Microelectronics technology evolution

Projection into the future is of course the goal of all professional education, and we at least mention the microelectronic, food, pharmaceutical, ceramic, and environmental businesses which may be major employers of chemical engineering students. The notion of evolution of technology fi om the past to the future seems to be a way to get students to begin thinking about their future without faculty simply projecting our prejudices of how the markets -will change. 

Given the very high level of technological infrastructure that already exists for these elemental semiconductors because of microelectronics applications, it is not surprising that both these materials were examined early on in the evolution of the field of photoelectrolysis of water. As mentioned in an introductory paragraph, cathodic reduction of the Ge surface is accompanied by H2 evolution.58,559 However, we are not aware of studies under irradiation of Ge electrodes from a HER or OER perspective. The extreme instability of this semiconductor in aqueous media coupled with its low band gap (Eg = 0.66 eV) make it rather unattractive for water photosplitting applications. 

Since the mid sixties there has been a continual evolution in Fourier transform spectrometers which has recently culminated in a very radical expansion in the applications of Fourier transform spectroscopy. This evolution has arisen particularly from the truly remarkable evolution in microelectronic circuitry and computer technology. 

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