Development, design and construction of the handling module and peripherals for the high-throughput MOVPE reactor for the deposition of III-V semiconductors for solar water splitting

In addition to my master’s degree in mechanical engineering at the University of Bayreuth, I am working as a student trainee at HQ-Dielectrics, which is involved in the H₂Demo project.

Our contribution to the project is the development and construction of the high-throughput MOVPE reactor for the deposition of III-V semiconductors for solar water splitting.

My part is the construction of the handling module. This sits in front of the reactor and is responsible for the rapid exchange of processed wafers and wafers to be processed under vacuum, thereby minimising downtime and ensuring high throughput.

In addition to this, all machine frames and the peripheral media (water, gas, cooling air, etc.) must be planned. This requires a lot of coordination with manufacturers of other assemblies, such as the exhaust gas aftertreatment and the glovebox.

I am also directly involved in the mechanical design. This gives me the incredibly valuable and unusual opportunity to assemble my own design and recognise design weaknesses or errors at first hand. Thanks to my previous knowledge and my training as an industrial mechanic (studies and training as part of the Ulm model), it is possible to quickly develop solutions and implement them in a team.

With the work I have done so far and the work I will continue to do, I am actively contributing to the realisation of a key component for the creation of the demonstrator. I am very grateful for the valuable experience I have gained through the necessary coordination with partners and the development of a highly complex system. The skills I have acquired while working on this project will be very helpful for my upcoming master’s thesis.