GIKI MEMS Lab: Architects of Tiny Machines

Abstract

The case describes the dynamics faced by Dr Shafaat Bazaz, a foreign faculty member hired by the Higher Education Commission (HEC) of Pakistan, in establishing a state-of-the-art research lab at Ghulam Ishaq Khan Institute (GIKI), a premier engineering institute in Pakistan. The lab specialized in designing tiny micro electro-mechanical systems (MEMS). During five years of untiring efforts, the lab produced both skilled human resources in MEMS technologies and a number of cutting-edge technologies (devices) comparable to, and even surpassing, specifications of similar products developed in other countries. The efforts contributed significantly in the introduction and launch of a new industry in Pakistan. The case also highlights the numerous entities that Shafaat interacted with while producing a continuous stream of funding for meeting bare-minimum operational needs of the lab, amidst other challenges, while bearing a perpetual opportunity cost himself. At the time of writing this case, MEMS lab had acquired the capability of offering commercial design services to companies in the Americas and Europe. At the same time, it was engaged in research collaborations with various international institutions for development of new technologies. The potential of producing revenues through commercial activity could be utilized for further development of the MEMS lab and its research potential and resources. However, any future decision on commercializing activity was dependent on Shafaat’s own future, which was uncertain due to possible devolution of HEC in 2011 (as he was an HEC-hired foreign faculty working at GIKI). Shafaat had to decide what the future held for MEMS lab and for himself.

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Resources

Exhibit 1. Rankings of Top 20 MEMS Device Manufacturers in 2009 with the US Company MEMSCAP, Which Dr Bazaz Has Used for the Fabrication of His MEMS Chips, at Number 15 (the Figures for the Sales Are in Millions of Dollars)

Figure

Source: ‘Status of the MEMS industry, 2010 Edition’. Yole Development. Retrieved from http://www.i-micronews.com/reports/Status-MEMS-Industry/159/ (accessed on 10 July 2012)

Exhibit 2. Graphical Illustration Depicting the Forecasted Growth of the Market According to the Major MEMS Devices

Figure

Source: ‘Status of the MEMS Industry Report—September 2010’. Yole development. Retrieved from http://www.i-micronews.com/reports/Status-MEMS-Industry/159/ (accessed on 10 July 2012)

Exhibit 3. Size Growth and Forecast of China’s MEMS Market, 2005–11

Exhibit 4a. Status of India’s Semiconductor Design Industry and Forecast

Figure

Exhibit 4b. Distribution of India’s Semiconductor Design Services according to Market

Figure

Source: “Study on semiconductor design, embedded software and services industry”, Executive Summary. Available at http://isaonline.org/ISA-DIT_report_on_semiconductor_design_2011/ISA-DIT_report_on_semiconductor_design_2011.html (accessed on 10 July 2012)

Exhibit 5. Illustration Depicting the Designing and Virtual Testing of MEMS Contents

Figure

Source: ‘Bringing MEMS to the IC Design Flow’. EE Times. Retrieved from http://www.eetimes.com/design/eda-design/4199412/Bringing-MEMS-into-the-IC-design-flow?pageNumber=3

Exhibit 6. Profiles of Prominent Members GIKI MEMS Lab’s Team (Shorten)

Dr Shafat A. Bazaz

Dr Shafaat Bazaz was an engineer who had specialized in a triad of the fields of computers, mechanics and electronics. He had graduated with a Bachelors of Engineering degree in Electronics Engineering from the NED UET in 1989. For a good part of the 1990s, Dr Bazaz was based in France, first completing his MS in Computer Sciences, then his PhD in electrical engineering. Soon after being awarded a doctorate, he commenced his teaching career in Denmark Technical Institute, where he established his first MEMS design lab in 1999. As a Senior Staff Scientist at CMC Microsystems in Canada, Dr Bazaz developed a research infrastructure in MEMS and microfluids 1 for twenty-two Canadian universities which enabled their students to design and test MEMS components virtually and without having them fabricated.

Dr Rana Iqtidar Shakoor

Dr Shakoor was a senior engineer in the National Institute of Lasers and Optronics (NILOP) that came under the Pakistan Atomic Energy Commission (PAEC). A fellowship was awarded to him in 2004 by HEC, Pakistan, to carry out his MS–PhD studies. He received his MS and PhD degrees in Materials Engineering from PIEAS, in 2006 and 2010 respectively. During his PhD, he spent six months each at MEMS Lab at Queens University, Kingston (Ontario, Canada) and Nanoscale System Integration Group at Southampton University, UK in 2007 and 2009 respectively. During his MS–PhD studies, Dr Shakoor extensively worked on design, modelling and FEA-based simulation of MEMS devices using IntelliSuite MEMS design software. He actively participated in establishing the first MEMS and semiconductor devices test facility at PIEAS. Microgrippers made from PolyMUMPs and designed in GIKI, Pakistan, were successfully tested and characterized using the PIEAS test facility. In 2010, he was working towards setting up a MEMS device fabrication facility at NILOP. Dr Bazaz was his PhD dissertation supervisor and credited him with being the pioneer of MEMS research and development in Pakistan.

Muhammad Bilal Sai

Mr Bilal Saif was a research associate/lecturer as part of the Faculty of Electronic Engineering at GIKI towards the end of 2010. Mr Saif completed his Masters in 2009 from Ghulam Ishaq Khan Institute of Engineering Sciences and Technology (GIKI). During his time as a master’s student at GIKI, Mr Saif also performed the duties of a teaching assistant. He had received a BSc (Honours) degree from UET, Taxila. Mr Saif was responsible for carrying out virtually all of the design work for the electronics of the microgripper MEMS device while being assisted by a few undergraduate and graduate students. He was preparing for his PhD studies in MEMS from Germany in June 2012.

Abid Iqbal

Mr Abid Iqbal obtained MS in Electronic Engineering from GIKI and BSc in Electrical Engineering from UET, Peshawar, in June 2010 and July 2008 respectively. During his MS studies at GIKI, he was part of the MEMS design lab and was responsible for creating designs for the accelerometer chip. He also worked as a teaching assistant to Dr Bazaz and conducted labs for courses that included introduction to MEMS design. In 2011, he spent six months research internship at Hong Kong University to test MEMS-based oscillator.

Muhammad Mubashir Saleem

Mr Mubasher Saleem obtained MS in Electronic Engineering from GIKI, and BSc in Electrical Engineering from UET, Lahore, in June 2010 and July 2008 respectively. During his MS studies while under the tutelage of Dr Bazaz, Mr Saleem developed a comprehensive optimization methodology for the performance enhancement for a MEMS-based gyroscope that used twin rotating masses for enhanced stabilization. His area of expertise also included inertial sensors that are used in both the MEMS accelerometer and gyroscope devices. Presently, he was pursuing his PhD studies in Italy in the area of MEMS.

Muhammad Shuja Khan

From 2007 to 2009, Mr Muhammad Shuja Khan was engaged in working towards his MS in Electronic Engineering from GIKI that was covered by an HEC indigenous fellowship, while also serving a role in the MEMS lab. He also worked as a teaching assistant for courses related to electronic circuits and MEMS that were taught to undergraduate students. As a member of the GIKI MEMS lab team, Mr Khan was instrumental in creating designs for the inertial sensors of the accelerometer device as well as co-authoring five publications with Dr Bazaz and other team members of the GIKI MEMS lab. Of these, two were for international conferences dealing with nano-science and semiconductor technologies. After leaving GIKI in August 2009, Mr Shuja Khan joined the COMSATS Institute at Lahore as a lecturer in the Department of Electrical Engineering, yet continued to research in MEMS technologies for the purpose of enhancing the performance of electrical devices such as power generators and other renewable energy generation systems.

Nayyer Abba

Mr Nayyer Abbas completed his MS in Electronic Engineering in 2011 under the Faculty of Electronics at GIKI. He completed his BS Electronics in 2009 from CIIT, Islamabad. His research interests were primarily in the areas of MEMS and microsystems. He was an active member of the MEMS research group (ERG) in Faculty of Electronic Engineering and MEMSPak research group. During his research, he developed micro-manipulator systems consisting of the MEMS-based microgripper, sense electronics, microcontroller, actuation circuitry and graphic user interface (GUI). Actuation circuitry provided the required voltage to the actuator of the microgripper to move its jaws to hold a micro-object. Grasping force on the object was detected by the force sensor integrated with the microgripper. Voltage can be increased in steps that produced the displacement with a resolution of less than 1 nm. This information was processed through the sense electronics to the microcontroller that adjusted the actuation voltage applied through the actuation circuitry to grasp the micro-object firmly without damaging it. GUI monitored the interaction of the microgripper with micro-object through a personal computer. The complete system worked in an autonomous manner without any external intervention while ensuring the safety of the micro-object as well as maintaining the voltages at actuator and sensor parts within the pull-in voltage limits. As of May 2012, Mr Abbas was working as research associate in the Faculty of Electronics Engineering at GIKI.

List of Graduate Students Supervised in GIKI’s MEMS Lab

Sl. No.

Name

Program

Thesis Title

Graduation Date

Employment Status

1

Rana Iqtidar Shakoor

PhD

Design, fabrication and characterization of MetalMUMPs- based MEMS Gyroscopes

July 2010

Scientific Officer at PAEC

2

Kinnan Amjad

MSc

Design of MEMS Micropgripper integrated with force sensor in commercial prototyping process

May 2008

Asst. Manager at AWC

3

Muhammad Yasin

MSc

Reduced order model development of MEMS gyroscope for system-level simulations

May 2008

Asst. Manager at AWC

4

Najamuddin

MSc

Characterization of an All- Diamond Neural Probe and its Simulations in Implantable Conditions

May 2008

Asst. Manager at AWC

5

Muhammad Bilal Saif

MSc

Interface electronics and control of electrostatically actuated MEMS microgripper

May 2009

Lecturer at GIKI, now in GC University, Faisalabad, pursuing PhD in Netherlands

6

Muhammad Sohail

MSc

Design of an electrostatic SOI- MUMPs microgripper integrated with capacitive force sensor

May 2009

Lecturer at GIKI, now at Islamic International University, Islamabad

7

Ahmad Naeem

MSc

Design of low-power and low- noise preamplifier for brain implantable neural recording microsystem

May 2009

Asst. Manager at AWC

8

Hafiz Usman Sani

MSc

Behavioural model development and simulation of SOIMUMPs- based microgripper

May 2009

Asst. Manager at AWC

9

Sharif Khan

MSc

Interface characterization and selectivity analysis of MEMS- based all-diamond neural probe

May 2009

Asst. Manager at AWC

10

Muhammad Shuja Khan

MSc

Design of a Monolithic 3 DoF MEMS Capacitive Accelerometer

May 2009

Lecturer at COMSATS Lahore

11

Fahimullah Khan

MSc

Finite element analysis (FEA) and testing of electrostatic SOI- MUMPs microgripper integrated with capacitive contact sensor

May 2010

Lecturer at COMSATS Abbottabad, pursuing PhD in Australia

12

Abid Iqbal

MSc

Design and analysis of a monolithic tri-axis MEMS capacitive accelerometer based on MetalMUMP

May 2010

Lecturer at COMSATS, Abbottabad, research internee in Hong Kong University for nine months

13

M. Mubasher Saleem

MSc

Design, optimization and behavioural modelling of 3-DoF non-resonant MEMS gyroscope- based MetalMUMPs

May 2010

Pursuing PhD in Italy

14

Faiza

MSc

Lifetime optimization of wireless sensor network through energy- efficient clustering for robust data routing

May 2010

Pursuing PhD in Malaysia

15

Khurram Javed

MSc

Interface circuit design for MEMS capacitive accelerometer

May 2011

Lecturer NFC University, Faisalabad

16

Kashif Riaz

MSc

Damping estimation, fabrication imperfection simulations and performance enhancement of 3-DoF MEMS gyroscope

May 2011

Lecturer at GIKI

17

Umar Mian

MSc

Investigation of 3-DoF non- resonant MEMS gyroscope through lumped equivalent circuit modelling

August 2011

Pursuing PhD in Malaysia

Exhibit 7a. Technical Aspects of GIKI MEMS Lab Designed Micro-Gyroscope

Conventional gyroscopes had been around for almost 200 years and typically used a rotating mass that aligned itself with the horizontal plane, whereby indicating the tilt angle of the body to which it was connected. The structure of the MEMS gyroscope chip was quite complex and entailed four mechanical structures that moved independently to perform the various gyroscopic operations. At the heart of the MEMS micro-gyroscope was the Coriolis Effect, which basically took into account the minute effects of the Earth’s slow rotations on the vibrating masses to measure the orientation.

The dimensions of the GIKI MEMS gyroscope chip were 2.2 mm × 2.6 mm. In typical MEMS gyroscopes, electrically powered actuators were used that were typically composed of silicon and so consumed considerably higher levels of power to achieve desired levels of operating temperature. Metal-based thermal actuators consumed less energy as they reacted more sensitively to changes in temperature. The GIKI MEMS lab’s design entailed a Nickel-plated silicon structure, which would also render the gyroscope considerably sensitive than one that is purely silicon based, and consumed less power.

Exhibit 7b. Scanning Electron Microscopic (SEM) Image of Developed Gyroscope with 2-DoF Drive Mode and 1-DoF Sense Mode Oscillators

Figure

Source: Kashif Riaz, Shafaat Bazaz, Mubashir Saleem and Rana Iqtidar Shakoor, ‘Design Damping Estimation and Experimental Characterization of Decoupled 3DOF Robust MEMS Gyroscope’. Sensors and Actuator: A. Physical, doi:10.1016/j.sna, 2011.

Exhibit 8a. Technical Specifications of GIKI’s MEMS Accelerometer

The accelerometer, with 3 mm × 3.1 mm in dimension, would in its final form be about the size of a large grain of sand. Its design was fine-tuned with optimum precision using the MATLAB 2 software and the results thus obtained were further corroborated using finite element analysis (FEA). 3 The sensitivity of the accelerometer was achieved by measuring the capacitance or the amount of electric charge that was generated and stored due to the input acceleration in each of the three axes (x, y, z) by conducting MATLAB analysis. According to Dr Bazaz, till three years ago, the mechanical parts of MEMS chips had to be connected to the electronic interface with physical wires, a process which was quite cumbersome and caused losses in the sensitivity of the accelerometer. However, since 2008, a technology termed as CMOS-MEMS 4 was introduced that made it possible to design and fabricate the mechanical and electronics aspects of the MEMS accelerometer device on the same chip. Before going for the integrated chip design, the functioning of both the mechanical and electronics parts had to be tested on separately fabricated chips. 5 Dr Bazaz intended to seek the services of Austriamicrosystems, an Austrian semiconductor firm, for availing the CMOS-MEMS technology for the accelerometer chip.

Exhibit 8b. Design of the 3-Axis Accelerometer Chip Integrating the Mechanical Parts/Masses for Detection in All 3 Axes

Figure

Source: Abid Iqbal and Shafaat A. Bazaz, ‘Behavioral Modeling of Monolithically Integrate Capacitive Accelerometer Based on MetalMUMPs’. Journal of Simulation: International Transactions of the Society for Modelling and Simulation, ID # T-10-0124. R2, 2011.

Exhibit 9a. MEMS Microgripper and Associated Control Mechanism

For successful operation of any MEMS-based device, interface circuitry 6 and controllers were established to be essential components. They enabled the device to operate successfully and remain under control throughout the operation. The interface circuitry was controlled via a computer. Controller enabled the microgripper to grasp micro-objects with the help of a force sensor, 7 whereby avoiding damage to the delicate object being gripped. The designed system could also measure the size of a rigid micro-object grasped by the microgripper.

Exhibit 9b. Developed Microgripper for Micromanipulation and Associated Control Mechanism

Figure

Source: Fahimullah Khan, S.A. Bazaz and Muhammad Sohail, ‘Design and Implementation of Electrostatic SOI-MUMPs Microgripper’. Journal of Microsystem Technologies, DOI 10.1007/s00542-010-1129-2, ISSN 0946-7076, Volume 16, Number 11, August 2010.

Exhibit 10. Profiles of PIEAS and CIIT in the Context of GIKI MEMS Lab

PIEAS

In 2004, a number of grant requests were drafted and sent to the HEC by PIEAS, and consequently, MEMS testing equipment worth PKR 6 million was purchased and installed at PIEAS in 2007. In 2009, another grant of PKR 4 million was acquired by PIEAS, pooled in with the initial monetary resources and was then directed towards purchasing additional testing equipment. Towards the end of 2010, the installation of relevant machinery and equipment at NILOP was almost complete and the facility was expected to be capable of fabricating MEMS and nano-scale 8 devices by the spring of 2011. Dr Shakoor asserted that the facility had been equipped with all the essential MEMS processing machines. 9

Shafaat acknowledged that PIEAS had played a significant role in assisting him and the team at GIKI’s MEMS lab in materializing their MEMS-related work. In terms of human resource as well as provision of a testing lab for MEMS device prototypes, a symbiotic relationship between PIEAS and GIKI started to develop from 2004 onwards. Shafaat conceded that each time a testing was to be carried out, he had to acquire clearance two months in advance, which sometimes was a hindrance in the MEMS lab work.

COMSATS Institute of Information Technology (CIIT)

COMSATS Institute of Information Technology was a postgraduate degree-awarding institution that was founded in the year 2000. It was funded and controlled by the COMSATS, an intergovernmental organization based in Islamabad. Since 2006, CIIT also started playing a role in the fostering of MEMS industry within Pakistan by utilizing a grant of US$3 million from HEC to set up a micro- and nanofabrication facility. GIKI MEMS lab initially collaborated with PIEAS for its MEMS device testing requirements till 2010, but later switched over to CIIT’s testing lab in 2011.

Although COMSATS had been able to acquire some chip fabrication equipment, it was still not sufficient to carry out fabrication of MEMS chips. However, Dr Arshad Saleem Bhatti was instrumental in facilitating the GIKI MEMS lab in consistently arranging for testing of the chips. With regards to acknowledging CIIT’s contribution to the GIKI designed MEMS devices, there was a clear understanding between the two entities that in the concerned technical papers, the former would be credited with only provisioning for the testing facilities.

Michigan State University—Project Leads and Research Directions

The development of the Brain Implants—Neural Probes, which served as the seminal project for establishing MEMS lab at GIKI, was initiated in Michigan State University. Later on, when Bazaz was in the process of transitioning to GIKI, he was advised to initiate the development of the microgyroscope.

Queens University and CMC Microsystems—Fabrication of Chips and International Exposure to Human Resources

Shafaat had been working in CMC Microsystems till 2006, which was a Canadian government-funded enterprise that was housed in the campus of Queens University. This experience coupled with the insight into the procedures at CMC enabled Bazaz to utilize a provision of fabricating test chips free of cost at CMC. CMC gave no assurances regarding the functioning of the finished products, but luckily for Bazaz the results were acceptable for research purposes. The designing of microgyroscope and microgripper chips was conducted in collaboration with Professor Yong Lai at Queens University in Ontario, Canada. In the second half of 2007, Dr Shakoor also worked on the design of the MEMS gyroscope based on thermal actuation during his time at Queens University.

University of Southampton—Testing of Prototypes and International Exposure to Human Resources

In 2009, Dr Shakoor was offered a scholarship of six months to attend the University of Southampton and assist Professor Michael Kraft in the School of Electronics and Computer Science and his team in installing the MEMS testing equipment that they had acquired. The experience that Dr Shakoor had acquired from his work with the MEMS testing equipment in Queens University back in 2007 played a vital role is securing this scholarship. Hence, Professor Michael Kraft also assisted with the testing of the microgyroscopes and the subsequent testing of the MEMS gyroscope designed by GIKI’s lab was also conducted at this British institution.

Exhibit 11. Comparison of Test Results of the MEMS Gyroscope Designed by PIEAS/GIKI with Those Designed by Two Other International Institutions, Middle East Technical University (METU, Turkey) and University of California, Irvine (UCI, USA). The Circled Values of Size and Voltage Depict the Smaller Dimensions and Lesser Energy Consumed by GIKI’s Gyroscope Design Over the Other Two, Thereby Signifying Superior Features

Institute/University

METU

UCI

PIEAS/GIKI

Type

Resonant

Non-resonant

Non-resonant

Material

Nickel

Polysilicon

Nickel

Fabrication Process

DRIE

DRIE

MetalMUMPS

Size

2.9 × 2.9 mm2

4.0 × 4.0 mm2

2.2 × 2.6 mm2

Structural layer thickness

18 µm

100 µm

20 µm

Operating Frequency

4090 Hz Not available

752 Hz 25VDC +3VAC

3540 Hz 0.5VAC

Applied Voltage Drive Displacement

10 µm

5.8 µm

4.1 µm

Source: Rana I. Shakoor, Shafaat A. Bazaz, M. Kraft, Y. Lai and M.M. Hasan, ‘Thermal Actuation Based 3-DoF Non-resonant Microgyroscope Using MetalMUMPs’. Sensors, 2009, pp. 2389–14.

Exhibit 12. Timeline of Chip Designing and Testing Carried Out for GIKI MEMS Lab Technologies

Year

MEMS Device

Status

2005

Gyroscope

Design was completed

2006

Gyroscope

First fabricated version

2006

Gyroscope

Testing revealed manufacturing flaws in first fabricated version

2007

Gyroscope

Second fabricated version after improving upon previous design

2008

Microgripper

Design completed

2009

Microgripper

Fabricated version

2010

Microgripper

Testing carried out

2010

Accelerometer

Design completed

2011

Accelerometer

First fabricated model

Source: Case writer.

Exhibit 13. Institutions, Agencies and Programmes Facilitating Science and Technology-Oriented Projects

Foreign Faculty Hiring Programme (HEC)

The Foreign Faculty Hiring Programme (FFHP) was launched by the HEC in 2003 and aimed to recruit highly qualified faculty from abroad for rendering services in graduate research programmes in different public sector universities/research institutions in Pakistan. The primary objective of the programme was to develop a pool of qualified academics who would play an integral role as PhD supervisors as well as contribute to the uplift of graduate programmes in Pakistan to bring them at par with international standards. The secondary aims of this programme included infrastructural development within the host entities as well as creating industry–academy linkages and coordinating international collaborative research. Till December 2010, as many as 314 foreign professors had entered the programme and 146 of them were still serving. Unfortunately, the indigenous PhD programme that had been launched simultaneously in 2003 along with FFHP had fallen drastically short of achieving its goal of ensuring a steady output of 1,000 PhD scholars annually. Not even the total number of PhD scholars that had been supervised till the end of 2010 had exceeded 1,000 and stood at a deplorably low number of 342.

National Research Grants Programme for Universities (NRPU)

Soon after the HEC was established in 2002, a provision was made within to address the lack of basic equipment, laboratory supplies, scientific literature and financial resources. This facility was geared towards facilitating dynamic professors who were engaged in innovative research in social sciences, management sciences, humanities, basic sciences, natural sciences, medical sciences, engineering and technology, and agricultural sciences. Eligible candidates included all full-time faculty members and researchers of all public sector universities and twenty-one private sector universities, most notably GIK Institute of Engineering and Technology (GIKI), Lahore University of Management Sciences (LUMS) and National University of Computer and Emerging Sciences (FAST). The grants ranged from PKR 10 to 20 million and were provided for a period of one to three years. As of February 2010, a total of 696 projects in public sector universities had been provided a combined funding of around PKR 205 million. GIKI’s MEMS lab had also availed the grant of PKR 3 million through this facility.

Pakistan–US Science and Technology Cooperation Programme

A programme that was intended to enhance the science and technology landscape within Pakistan was the comprehensive Science and Technology Cooperation Agreement signed in 2003 between the Government of Pakistan and the United States Department of State (USDOS). It proposed a framework that would be established in order to increase the cooperation in science, technology, engineering and education for mutual benefit and peaceful purposes. By 2005, Pakistan’s Ministry of Science and Technology (MOST) and US Department of State were joined in by the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) and the HEC as supporting institutions. This partnership resulted in the funding of a whole range of projects dealing with research areas such as genetic engineering, environmental resource management, engineering, medicine, computer sciences, agricultural sciences and so on. Each project was based on a joint partnership between two lead researchers/scientists, one from a public or private sector university/research institution within Pakistan and one from its counterpart in the United States.

Up till 2010, some forty-six research and development projects had been awarded grants totalling US$17.1 million. The typical award was in the range of US$70,000 to US$850,000 with one portion of each grant being funded by a US institution such as USAID or USDOS and the other by a Pakistani one, such as MOST or HEC. However, in the majority of cases, it was USAID and HEC that were the supporting institutions, with HEC being the granting entity with higher contributions. In September 2010, another set of twenty-six projects were deemed eligible for funding, with contributions from the US side announced accordingly. Nevertheless in March 2011, as reports of the Government of Pakistan considering the devolution of the HEC in the aftermath of passing the 18th constitutional amendment started to circulate, the funding of these projects and the continuation of this programme seemed to have been thrown in jeopardy. 10 It was alleged that the intended devolution of the HEC was to curtail its role in exposing fake degrees of certain politicians, whereby rendering them ineligible to contest in elections. 11 In addition, it was also alleged that corrupt politicians were eyeing the PKR 40 billion worth annual budget that would be up for grabs once the HEC was broken up and delegated to the provincial governments. 12 Funding of projects being managed through the HEC was put on hold by the donor agencies of USAID and the Word Bank, entailing amounts of US$250 million and US$300 million, respectively. 13 Nevertheless, the following month in April, the Supreme Court intervened on the basis of a petition filed by a group of personalities, including the former HEC chairman Dr Atta-ur-Rehman. 14

National Information and Communications Technology Research & Development Fund (National ICT R&D Fund)

The National ICT R&D fund was created in January 2007 by Pakistan’s Ministry of IT with the intention to ‘transform Pakistan’s economy into a knowledge-based economy by promoting efficient, sustainable and effective ICT initiatives through synergic development of industrial and academic resources’. The financial resources for the fund stemmed from the passing of the Deregulation Act in 2003 that opened up Pakistan’s telecom sector to private entities. The research grants were awarded to promising ICT-related development projects in related academia or industry that either entailed a universally known technology or a novel one that had been created by the applicant. Furthermore, the economic viability of the project was also determined along with its potential benefit to the Pakistani society at large. The ICT R&D grant was typically awarded for a period of two years and covered the honoraria of the project directors, salaries of researchers and support staff as well as local and international travel, along with the purchases of essential equipment.

In July 2010, the operations of the National ICT R&D fund were thrown into disarray when the chairman of the board, Muhammad Latif Khan Khosa, who was also the advisor to the prime minister on information technology, fired six directors of the fund. 15 Mr Latif Khan Khosa had allegedly abused his powers as minister-in-charge for the Ministry of Information and Technology when he was not able to convince the fund’s board to appoint his brother-in-law as the chairman. 16 However, the group of fired directors moved a plea in the Lahore High Court, which revoked Mr Khosa’s decision and restored the sacked directors’ positions. 17 Later in the same month, the Cabinet Division of Pakistan issued a memorandum withdrawing Mr Khosa’s charge of the IT Ministry. 18

Exhibit 14. GIKI MEMS Lab Funding Timeline

Year

Amount of Funding Granted (in Millions of PKR)

Amount of Funding Received (in Millions of PKR)

Source of Funding

Purpose/Project for Which Funding Was Given

2006

1

1

HEC

Initial start-up grant for setting up MEMS lab at GIKI

2006

0.3

0.3

GIKI

Establishing MEMS lab

2008

3

3

HEC

For microgripper development (Integrating with electronics, controllers and force sensors)

2008

0.45

0.45

GIKI

Construction of chip-testing lab and purchase of three high-speed computer servers for running MEMS design software

2008

15

5.2

NICT fund

Development of open source cell library through modelling and simulation

2010

0.35

0.35

NESCOM

Fabrication of accelerometer

Source: Case writer.

Note: HEC = Higher Education Commission (of Pakistan); GIKI = Ghulam Ishaq Khan Institute; NESCOM = National Engineering and Scientific Commission; NICT = National Information and Communication Technology fund.

Exhibit 15. Trend and Revenue Forecast for MEMS Applications in Consumer Electronics, Mobile Handsets and Video Gaming

Figure

Source: http://www.digitimes.com/news/a20110412PR200.html (accessed on 10 July 2012)

Exhibit 16. Forecasted Growth of the Bio-MEMS Devices, a Context Relevant to the Microgripper, Which Can Be Placed in the Category of Medical Devices

Figure

Source: ‘BioMEMS 2010 Technologies and Markets report’. Yole Development. Retrieved from http://www.i-micronews.com/reports/BioMEMS-2010/163/ (accessed on 10 July 2012)

Appendix

About GIKI—Overview

GIKI is one of the most prestigious engineering institutes of Pakistan. GIKI is known the world over for setting a standard of excellence in the field of engineering. Over the years, the institute has produced bright and innovative graduates employed at some of the most respectable firms around the world. The institute aspires to be a centre of excellence in engineering sciences and technology and as an effective agent of change and a model for others to emulate. It is autonomous and independently chartered and is funded by the private sector. It strives to attract faculty of outstanding talent and ability to provide the students a supporting and enabling environment. It hopes to produce graduates who distinguish themselves by their professional competence, humanistic outlook and ethical rectitude, pragmatic approach to problem-solving and organizational and managerial skills. Given these attributes, they should be able to respond adequately to the needs of Pakistan and be the vanguard of their techno-industrial transformation.

Apart from its outstanding academic programmes, GIKI is also known for the versatility and vibrancy of its extracurricular scenario. These activities are student-organized. At present, GIKI has more than twenty student societies. These societies provide students with various opportunities to indulge in their extracurricular interests and exposure of professional environment. Moreover, these societies instil in their members priceless qualities such as teamwork and leadership.

Source: http://www.giki.edu.pk/About%20GIKI/index.htm; 26 June 2012.

Notes

1. Microfluids are fluids that were developed for use in very small confined spaces such as in inkjet printer nozzles and DNA sequencing chips where ordinary macro-liquids fall short due to certain behavioural properties.

2. A computer software used for advanced mathematical calculations in fields such as science, engineering and economics.

3. A numerical technique for simplifying complex equations that are used in calculations in electromechanical engineering.

4. Complementary metal–oxide–semiconductor (CMOS) is a technology for constructing integrated circuits (ICs) and is used in a wide variety of electronics manufacturing, especially computers and cell phones.

5. One chip would have the electronics and the other the mechanical parts.

6. Circuitry that is different from the main circuit of the MEMS device and is used as a communication link between the computer software and the MEMS hardware.

7. A force sensor detects physical force being exerted on it and converts it into an electrical signal. Hence, a force sensor is used to detect the amount of force present.

8. Scale measuring one-billionth of a meter.

9. This process is technically referred to epitaxial growth.

10. ‘HEC Devolution’. Retrieved 10 July 2012, from http://www.dawn.com/2011/03/28/hec-devolution.html

11. ‘PTI Denounces HEC Devolution’. Retrieved 10 July 2012, from http://www.dailytimes.com.pk/default.asp?page=2011%5C04%5C11%5Cstory_11-4-2011_pg7_13

12. ‘No Constitutional Provision to Dissolve, Devolve HEC’. Retrieved 10 July 2012, from http://www.thenews.com.pk/TodaysPrintDetail.aspx?ID=40000&Cat=2

13. ‘USAID Puts $250m Project on Hold’. Retrieved 10 July 2012, from http://www.nation.com.pk/pakistan-newsnewspaper-daily-english-online/Politics/05-Apr-2011/USAID-puts-250m-project-on-hold

14. ‘Supreme Court Puts HEC Back on Track’. Retrieved 10 July 2012, from http://www.nation.com.pk/pakistannews-newspaper-daily-english-online/Politics/13-Apr-2011/Supreme-Court-puts-HEC-back-on-track

15. ‘Six Directors of Research Fund Sacked’. Retrieved 10 July 2012, from http://archives.dawn.com/archives/77527

16. ‘ICT R&D Fund Directors Fired for Rejecting Khosa’s Brother-In-Law’. Retrieved 10 July 2012, from http://propakistani.pk/2010/07/08/ict-rd-fund-directors-fired-for-rejecting-khosa/

17. ‘LHC Suspends Khosa’s Orders, Restores ICT R&D Directors’. Retrieved 10 July 2012, from http://propakistani.pk/2010/09/23/lhc-suspends-khosa-orders-restores-ict-rd-directors/

18. ‘Latif Khan Khosa Kicked Out as IT minister’. Retrieved 10 July 2012, from http://www.paktribune.com/news/index.shtml?229719

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