Ackermann is currently ARCNL director and also remains Professor at University of Twente, where he previously led the XUV Optics Industrial Focus Group (XUV). His joint chair highlights the importance of advanced lithography research in the academic and industrial landscape of the Netherlands.

Linking the lithography research ecosystem

As ARCNL director, Marcelo Ackermann also becomes a link between academic and industrial partners. His joint chair as professor at UvA and VU strengthens the connection between ARCNL and its founding academic partners.

Having such a faculty position at multiple Dutch universities highlights the value they place on advanced lithography research. ASML and the Netherlands are at the forefront of lithography technology, which is key to producing the computer chips that drive our modern world. Staying ahead of this technology therefore requires a strong link between research and implementation.

“Nanolithography is an incredible feat of cutting-edge physics and engineering,” says Ackermann. “That makes the development of this technology an interesting area for academic research as well as for industry.”

East to west

Already before his appointment as director of ARCNL, Ackermann held a professorship at the University of Twente in Enschede. There, he led the XUV Optics Industrial Focus Group (XUV) within the MESA+ Institute and Department of Science and Technology, which already had a strong focus on industrial-academic research for nanolithography.

Since moving to Amsterdam, one of Ackermann’s goals has been to foster a broader collaboration between researchers working on topics related to nanolithography, both nationally and internationally. In pursuit of this, he arranged for ARCNL to visit his group in Twente, and later this year the XUV group will come to Amsterdam.

A joint inauguration

By creating a faculty chair for the director of ARCNL, founding academic partners UvA and VU reinforce their ties to the further development of lithography technology. Moreover, by keeping Ackermann’s appointment at the MESA+ Institute, the University of Twente also maintains their link to the lithography research ecosystem.

This autumn, Ackermann will give a joint inaugural lecture to commemorate his appointment at UvA and VU.