Last night, Her Majesty Queen Máxima attended "Quantum for Everyone", a special event held in celebration of World Quantum Day. Hosted in the Grote Kerk on the Oude Markt, the event made quantum physics accessible to a broad audience.
Twente will become the center of a global revolution in photonics with the development of New Origin, an advanced production facility for photonic chips.
His Majesty the King paid a working visit to the University of Twente's MESA+ NanoLab in Enschede today. The visit was all about integrated photonics, from idea through research to product.
The Netherlands will have a European pilot plant for photonic chips. This future generation of chips will process information with light instead of electrons. A total of 380 million euros in public investment has been made available for this project by Europe and eleven participating countries, which participate in the Chips Joint Undertaking for this project. Twente will receive a significant share, a mega-boost for chip technology in Twente.
The microchip sector is of great importance. For our phones, cars, and devices in the home. But also for medical equipment and industry. Twente is home to a relatively large number of companies and scientists who are at the forefront of the development of chip technology.
A group of high-tech companies in East Netherlands and the MESA+ NanoLab of the University of Twente are strengthening their collaboration. This is symbolised by the recently signed facility-sharing agreement, which includes new arrangements. Representatives from LioniX, Bronkhorst, and UNeedle signed the deal on behalf of all companies using the NanoLab.
Demcon has partnered with TNO and the University of Twente to accelerate low-energy modulation of silicon nitride (SiN) photonic chips.
From 1 January 2024, Rob Legtenberg will hold the position of Director NanoLab at the MESA+ Institute. With Rob's appointment to this new position, MESA+ is working on further improving the (inter)national position of the NanoLab and shaping the future of groundbreaking research and innovation.
The Executive Board of the University of Twente has appointed prof.dr.ir. J.W.M. (Hans) Hilgenkamp as the new scientific director of the university’s MESA+ institute. This position has been held in duo by Albert van den Berg and Guus Rijnders since February 2018. Hilgenkamp, professor of applied physics and nanotechnology, will take over starting 1 February 2024. The appointment is for a period of four years.
Getting your doctor’s degree with the names on it of both the University of Twente and the University of Münster (WWU), after you did research in both university labs: this will be possible now that the Rectors and responsible Deans of both universities signed an agreement.
The University of Twente is one of the partners of a new European consortium on quantum computing, called QLSI (Quantum Large Scale Integration with Silicon). The partners aim at the development of quantum bits based on silicon technology. Silicon has the advantage of a mature manufacturing technology with advanced upscaling properties.
September 2020: During the annual MESA+ meeting, three milestones were celebrated. Thirty years ago Prince Claus of The Netherlands opened the first MESA Lab, the cleanroom facility that is now the High Tech Factory. Twenty years ago, the Centre for Materials Research of the university was added to MESA, resulting in the new name ‘MESA+’. And ten years ago, Crown Prince Willem Alexander, opened the new MESA+ NanoLab on the campus.
February 1, 2018: Prof. Dr. Albert van den Berg and Prof. Dr. Guus Reijnders jointly become the new scientific directors of MESA+. The appointments represent the start of a more finely tuned task for this internationally renowned institute, one that focuses on driving cross-disciplinary research and engaging in cooperative projects with external partners.
November 2015: The Nanolab celebrates its fifth birthday. In those five years, the Nanolab has become a scientific and commercial succes. In that time, the Nanolab has facilitated at least 120,000 hours of research, yielded over 2,000 publications, 295 theses and 29 patents. More figures can be found here.
May 16, 2013: The High Tech Factory, situated in the old MESA+ building, opens its doors. The former laboratory complex has been transformed into a shared production facility for micro- and nanotech based products. Companies established in the High Tech Factory have almost 5,000 square metres of cleanroom, laboratories and office space at their disposal.
November 5, 2010: Nearly twenty years after his father opened the MESA institute, the brand new MESA+ Nanolab is opened by His Royal Highness Prince Willem-Alexander. The new building is the largest nanotechnology research facility in the Netherlands.
January 2007: construction of the new Nanolab building starts on the campus of the University of Twente. The new cleanroom has a surface area of 1250 square metres and is built according to extremely strict specifications in order to prevent unwanted contamination from the outside environment.
January 1, 2007: Prof. Dr. Dave Blank is appointed as the new scientific director of MESA+. His predecessor David Reinhoudt retires nine months later. He receives the University of Twente's Medal of Honor for his many achievements as a scientist and director.
January 2003: The University of Twente starts a new Master Programme Nanotechnology. The two-year programme focuses on the design, creation and study of functional materials, structures, devices and systems by directly controlling matter on the nanometre scale.
1999: Research group Electronics, Optics & Materials (CMO) joins the MESA institute, joining the existing groups who are focused on sensors, actuators and microsystems. The addition of the new group is signified with a new name: MESA+.
Jan 15, 1999: Prof. Dr. David Reinhoudt becomes the new scientific director of MESA when his predecessor and co-founder of the institute Jan Fluitman retires. Fluitman gives a farewell interview in the UT News (in Dutch).
December 1990: The MESA Institute is founded in 1990. It is the first formal interfacultary research institute at the University of Twente and Prof. Dr. Jan Fluitman is its first director. The institute moves into a new building in front of the EL/TN (Hogekamp) building. The institute was formally opened on December 12, 1990, by His Royal Highness Prince Claus of the Netherlands.
May 1984: The S&A lab is opened on the 6th floor of the EL/TN building (now called Hogekamp). The lab of 280 m2 is used by staff and students of several research groups. It features a thin-film laboratory, a photolitography facility and a simple MOS-line for making sensors in silicium technology
June 1981: The University of Twente formally announces its intention to found a Sensors & Actuators (S&A) lab. Prof. Dr. Jan Fluitman, who would later become the first director of MESA (at that time without the +), is part of the committee that initiates the new laboratory.