IHP and the Research Fab Microelectronics Germany (FMD)

The Research Fab Microelectronics Germany – Forschungsfabrik Mikroelektronik Deutschland, FMD – is the central point of contact for questions concerning micro- and nanoelectronics in Germany. IHP is one of the founding partners of FMD, established in 2017 together with the Fraunhofer Group for Microelectronics and the Ferdinand Braun Leibniz Institute. As a one-stop shop, it combines the scientific excellence, application-oriented technologies, system solutions, expertise, and infrastructure of 15 cooperating institutes from the Fraunhofer-Gesellschaft and the Leibniz Association into customer-specific offerings.

With more than 5,400 employees, FMD is the largest association of its kind in Europe. From 2017 to 2021, the Federal Ministry of Education and Research supported the modernization of the research infrastructure of all 13 participating institutes with a funding amount of 350 million euros. Since 2025, Fraunhofer AISEC and Fraunhofer IMWS have also been actively involved in the FMD.

IHP's contribution to FMD

Through FMD, IHP makes its infrastructure, technology platforms, and scientific expertise available within a coordinated research network. This gives partners access to customized services across contract research, demonstrator and prototype development, design support, characterization, testing, reliability assessment, and cooperative research projects.

The institute operates a certified cleanroom and supports the transition from materials and devices to circuits, prototypes, demonstrators, and technology platforms. Through FMD, these competencies are available to industrial partners, research organizations, and public stakeholders as part of a coordinated national offering.

As part of the first FMD funding phase, IHP expanded his infrastructure. The extension increased the institute’s capacity for technology development and prototype-oriented research. Moreover, the IHP cleanroom is the only RTO cleanroom operating in 24/7 mode – a unique feature among the FMD institutes.

Projects

APECS (ongoing)

APECS, Advanced Packaging and Heterogeneous Integration, is a pilot-line initiative under the EU Chips Act, running from 2024 to 2029. The project addresses advanced integration technologies for chiplets, heterogeneous systems, and the transfer of research results into industrial application. Within APECS, IHP contributes its long-standing expertise in microelectronics research and helps connect fundamental research with application-oriented technology development.

APECS is co-funded by the Chips Joint Undertaking and the national funding authorities of Austria, Belgium, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Portugal, and Spain through the Chips for Europe Initiative. The project has an overall funding volume of €730 million over four and a half years.

In Germany, substantial support from the Federal Ministry of Research, Technology and Space (BMFTR) and the federal states of Saxony, Berlin, Bavaria, Schleswig-Holstein, Baden-Württemberg, North Rhine-Westphalia, Brandenburg, and Saxony-Anhalt will enable the further expansion of R&D infrastructure within the APECS pilot line in the coming years.

Read more about the project in the press release.

Green ICT (completed)

The project Green ICT @ FMD focused on more energy- and resource-efficient information and communication technologies. Within the FMD network, it addressed the environmental footprint of digital hardware across development, production, application, and use. The project produced practical methods, test environments, training formats, and knowledge-transfer materials that help companies and start-ups consider resource consumption and CO₂ impact in technology development.

FMD-QNC (completed)

The project FMD-QNC bundled research and development competencies in quantum and neuromorphic computing. In addition to the 13 FMD institutes, the competencies of six additional institutes working on quantum and neuromorphic computing are combined in this project. It links research structures into industry-oriented research and pilot lines, including superconducting and memristive circuits, 3D system integration, and highly integrated beam sources.

Within this network, IHP provided technology consulting, fabrication services, and access to equipment for research groups and companies, particularly start-ups and SMEs. The project also includes the establishment of a Microelectronics Academy.

Collaboration through FMD

For industry, FMD offers a structured entry point to specialized microelectronics expertise. For funding bodies and public stakeholders, it demonstrates how distributed research infrastructure can be coordinated across institutions, technologies, and application fields. IHP’s role reflects the institute’s mission to bridge excellent research and practical application in high-performance microelectronics.

To learn more about working with IHP within FMD, please contact Andreas Mai. General inquiries about FMD can be directed to www.forschungsfabrik-mikroelektronik.de

For more information, visit www.forschungsfabrik-mikroelektronik.de or the invidual project websites, www.german-chips.de and www.apecs.eu.