2 years ago

Sam Zeloof, 21, builds homemade semiconductors in his family’s garage in Flemington, N.J. (In his latest video, Zeloof refers to it casually as his “garage fab.”) The Carnegie Mellon University student been doing it since high school, becoming a truly inspiring example of just how far a do-it-yourself spirit can take you. And best of all, he’s documented it all in detailed blog posts and nearly 50 videos uploaded to YouTube, sharing what he’s learned for others who might follow in his footsteps. I hope that my success will inspire others,” Zeloof writes in an early blog post, “and help start a revolution in home chip fabrication.

it took industry years to work out the details of making chips and even with the answer key and years of knowledge in books it is still not trivial!

When the wafer is heated in his high-temperature furnace — over 1,000 degrees C for about 45 minutes — the molecules of phosphorous end up in the etched-in wells.