtered film properties. He retired from Isoflux in 2015.
David A. Glocker is the instructor for the following courses:
C-208 Sputter Deposition for Industrial Applications
Jeremy M. Grace
Jeremy M. Grace is currently a principal engineer at Idex Health & Science | Semrock, where he works in the area of thin-film interference filters for life sciences and other applications. Prior to his position at Semrock, he was a senior principal scientist at the Eastman Kodak company, where he worked in the areas of plasma surface modification, thin-film adhesion, sputter deposition, and organic vapor deposition. As a young scientist at Kodak, Jeremy learned DOE principles, and he has applied them in his work for the past 25 years. His experience has provided him knowledge and perspective that have helped him to mentor scientists and engineers in the application of DOE principles. Most recently, he presented a tutorial on DOE to fellow engineers at Idex Health & Science. Jeremy has written several patents and journal articles in the area of plasma modification of polymers. He is a member of the Society of Vacuum Coaters and the American Vacuum Society, and served as chair of the Upstate New York Chapter of the AVS (UNY-VAC) from 1998-2000.
Jeremy M. Grace is the instructor for the following courses:
C-314 Plasma Modification of Polymer Materials and Plasma Web Treatment
M-120 Design of Experiments for R & D
Dr. James A. Greer
Dr. James Greer obtained his Ph.D. in Physics studying negative ion beams produced via a sputtering process. He spent 11 years at the Research Division of Raytheon Corporation where he was involved in the fabrication of high-performance Surface Acoustic Wave Devices. While at Raytheon Dr. Greer designed and built a number of thin film deposition systems for several R&D groups. One of these tools was the world’s first large-area Pulsed Laser Deposition system. Dr. Greer left Raytheon to further develop Pulsed Laser Deposition and formed PVD Products, Inc. for that purpose. Since 1996, Dr. Greer has been involved in the fabrication design and advancement of a variety of thin film processes including Pulsed Laser Deposition, magnetron sputtering, electron beam evaporation, IBAD, etc. He holds over 12 patents and has published a number of research papers in the areas of PLD, SAW devices, thin films, and Orthopedics. Currently he is the President of PVD Products.
Dr. James A. Greer is the instructor for the following courses:
C-250 Introduction to Pulsed Laser Deposition
Lars Haubold
Lars Haubold graduated in Manufacturing Engineering at the University of Applied Sciences Dresden, Germany in 2002. For more than 15 years he does contract R&D at Fraunhofer USA in the area of vacuum thin film deposition and diamond-like carbon materials in particular. His projects cover the entire range from feasibility studies to industrial commercialization.
His current position is Manager of Coatings Technology Group at Center for Coatings and Diamond Technologies. He has been a SVC member since 2007 and instructor at the annual conference since 2017.
Lars Haubold is the instructor for the following courses:
C-320 Diamond Like Cardon Coatings-From Basics to Industrial Realization
Jeffrey D. Hettinger
earned a Ph.D. in Physics from Boston University, spent five years at Argonne National Laboratory, and is currently a Professor and former Chair of the Department of Physics and Astronomy at Rowan University in Glassboro, NJ. His research has included the synthesis and characterization of thin film coatings for more than 30 years. Though his research roots were established in thin film superconducting materials, he currently works on materials for “on-chip” energy storage, such as thin-film ultracapacitors, and biomedical coatings, such as bactericidal and neurostimulation electrode coatings. Most of the research has involved coating synthesis using reactive magnetron sputtering techniques.
Jeffrey D. Hettinger is the instructor for the following courses:
C-270 Coatings, Thin Films and Surface Solutions for Biomedical Applications: An overview of market trends, synthesis and characterization
James N. Hilfiker
graduated from the Electrical Engineering Department of the University of Nebraska in 1995, where he studied under John Woollam. His graduate research involved in-situ ellipsometry applied to both sputter-deposition and electrochemical reactions, and optical characterization of magneto-optic thin films. He joined the J.A. Woollam Company upon graduation, where his research has focused on new applications of ellipsometry, including characterization of anisotropic materials, liquid crystal films, thin film photovoltaics, and Mueller matrix optical characterization. He has authored over 50 technical articles involving ellipsometry, including Encyclopedia articles and four book chapters on topics as varied as Vacuum Ultraviolet Ellipsometry, In-Situ Spectroscopic, and Dielectric Function Modeling. In 2015, James co-authored a book titled “Spectroscopic Ellipsometry: Practical Application to Thin Film Characterization."
James N. Hilfiker is the instructor for the following courses:
M-102 Introduction to Ellipsometry
Patrick E. Hopkins
is the CSO and co-founder of Laser Thermal, Inc, a company in based in Charlottesville Virginia that has commercialized thermal conductivity measurement systems that provide non-contact metrologies for thermal properties of thin films, coatings and bulk materials. The mission of Laser Thermal is to provide accessible thermal measurements of materials, focusing on thin-film thermal conductivity with nanoscale resolution. By utilizing optical technologies, Laser Thermal provides simple, accurate, and rapid measurements of thermal properties, leading to increased customer knowledge of material properties.
Patrick is also a Professor in Department of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering at the University of Virginia, with courtesy appointments in the Department of Materials Science and Engineering and the Department of Physics. Patrick has been on the faculty of UVA since 2011, following a Harry S. Truman Postdoctoral Fellowship at Sandia National Labs. Patrick’s current research interest are in energy transport, laser-material processes and nanoscale and ultrafast processes in condensed matter, soft materials, liquids, vapors and plasmas. Patrick’s group at the UVA uses various optical thermometry-based experiments to measure the thermal conductivity, thermal boundary conductance, thermal accommodation, strain propagation and sound speed, and electron, phonon, and vibrational scattering mechanisms in a wide array of bulk materials and nanosystems.
In the general fields of nanoscale heat transfer, laser interactions with matter, and energy transport, storage and capture, Patrick has authored or co-authored over 275 technical papers (peer reviewed), and has been awarded 5 patents focused on materials, energy and laser metrology for measuring thermal properties. Patrick has been recognized for his accomplishments in these fields via an Air Force Office of Scientific Research Young Investigator Award, an Office of Naval Research Young Investigator Award, the ASME Bergles-Rohsenhow Young Investigator Award in Heat Transfer, the ASME Gustus L. Larson Memorial Award, and a Presidential Early Career Award for Scientists and Engineering, for which Patrick met President Barack Obama in 2016. Patrick is a fellow of ASME and a recipient of an Alexander von Humboldt Fellowship for Experienced Researchers.
Patrick E. Hopkins is the instructor for the following courses:
M-230 Nanoscale heat transfer in thin films and interfaces
Tom Johnson
Tom Johnson is a graduate from the Institute of Technology at the University of Minnesota. He has spent most of his career in the development and sales of sensors, instrumentation and controls. He has worked with NASA Glenn Research Center to commercialize thin film sensors for harsh environments in aerospace and automotive applications. It was through this collaboration that he studied microfabrication techniques, thin film deposition and vacuum maintenance. Tom has been an instructor in the Vacuum Technology Department at Normandale Community College in Bloomington, Minnesota for 6 years. At Normandale, he has contributed to grant work funded by NSF-ATE to develop vacuum technology curriculum and make it accessible by remote classrooms via telepresence and portable training systems.
Tom Johnson is the instructor for the following courses:
VT-220 Practical Guide to Vacuum System Operation Using a Trainer System
Manuela Junghähnel
Received her diploma in Technical Physics in 1998. She is an expert for sputtering processes, thin-film technology and new materials for large-area applications and worked at last as department manager for Sheet-to-Sheet Technologies & Precision Coating in the Division Plasma Technology at Fraunhofer FEP, Dresden, Germany. She has a Doctor of Engineering in the Dept. of Mechanical Engineering from Technical University of Ilmenau, Germany, with research topics focused on pilot scale vacuum coatings on non-flexible and flexible glass, upscaling of processes, development of sputtering processes for high rate deposition on large size substrates, magnetron sputtering, metal and reactive processes, fabrication and development of functional layers and layer stacks, antireflective or antireflective antistatic coatings, transparent conductors, infrared blockers, heat-resistant layers, mirror coatings, other optical coatings, refinement of thin films by ultra-fast thermal annealing, e.g. flash lamp annealing (FLA).
Manuela sated up at Fraunhofer FEP an R&D platform for pilot scale research services on ultra-thin flexible glass for sheet-to-sheet and roll-to-roll processing.
In 2021 she moved to the Fraunhofer Institute for Reliability and Micro Integration IZM and is now responsible for the site management of the All Silicon System Integration Centre (IZM-ASSID) in Dresden, Germany.
Manuela is Emerging Technologies TAC Chair and Past Program Chair of the SVC TechCon, board member of the International Conference on Coatings on Glass and Plastics ICCG, and elected expert of the national network Plasma Germany.
Manuela Junghähnel is the instructor for the following courses:
C-341 Processing on Flexible Glass - Challenges and Opportunities
Dr. Martin Keunecke
Martin Keunecke joined in the Fraunhofer Institute for Surface Engineering and Thin Films (IST) in Braunschweig, Germany in 1998, after university studies in physics and mechanical engineering. He completed his thesis on the development and application tests of tool coatings 2007.
He is responsible for new coating and process development with PVD and PECVD technologies and other surface treatment technologies in the field of friction reduction, hard and wear resistant coatings for tools and components for industrial applications, e.g. diamond-like carbon coatings for automotive applications.
From 2012 till 2015 Martin Keunecke was the head of the department “New Tribological Coatings” at the Fraunhofer IST. Since 2016 he is the head of the group “Tribological Systems” in the “Center for Tribological Coatings” at the Fraunhofer IST.
Dr. Martin Keunecke is the instructor for the following courses:
C-320 Diamond Like Cardon Coatings-From Basics to Industrial Realization
Maja Koblar
Works on electron microscopes at the Center for Electron Microscopy and Microanalysis (CEMM) at Jožef Stefan Institute, Ljubljana, Slovenia. Her webinar is focused on understanding the process and covering the main topics such as vacuum, sample preparation, working principal of an SEM and microanalysis, for students, technicians, scientists working with SEM.
Maja Koblar is the instructor for the following courses:
M-130 Scanning Electron Microscopy Sample Preparation, Image Optimization, and Microanalysis
Robert (Bob) A. Langley
retired from Oak Ridge National Laboratory in 1994 and Sandia National Laboratories in 1999. He has performed research in the fields of atomic and molecular physics, solid state physics, material science, vacuum science and technology, upper atmospheric phenomena, fusion power, and high-energy accelerators and published over 130 scientific papers. He is associate editor of Vacuum Technology and Coating magazine, teaches vacuum related courses for American Vacuum Society and Society of Vacuum Coaters, served on the Board of Directors of the AVS, served as Chairman of the AVS and the IUVSTA Plasma Science Divisions, and consults on vacuum science and technology, and microwave material processing.
Robert (Bob) A. Langley is the instructor for the following courses:
V-208 Basic Ananlysis of Mass Spectrometer Spectra
V-207 Operation and Maintenance of Production Vacuum Systems
Dr. Matthew Linford
Matthew Linford graduated with a B.S. in chemistry from Brigham Young University in 1990 and received M.S. and Ph.D. degrees in materials science and chemistry, respectively, from Stanford University in 1996. While at Stanford he published the first two papers on monolayers on hydrogen-terminated silicon with his adviser Chris Chidsey. By Google Scholar these papers have been cited ca. 800 and 1300 times. After a post-doc at the Max Planck Institute of Colloids and Interfaces in Germany with Helmut Möhwald studying polyelectrolyte multilayers, he worked in industry for three years – one year with a large chemical company and two years with two start-up companies. In 2000, he became a faculty member at Brigham Young University and is now a full professor there. While at BYU, Linford has studied thin film deposition and characterization, new materials for separations science, statistical methods for data analysis, new materials for long-term digital data storage, and the chemomechanical functionalization of silicon. His work in separations science led to the launch of the Flare chromatography column that was sold by Diamond Analytics. His work in data storage led him to co-found Millenniata (now Yours.co), which sells a DVD disc that lasts 1000 years and a Blu-ray disc that will last at least 300. Linford has more than 350 publications, which include peer-reviewed papers, conference proceedings, book chapters, peer-reviewed contributions to Surface Science Spectra, commercial application notes, tutorial articles, and more than 40 patents. He is an editor for Applied Surface Science, an Elsevier journal with an impact factor of ca. 5.0. He is a contributing editor for Vacuum Technology & Coating (VT&C) for which he writes a ca. monthly column on surface and material characterization. He has been an associate editor for Surface Science Spectra since 2003. In 2014 he was made a fellow of the American Vacuum Society (AVS). In 2015 he was named an Alcuin Fellow at Brigham Young University (an award for excellence in teaching). By Google Scholar, his h-index is 40, his i10-index is 118, and his total number of citations is more than 9200.
Dr. Matthew Linford is the instructor for the following courses:
M-110 Introduction to X-ray Photoelectron Spectroscopy
Dr. Allan Matthews
Allan Matthews is a Fellow of the Royal Academy of Engineering and is Professor of Surface Engineering and Tribology in the School of Materials at the University of Manchester, UK. He is also Director of the BP-sponsored International Centre for Advanced Materials (ICAM). He spent his early career in the aerospace industry and carried out research into ion plating processes at the University of Salford before moving to the University of Hull, where he built up the Research Centre in Surface Engineering as Director for over 20 years. He moved the Centre to the University of Sheffield in 2003 and then to Manchester in 2016. His group researches plasma assisted processes, mostly for tribological coatings and diffusion treatments. He is Editor-in-Chief of the Elsevier journal Surface and Coatings Technology, a former member of the SVC Board of Directors and a former Chair of the British Vacuum Council and the AVS Advanced Surface Engineering Division Executive Committee.
Dr. Allan Matthews is the instructor for the following courses:
C-329 Properties and Applications of Tribological and Decorative Coatings
C-308 Tribological Coatings
Georg Mayer
Georg Mayer has been in the business of optics and ophthalmics for 40 years. He started in business management and sales of optical instruments and equipment before acquiring his Dipl. Ing. (M.S.) in Optical Engineering. His thesis work was completed at Rodenstock Optical Works on the scattering of light for high-energy laser coating applications. He remained with Rodenstock in different operational and manufacturing positions until 1991, when he established Optical Coating Technologies PTY Ltd. When the organization was bought by Carl Zeiss Vision SA in 2006, Georg remained as the Director of Coating. In 2008, he returned to Rodenstock and currently serves as Director, Head of International Lab Support. He has a patent, published articles in regular monthly optometric publications, and taught optical dispensing classes at the Cape Technicon (now Cape Peninsula University of Technology). His strong business background, solid engineering know how, and more than 20 years of hands-on production experience provides the basis for Georg’s unique perspective on ophthalmic coatings.
Georg Mayer is the instructor for the following courses:
M-205 The Craftsmanship of Ophthalmic Coatings
Donald J. McClure
founded Acuity Consulting and Training to continue his love affair with vacuum coating and vacuum web coating in particular. Don retired from 3M's Corporate Research Laboratory after spending twenty five years working on a broad range of products and projects that utilized vacuum roll coating and processing. He served the Society of Vacuum Coaters in many roles including President and Secretary. He has offered his courses on the "Basics of Vacuum Web Coating" and "Sputter Deposition onto Flexible Substrates" for many years. His presentation, "A Wizard's Guide to Vacuum and Vacuum Coating," has received rave reviews from attendees. He was the SVC's 2004 Nathaniel Sugerman Award recipient.
Donald J. McClure is the instructor for the following courses:
C-211 Sputter Deposition onto Flexible Substrates
C-204 Basics of Vacuum Web Coating
Jocelyne O. McGeever
Jocelyne has held the top Strategic Marketing role in B2B companies with Engineered Products in various industries, including thin films and coatings. Her experience spans Fortune 500 companies, mid-size firms, Management Consulting and technology start-ups, in technical, Sales and Marketing roles.
As a Management consultant, she has helped clients shape their business strategy. Increase in profit from innovation, shortening in time to market for global companies, and higher business valuation at time of sale have resulted from her implementation of Stage Gate®, presented at SVC TechCon 2011, and market research for product design or new market entry.
She is an expert in commercialization of new technology. She excels at investigating multiple markets and prioritizing the best prospects, then creating, structuring and developing new business opportunities outside the core business, and negotiating win-win partnerships. Her experience spans diverse economic sectors, providing comprehensive knowledge of many industry practices and enables her to identify market opportunities yielding highest value and pricing. Her approach has delivered a 900% price premium and 33% CAGR.
Her considerable experience doing business globally in corporations of all sizes makes her a natural choice to guide expansion overseas or to set up business in the U.S.
She holds a Masters Degree in Materials Engineering from Ecole Centrale de Paris and a MBA with major in Marketing from Northwestern University’s Kellogg School of Management. She is the author of several patents and over two dozen published papers.
Jocelyne O. McGeever is the instructor for the following courses:
B-110 Getting the Most Value out of Marketing without Spinning your Wheels
B-130 Doing Business in the U.S.A.
Dr. Mike Miller
Mike Miller is Test and Process Engineering Manager at Angstrom Engineering Inc. in Kitchener, Ontario. He received his BSc in Chemistry from the University of Windsor in 2009 and his PhD in Chemistry from the University of Windsor in 2012. After graduation, Miller founded Substrata Thin Film Solutions Inc and began teaching Undergraduate Chemistry in 2014.
Dr. Mike Miller is the instructor for the following courses:
C-212 Troubleshooting for Thin Film Deposition Processes
Christopher Muratore
Christopher Muratore is the Ohio Research Scholars Endowed Chair Professor in the Chemical and Materials Engineering Department at the University of Dayton. Prior to joining the University, Professor Muratore spent 10 years as a staff member at the Air Force Research Laboratory and still works closely with multiple flexible electronics groups there. In 2013, he also founded m-nanotech Ltd., a consulting company specializing in thin film materials processing and characterization. Throughout his 20 year research career, Christopher’s work has focused on developing an understanding of how to control structure and properties of thin films and surfaces for diverse applications, and their impact on properties and performance. His research group currently focuses on novel large-scale synthesis of materials for flexible, wearable electronic devices. He has 4 patents, published over 80 peer-reviewed articles and has served as guest editor for Surface and Coatings Technology and Thin Solid Films for five years.
Christopher Muratore is the instructor for the following courses:
C-220 Introduction to Two-Dimensional Materials
M-201 Flexible Electronics
Holger Nörenberg is founder and Managing Director of Technolox Ltd., which specializes in novel permeation measurement equipment. During his time as Academic Director of Research at the University of Oxford, Oxford-Toppan Center, he was responsible for the development of permeation measurement equipment. He has a physics degree from the University of Rostock and worked in Germany, Japan and the UK. He has about 50 scientific and technical publication as well as several patent applications.
Holger Nörenberg is the instructor for the following courses:
C-313 Practical Aspects of Permeation Measurement: From Polymer Films to Ultra-high Barriers (half-day)
John F. O’Hanlon
is Professor Emeritus of Electrical and Computer Engineering, the University of Arizona. He retired from IBM Research Division in 1987, where he was involved in thin-film deposition, vacuum processing, and display technology. He retired from UA in 2002, where he directed the NSF Ind./Univ. Center for Microcontamination Control. His research focused on particles in plasmas, cleanrooms, and ultrapure water contamination. He is the author of A User’s Guide to Vacuum Technology, 3rd edition. (John Wiley & Sons, 2003).
John F. O’Hanlon is the instructor for the following courses:
V-202 Vacuum System Gas Analysis
VT-203 Residual Gas Analyzers: Operation and Use
VT-201 Vacuum Systems, Materials, and Operation
V-204 Vacuum Systems Materials and Operations
Jim Oliver
is founder and owner of Vacuum Innovations, LLC and is a research engineer at the University of Rochester's Laboratory for Laser Energetics. A graduate of the University of Rochester’s Institute of Optics, his work has focused on process design and modeling for precision evaporated coatings. Thin-film uniformity control is of particular interest, having developed advanced distribution models and planetary rotation systems. He also teaches optical coating design at the Institute of Optics as well as at the Institute’s annual thin film summer school program.
Jim Oliver is the instructor for the following courses:
C-334 Manufacture of Precision Evaporative Coatings (full-day version of C-326)
C-326 Manufacture of Precision Evaporated Coatings
Robert Sargent
received his BA in Physics from UC Berkeley and his PhD in Optical Sciences from the University of Arizona. He has 30 years of experience in optical coatings, including 10 years with Optical Coating Laboratory, Inc. and 15 years with Viavi Solutions (formerly JDSU). His industrial experience has included the development of deposition processes and filter designs for applications such as aerospace, biomedical instrumentation, and fiber-optic telecommunications. He currently leads an R&D team at Viavi Solutions developing new optical coating products, serves on the SVC Optical Technical Advisory Committee, and is a member of the SVC Board of Directors.
Robert Sargent is the instructor for the following courses:
C-205 Introduction to Optical Coating Design
George Savva
obtained his Ph.D. from McMaster University, Canada where he studied ceramic/metal interface structures and diffusion paths related to high temperature oxidation. He has also worked in the area of materials for electrical vehicle batteries. His present position is Engineering Manager for Ionbond North America.
George Savva is the instructor for the following courses:
C-320 Diamond Like Cardon Coatings-From Basics to Industrial Realization
Ulrike Schulz
received her diploma in physical chemistry in 1986 and her PhD in 1993 from the University of Jena. Since 1997 she is the head of the research group Coating on Plastics at Fraunhofer Institute for Applied Optics and Precision Engineering in Jena, Germany. She has authored a large number of papers and patents on vacuum coating on plastics and antireflection coatings, among them chapters for the books “Handbook of Plastic Optics” (ed. S. Bäumer) in 2009 and “Optical Thin Films and Coatings” (ed. A. Piegari and F. Flory) in 2013. In 2003 Ulrike Schulz received the “Joseph von Fraunhofer Prize” of the Fraunhofer Society for the development of hard antireflective coatings for plastics. For her research about plasma etching of polymers she awarded the “Research Prize” of Thuringia in 2011.
Ulrike Schulz is the instructor for the following courses:
C-340 Plastic Optics - Coatings and Antireflective Structures
Dr. Venkat Selvamanickam
Venkat Selvamanickam is a M.D. Anderson Chair Professor of Mechanical Engineering and the Director of the Advanced Manufacturing Institute at the University of Houston, Previously, he was the Chief Technology Officer of SuperPower Inc, a former subsidiary of Philips Electronics. He led SuperPower to multiple world-records, the longest thin film superconductor made and first to pilot manufacturing. He led the world’s first significant delivery of thin film superconductor tapes to build a power transmission cable in Albany-NY, which is the world’s first superconductor device in the power grid. At the University of Houston, Dr. Selvamanickam led a highly successful Department of Energy (DOE)-funded program to quadruple the performance of superconductor tapes and is now leading another DOE-funded program on advanced manufacturing of these tapes. Dr. Selvamanickam has published over 260 papers and holds 46 issued U.S. patents and over 80 issued international patents. He is the recipient of the Presidential Early Career Award for Scientists and Engineers from the White House. He has also received three R&D 100 awards, the Superconductor Industry Person of the Year award, Wire and Cable Technology International Award and the IEEE Dr. James Wong Award. Dr. Selvamanickam is a Fellow of IEEE and the U.S. National Academy of Inventors.
Dr. Venkat Selvamanickam is the instructor for the following courses:
M-220 Thin Film Superconductor Tapes
S. Ismat Shah
graduated from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign in 1986 from the Department of Materials Science and Engineering. He worked for the DuPont Company as senior Staff Scientist for 12 years before joining the University of Delaware in 1999, where he has a joint appointment in the Department of Materials Science and Engineering and the Department of Physics and Astronomy. He has been involved in the field of thin films and nanostructured materials for 22 years. He has over 174 publications in the field and six patents awarded. He is the Chair of the SVC Education Committee. He teaches the first on-line course offered by the SVC, in collaboration with the University of Delaware, on Vapor Deposition Processes.
S. Ismat Shah is the instructor for the following courses:
C-103 An Introduction to Physical Vapor Deposition (PVD) Processes
Volker Sittinger
is a senior scientist at Fraunhofer Institute for Surface Engineering and Thin Films (IST) in the Large Area Coating department. He works on magnetron sputtering for photovoltaic applications. Formerly he was a scientific assistant at the Institute of Solar Energy Research GmbH (ISFH). Volker Sittinger received his doctoral degree in optical and electrical characterisation of electrodeposited CuInSe2 solar cells from the University of Oldenburg in 2003 and studied physics at the University of Karlsruhe.
Volker Sittinger is the instructor for the following courses:
C-330 Introduction to Thin Film Photovoltaic Technologies (half day)
Josh Soper
graduated from the United States Military Academy with a BS in Mechanical Engineering and from Norwich University with an MS in Organizational Leadership. He currently serves as the VP of Operations for Vergason Technology, Inc. He has been with VTI since 2015 and oversees all PVD equipment builds and coating services. He is responsible for developing coating recipes (PVD and PECVD) for new applications at VTI including thin films on plastic and pain
Josh Soper is the instructor for the following courses:
C-230 PVD Processing of Plastics for Better Protection, Reflection, and Decoration (Half Day)
Dr. Christian Stein
Christian Stein is a researcher at the Fraunhofer Institute for Surface Engineering and Thin Films in Braunschweig, Germany. He studied physics at the Philipps-University Marburg and graduated in 2008 with a diploma thesis on surface science. Fascinated in transferring research results to application, he completed his doctoral thesis on the development of tool coatings at the Technical University Braunschweig in 2015. His main research interests are hard and wear resistant multifunctional coatings for industrial tools and components and their deposition by PVD and PECVD processes.
Dr. Christian Stein is the instructor for the following courses:
C-320 Diamond Like Cardon Coatings-From Basics to Industrial Realization
Aryasomayajula Subrahmanyam (Manu)
graduated from the Physics Department of Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) Kharagpur in 1980. Joined the Physics Department, IIT Madras in 1982. As a Humboldt Fellow at University of Erlangen, Germany, he has worked on silicon solar cells (1989). Has established a laboratory for metal oxide thin films and surface engineering. Over the past ten years, his research efforts are on bio-medical engineering including the development of lung assist devices (using the principles of photocatalysis) and on early warning systems in mechanical heart valve failures (executed an Indo – European project on mechanical heart valves). Has designed and developed Kelvin probe equipment for surface engineering and authored the first book. Has six patents. His teaching experience spans over 30 years (DAAD Professor at TU Dresden, Germany).
Aryasomayajula Subrahmanyam (Manu) is the instructor for the following courses:
C-339 Mechanical Heart Valve Thrombosis: An Introduction and Review (half day)
Gregory V. Taylor
earned a Ph.D. in Materials Science and Engineering from Rowan University, is a veteran of the United States Air Force, has worked as a contractor for the DHS Science and Technology Directorate, and is currently a postdoctoral scholar at Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory. As a graduate student Gregory researched reactive magnetron sputtering of thin metal oxide electrode coatings for neural interfacing applications and has since broadened his research to include magnetron sputtering of hard coatings such as B4C and DLC in support of the National Ignition Facility initiative of inertial confinement fusion and high energy density applications, as well as time resolved synchrotron-based research and development of high explosives.
Gregory V. Taylor is the instructor for the following courses:
C-270 Coatings, Thin Films and Surface Solutions for Biomedical Applications: An overview of market trends, synthesis and characterization
Gary Vergason
Gary has been working in the PVD industry for over 38 years, from engineering and operations to executive management. His cathodic arc source designs, developed while he was employed by Multi-Arc (IonBond), are still used around the world today. Gary founded Vergason Technology, Inc. (VTI) in 1986 and under his leadership the company has become a leading international supplier of innovative rapid-cycle PVD coating equipment and toll coating services. Gary has served as an SVC instructor, a member of the Board of Directors, served as President from 2016 to 2018 and chaired its first Topical Conference in 2009. He holds several patents in the PVD field and continues to influence this industry.
Gary Vergason is the instructor for the following courses:
C-230 PVD Processing of Plastics for Better Protection, Reflection, and Decoration (Half Day)
C-307 Cathodic Arc Plasma Deposition
Akhil Vohra
Akhil Vohra is a Product Manager at Angstrom Engineering Inc. in Kitchener, Ontario, Canada. He received his M.Sc. in Chemistry from Guru Nanak Dev University in India in 2008. Upon completion of his Master’s degree, he joined Lyallpur Khalsa College as a lecturer of chemistry teaching advanced organic and inorganic chemistry to undergraduate students. In 2011, Akhil moved to Canada to pursue his Ph.D. in Chemistry at University of Windsor. Akhil’s research work was in the field of materials and surface chemistry with special focus on Stretchable and Flexible Organic Electronics. After graduation in 2016, Akhil joined Angstrom Engineering Inc. as a Test and Process Specialist before moving onto his current position in 2018.
Akhil Vohra is the instructor for the following courses:
C-260 Organic Electronics - The Future is Bright
Ronald R. Willey
graduated from the MIT in optical instrumentation, has an M.S. from FIT, and over 40 years of experience in optical system and coating development and production. He is very experienced in practical thin films design, process development, and the application of industrial Design of Experiments methodology. He is the inventor of a robust plasma/ion source for optical coating applications. He worked in optical instrument development and production at Perkin-Elmer and Block Associates. He developed automatic lens design programs at United Aircraft Research Laboratories. He formed Willey Corporation in 1964 and served a wide variety of clients with consulting, development, prototypes, and production. In 1981 he joined Martin Marietta Aerospace and was Director of the Optical Component Center where he was responsible for optical fabrication, coating, and assembly. He joined Opto Mechanik in 1985 where he was responsible for the development of all new technologies, new instruments, and production engineering. He was a Staff Scientist at Hughes Danbury Optical Systems. He holds four patents and has published many papers on optical coating design and production, optical design, and economics of optical tolerances. He has published books on optical thin film coating design and production since 1996. His recent books are “Practical Design of Optical Thin Films”, 4th Ed. (2014) and “Practical Production of Optical Thin Films,” 2nd Ed. (2012) He is a fellow of the Optical Society of America and SPIE and a past Director of the Society of Vacuum Coaters. He now is a consultant in the above-listed technical and forensic areas. Here he is concentrating on teaching optical thin film design and production, and also aiding clients in process development and improvement.
Ronald R. Willey is the instructor for the following courses:
C-214 Thin Film Deposition Optimization
C-216 Practical Design of Optical Thin Films
C-217 Practical Production of Optical Thin Films
C-218 Advanced Design of Optical Thin Films
Mike Simmons
Michael Simmons is President of Intellivation, LLC, a vacuum coating equipment manufacturing company he founded in 2009. Since 2009, Intellivation has grown into one of the leading companies providing Roll to Roll vacuum coating systems and process support. Mike's extensive background in plasma processing and equipment continues to be enhanced by the installation of a R2R Lab system at Intellivation which has enabled Mike and Intellivation to become vacuum process knowledge leaders in the industry. Process knowledge includes a wide range of sputtering technologies as well as other PVD techniques. Mike is responsible for designing, manufacturing and installing a wide variety of equipment over the past 15 years, from production vacuum deposition R2R tools to R&D systems, and automation machinery. Roll to roll vacuum deposition is the primary focus for Mike and his team, as exemplified by Intellivation's innovative R2R series product line. He is a Board of Director of Society of Vacuum Coaters (SVC), SVC Instructor for Web Coating, past Chair of AIMCAL's Vacuum Web Coating Committee, an active member of AVS and continuously supports the vacuum community through multiple initiatives. Mike earned his mechanical engineering degree (BSME) from the University of Idaho where he graduated with honors, and is a licensed Professional Engineer. Mike has published multiple technical papers and presented at global conferences on Vacuum Coating Processes, including but not limited to Vacuum Technology and State of the Art Roll to Roll Equipment and Processes.
Mike Simmons is the instructor for the following courses:
C-204 Basics of Vacuum Web Coating