ME-EM Graduate Seminar Speaker Series

proudly presents:

Craig Friedrich, PhD

Michigan Technological University

Abstract: During the 1980’s, the field of MEMS emerged as a spinoff of the semiconductor industry. MEMS used lithographic processes to develop electromechanical components and systems primarily in silicon. However, silicon has many disadvantages as a material for mechanical systems. During that time, the alternative fields of mechanical micromachining and eventually nanofabrication emerged for materials with applications including automotive, thermal systems, biotechnology, medical implants, and a wide range of consumer products, to name a few.

This talk will introduce microfabrication without lithography for direct micromachining and manufacturing, biotechnology for chemical sensing and cochlear implants, and the path to better orthopedic implants with enhanced bonding to bone and antibacterial properties. The thrust of the talk is to show how the fundamentals of mechanical engineering can be applied to a broad range of applications and industries.

Bio: Dr. Craig Friedrich is a Professor in the Department of Mechanical Engineering – Engineering Mechanics and Director of the Multi-Scale Technologies Institute at Michigan Technological University, where he is also the Robbins Chair of Sustainable Manufacturing. Dr. Friedrich received the PhD from Oklahoma State University in 1987 and the BS and MS in 1978 and 1981, from Louisiana Tech University, and is a Fellow of the ASME. Prior to joining the faculty at Michigan Tech, Dr. Friedrich was Associate Director of the Institute for Micromanufacturing at Louisiana Tech. His teaching and research interests are in micromanufacturing processes, precision engineering, and emerging nanotechnologies. Dr. Friedrich holds patents in bionanotechnology sensing and enhanced orthopedic implant nanotextured surfaces.