Free online course focusing on semiconductors and microelectronics through the NSF I-Corps program is now available.
The National Science Foundation (NSF) Innovation Corps (I-Corps) program is offering a four-week hybrid course for researchers in semiconductor, microelectronics, and advanced materials fields. This program, which is open to faculty, postdocs, Ph.D. and master's students, undergraduates, and community-based startups, aims to bridge the gap between advanced scientific research and commercialization in cutting-edge technology domains.
The course, sponsored by the NSF and hosted by Syracuse University and the University of Rochester, is part of the Interior Northeast I-Corps Hub (IN I-Corps). It will run from September 18 to October 15, with virtual sessions making up the course format. The application deadline is July 23, 2025.
Participants can access $5,000 to attend the RE+ Conference (Sept. 8–11, 2025, Las Vegas), providing a platform to showcase innovations and network with industry stakeholders. Successful teams may advance to the national NSF I-Corps Teams Program, with grant funding of $50,000 available for further technology development and commercialization efforts.
Teams selected to participate may receive up to $5,000 in travel reimbursement. The course's focus is on emerging areas critical to the next generation of semiconductor innovation, including advanced lithography, transistor miniaturization, artificial intelligence hardware, high-power materials, 3D integrated circuits, system-on-chip integration, computing chips that mimic neural architecture, big data, machine learning, and conventional semiconductor design and manufacturing.
Participants will develop skills in customer discovery and market validation, receive mentoring from experienced industry and innovation leaders, and will have access to a network of customers, investors, and industry experts. The course is beneficial for anyone interested in the research, design, commercialization, and supply chain associated with these industries.
Interested individuals can apply by August 20. The course offers a free opportunity for an in-person immersion experience at SEMICON West, North America's premier microelectronics conference, which takes place in Phoenix, Arizona, from October 7-9. Conference attendees include executives, engineers, startups, and policy leaders shaping the future of chips.
For more information and application details, interested individuals can contact Epiphany Munoz at [email protected] or visit the NSF I-Corps program page at Binghamton University. This hybrid I-Corps course is part of NSF’s broader effort to foster innovation and commercialization in the semiconductor and microelectronics industries.
- This hybrid I-Corps course, organized by the National Science Foundation (NSF) and held at Syracuse University and the University of Rochester, focuses on education-and-self-development, particularly in science and technology, as it aims to bridge the gap between advanced scientific research and commercialization in cutting-edge technology domains, such as artificial intelligence hardware and big data.
- Participants in the NSF I-Corps program can expect to learn skills in customer discovery and market validation, gain mentorship from industry leaders, and have access to a network of customers, investors, and experts in the semiconductor and microelectronics industries, thereby fostering their own educational-and-self-development and contributing to the broader commercialization efforts in these sectors.
