Electronics Engineer // Semiconductor & Embedded

Amit Kumar

Semiconductor & Electronics Engineer

M.Sc. Electronics (University of Delhi). Research in thin film spintronics and flexible electronics. Currently transitioning into VLSI and RTL design with Verilog.

Current Focus

  • RTL Design & Verification using Verilog
  • Digital Logic Synthesis and Timing Analysis
  • FSM and Datapath Architecture Design
  • Communication Protocol Implementation (UART, SPI, I2C)
  • FPGA Prototyping on Artix-7 Platform
  • VLSI Design Flow: Simulation → Synthesis → P&R
module amit_kumar #(
  parameter ROLE = "Electronics Engineer",
  parameter DOMAIN = "Semiconductor & Embedded"
) (
  input  clk_research,
  output reg [7:0] innovation
);
  always @(posedge clk_research)
    innovation <= innovation + 1;
endmodule

Research

Detailed overview of semiconductor fabrication processes and material characterization performed at the University of Delhi.

Material Stack

FeCo / CoFe
Magnetron Sputtered Alloys

Substrates

• Polyimide (PI)
• PET Flexible Films
• Silicon (Reference)

FeCo/CoFe Thin Film Fabrication on Flexible Substrates Using DC Magnetron Sputtering

This research investigates the fabrication and characterization of Fe₆₀Co₄₀ and Co₉₀Fe₁₀ thin films deposited on flexible polyimide (PI) and PET substrates via DC Magnetron Sputtering. The study focuses on optimizing deposition parameters to achieve controlled magnetic anisotropy, saturation magnetization, and low coercivity for flexible spintronic sensor applications.

01
Substrate Preparation
Flexible PI/PET substrates cleaned ultrasonically in acetone, isopropanol, and deionized water (10 min each). Dried in N₂ flow. Surface treatment via O₂ plasma (50 W, 2 min) to improve adhesion.
02
Vacuum System Pumpdown
Chamber evacuated to base pressure 5 × 10⁻⁶ Torr using turbomolecular pump backed by rotary vane pump. Substrate heated to target temperature at 5°C/min ramp rate.
03
Pre-Sputtering
Target surface cleaned by 5 min pre-sputtering with shutter closed. Removes surface oxides and contaminants. Power stabilized at target level.
04
Thin Film Deposition
DC plasma ignited in Ar atmosphere. Deposition rate monitored via quartz crystal microbalance (QCM). Film thickness controlled by deposition time at calibrated rate.
05
Post-Deposition Annealing
Selected samples annealed in vacuum at 200-400°C for 1 hour to study structural relaxation and magnetic property evolution.
06
Characterization
Multi-technique characterization: XRD for phase identification, VSM for magnetic hysteresis, FMR for dynamic properties, FESEM/EDS for morphology and composition.

Characterization Methodology

[XRD (Rigaku Ultima IV)]
XRD (Rigaku Ultima IV)
[VSM (LakeShore 7400)]
VSM (LakeShore 7400)
[FMR (Bruker E500)]
FMR (Bruker E500)
[FESEM/EDS (Zeiss Gemini)]
FESEM/EDS (Zeiss Gemini)
[AFM (Bruker Dimension)]
AFM (Bruker Dimension)

Experimental Results (Summary)

Phase IdentificationConfirmed (XRD)
Saturation MagnetizationMeasured (VSM)
Surface Roughness< 1.5 nm (AFM)

* Data obtained from experimental batches processed at the Materials Science Lab, University of Delhi.

Engineering Case Studies

TOTAL_ENTRIES: 4
semiconductor#thin-film-research

Magnetic Thin Films on Flexible Substrates

Problem

Conventional rigid substrates limit applications of spintronic devices in wearable and biomedical systems. Flexible polymer substrates introduce challenges in film adhesion, stress management, and magnetic property retention under mechanical bending.

Objective

Optimize DC magnetron sputtering parameters to deposit FeCo/CoFe thin films on polyimide/PET substrates with controlled magnetic anisotropy and minimal substrate-induced degradation.

System Stack
DC Magnetron SputteringFe₆₀Co₄₀ TargetCo₉₀Fe₁₀ TargetPolyimide/PET SubstratesXRDVSM+3
embedded#esp32-cam-microscope

ESP32-CAM Wireless Digital Microscope

Problem

Commercial digital microscopes are expensive ($200-2000) and lack wireless streaming capability for remote material inspection in laboratory settings.

Objective

Design a low-cost (<$50) portable digital microscope using ESP32-CAM module with real-time wireless image streaming and adjustable optical parameters for material surface inspection.

System Stack
ESP32-CAMOV2640 2MP CMOS SensorArduino FrameworkWebSocketsHTML/CSS/JS FrontendLED Ring Illumination+1
embedded#arduino-line-follower

PID-Controlled Line Follower Robot

Problem

Basic line follower robots using simple threshold detection fail on curved tracks, intersections, and varying surface reflectivity, limiting their use in industrial material transport.

Objective

Design an autonomous line-following robot using PID control algorithm with IR sensor array for accurate path tracking on complex track geometries.

System Stack
Arduino Uno5-Channel IR Sensor ModuleL298N H-BridgeDC Gear Motors (100 RPM)Li-Po 7.4V BatteryPID Library
digital#vlsi-digital-design

RTL Digital Logic Core Development

Problem

Need for verified digital logic cores for educational FPGA prototyping of basic signal processing and control systems.

Objective

Develop and functionally verify RTL modules including finite state machines, ALU, and serial communication interfaces using Verilog HDL.

System Stack
Verilog HDL (IEEE 1364-2001)ModelSim Intel Starter EditionXilinx Vivado ML EditionBasys 3 FPGA Board (Artix-7)

Technical Toolchain

Categorized ecosystems across semiconductor fabrication, material characterization, and digital systems design.

Semiconductor & Fabrication

DC Magnetron Sputtering
Thin Film Deposition
Vacuum Systems
Flexible Electronics
Photolithography (Lrn)

Characterization

XRD
VSM
FMR
AFM
FESEM
EDS

Embedded & Hardware

ESP32
Arduino
8051
AVR
Circuit Design
PCB Design (Proteus)

Simulation & Analysis

MATLAB
PSpice
Multisim
OriginPro
Xilinx Vivado

Digital & VLSI

Verilog HDL
Digital Logic Design
RTL Simulation
FSM Design
Timing Analysis