John C. Simcik,
III
Master Instructor
Texas State Technical College - Waco
Educational path
I've acquired degrees at Fairleigh Dickinson and
Brooklyn Polytechnic Institute, but the degree
I use the most is the Laser Optics degree and
Electronics degree from Texas State Technical
College.
Special training
for nanotechnology
The programs at Texas State Tech are pretty intensive
as it is, lasers is one step smaller than nano
– so studying lasers will lead you into nanotechnology.
Why did you choose
the field of nanotechnology?
Everybody in the past has been hiring PhDs and
people with masters degrees because they need
the fine measurement techniques that you don't
find in most technology programs. However, schools
like ours now offer classes that teach these techniques
(a lot of laser classes, semiconductor manufacturing
classes) that lead toward the tools and knowledge
needed for nanotechnology. If they get an associate
degree in electronics, semiconductor manufacturing,
or in chemistry – that would lead them into a
four-year degree.
How did you first
get into nanotechnology?
The grant I am working on right now is what essentially
got me into nanotechnology, but we've been teaching
courses in thin films for years, which is sort
of a vanguard for the nanotechnology field. It
was the first thing people were able to manufacture
on a fine scale. I got into thin films because
of Bell Laboratories in New Jersey, where I used
to work.
What is it like
to work in nanotechnology?
Very exciting. There is so much that can be accomplished
with this technology.
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