EMAP 2004 Enjoys Success in the Pearl of the Orient
Almost 150 participants enjoyed 16 sessions of well researched papers at the 6th Electronic Materials and Packaging Conference (EMAP) in Penang, Malaysia - known as the "Pearl of the Orient." Hosted by the School of Mechanical Engineering, Universiti Sains Malaysia and jointly organized by Universiti Sains Malaysia, the IEEE Components, Packaging and Manufacturing Technology Society (CPMT) and IMAPS, more than 33 presenters from 12 different countries presented 103 papers during the two-day conference, according to Conference Chair Dr. Azidi Ripin.
The conference specifically targeted the research and development work in electronic materials packaging, two important facets of any chip development on top of the integrated circuit (IC) design itself. China, Hong Kong, Korea Singapore, Japan, Taiwan, India, Austria, Germany, Sweden, Netherlands, the United Kingdom and the United States all contributed to the program and Technical Program Co-chairs K.N. Seetharamu and Tech Joo Goh thanked the various electronic industries within Penang and around the world for supporting the conference.
The Chief Minister of Penang, Tan Sri Dr. Koh Tsu Koon, inaugurated the event and praised the conference organizers and attendees for hosting this very timely and relevant meeting in Penang.
"This is not an evolution, but a series of revolutions," said Koon, advising the participants to continue to be on the run to advance technology.
World-class keynote speakers from around the globe included Dr. William Chen, IEEE Fellow, Strategic Director of Region 10, elected CPMT Society Board of Governor member and Senior Advisor, ASE (USA); Prof. Andrew Tay, Director of the Wafer Level Packaging Program for the National University of Singapore, Dr. Mostafa Aghazadeh, General Manager of Platforms Materials Enabling Department (PMED), Intel; and Prof. K.N. Bhat, Microelectronics Laboratory Indian Institute of Technology, Madras, India.
AMD's Dr. Raj Master (Senior AMD Fellow, C4 and Packaging) also delivered a keynote lecture on packaging challenges for microprocessors. Some of the challenges Dr. Master discussed included package choice, performance, cost and thermal issues. Just as the attendees worked to beat the heat on this South Asia Island, both researchers and industry experts alike discussed how to beat the heat in microelectronic products.
The attendees were also treated to a traditional Malaysian dinner during the EMAP banquet, sponsored by the CPMT Society. Traditional drummers entertained the guests, while Ricky Lee, Vice President of CPMT Society Conferences, and Professor, University of Science and Technology (Hong Kong) gave a quick presentation about the CPMT Society and thanked everyone for supporting this very successful conference.
Preliminary work on EMAP 2005 is already underway and is scheduled for December in Tokyo, Japan. EMAP continues to grow both in terms of numbers and paper submission quality, making this conference a key up-and-coming event for microelectronics professionals.