PRESS RELEASE

Zyvex joins BSAC

Richardson, Texas (August 2002)

Zyvex joined the Berkeley Sensor & Actuator Center (BSAC) in August 2002. BSAC is a NSF/Industry/University cooperative research center funded by the National Science Foundation and a consortium of corporations and government agencies. The laboratory is located in the Electrical Engineering department of the University of California at Berkeley.

Many of BSAC’s active projects are aligned with the micro-assembly related research work in the Top Down group at Zyvex. BSAC is developing technology for microrobots, microassembly, and integrated microsystems in research programs such as the ‘Smart Dust’ and ‘Microphotonics’ programs. Zyvex will leverage the pioneering MEMS processing at BSAC developed for these programs into its own microassembly and integrated microsystems research. As a result, the BSAC students receive a direct insight into industrial applications and the commercialization of their research efforts.

“Zyvex is very pleased to have joined the Berkeley Sensor & Actuator Center,” said John Randall, PhD, Chief Technical Officer and Vice President of Research at Zyvex. “We feel that the technology being developed at BSAC is very important and well-aligned with our interests. This association, along with Berkeley professor Kris Pister’s membership on Zyvex’s Scientific Advisory Board, strengthens our relationship with this prestigious academic institution. We look forward to a long and productive relationship with BSAC.”

Since its foundation in 1986, BSAC has been devoted to research on sensors and miniature moving mechanical elements or MEMS (MicroElectroMechanical Systems) that take advantage of the remarkable progress made in integrated-circuit technology. BSAC researchers fabricate most of their devices in the UC Berkeley Microfabrication Laboratory.

George D. Skidmore, PhD, Manager of Zyvex’s Top Down Assembly Group, and Kris J. Pister, PhD, from BSAC, are the principals for the collaboration.

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