Jean-Michel Hartmann received his PhD in Physics from Grenoble Alpes University in 1997. At the time, his research focused on solid source molecular beam epitaxy of CdTe/MnTe and CdTe/MgTe heterostructures for optical purposes. As an Imperial College postdoctoral researcher from 1997 to 1999, he studied gas source molecular beam epitaxy of Si/SiGe heterostructures for modulation-doped field-effect transistors (MODFET). Mr. Hartmann began working at CEA-Leti in 1999 as a research engineer. In 2007, he was named senior CEA expert, and Director of CEA Research in 2016.

Alongside his colleagues, Jean-Michel explored an alternative to the physical limitations of miniaturized CMOS technology by replacing Si (Silicon) by GeSn (Germanium-Tin). Thanks to the breakthrough, vertical germanium-tin transistors are strong candidates for future low-power, high-performance chips, or even quantum computers. This research led to publication in Nature magazine.

“In addition to unprecedented electro-optical properties, GeSn binaries have the major advantage of being able to be deposited into the same epitaxy reactors as Si and SiGe alloys, making it possible to create a platform for group IV optoelectronic semiconductors that can be monolithically integrated on Si" claims Jean-Michel Hartmann.

The prize was an opportunity to celebrate our long partnership with the Forschungszentrum Jülich research center, which has produced more than a hundred joint publications since 2009. The Electronics and Photonics Division award was created in 1969 to encourage excellence in electronics research and a remarkable technical contribution in the field of electronic science.

“The CEA-Leti ecosystem is unique; the resources and people we meet here all share the same curiosity to find the best possible epitaxy processes.