I joined ERS electronic GmbH for an internship in fan-out technology from October 2020 to June 2021 as a mandatory part of my Master’s degree in Mobile and Embedded Systems at the University of Passau. My internship at ERS gave me great exposure to the inner workings of the semiconductor industry and gave me the opportunity to work on some very interesting projects.
During my internship, I was a part of the R&D team in the FO department that develops ERS’s wafer and panel debonding and warpage adjustment machines. My father owns a mechanical workshop, so I grew up watching him work on different machines, which inspired me to want to do the same. I remember being so fascinated by the mechanics and wanting to understand how everything worked. Getting hands-on experience with the complex machines and thermal chucks of ERS was, therefore, a dream come true for me.
With training, support, and guidelines from my colleagues, I was assigned the task of testing and monitoring the ADM330, an automatic thermal debonding machine for 300 mm wafers. This was my first real work experience, so there were many things I was unfamiliar with and had to quickly learn to do. For example, I didn’t have much experience in documentation and troubleshooting, but with the help of my colleagues, I learned to get a handle on it.
In parallel, I also got the chance to help out on a software project, which was intended for the equipment tests. During my Master’s program, I had gained some experience coding with Python, but this project required me to learn how to code with C#, which I hadn’t used before. Again, this was a challenge for me, but my colleagues supported and placed their confidence in me, which motivated me to take it on.
I really enjoyed this project because I got to solve real-world problems instead of the more theoretical projects I had at university. As I gradually improved, I got a real sense of achievement, which boosted my confidence and ultimately allowed me to add a valuable skill to my list of competencies.
During this internship, I learned many things about the semiconductor industry, and I still find it incredible to think that the machines I have been working on are being used by companies all over the world and are contributing to the production of devices that you use in your everyday life.
I also valued the employee events, like Friday meetings and occasional get-togethers, which brought together everyone from the company and the big intern community consisting of other students with whom I could share my experience. I always found myself surrounded by colleagues who were ready to support me, motivate me, and push me in the right direction. Most importantly, the internship has been a great introduction to the industry for a semiconductor novice and machine enthusiast like me, and I am really grateful that my career path started with an organization like ERS electronic GmbH.
