IEEE ECTC 2025 Prioritizes Student Engagement with New Programs and Competitions

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The IEEE Electronic Components and Technology Conference (ECTC), the premier technical conference and product exhibition for the world’s semiconductor packaging industry, has organized special events for students for years. Given the urgent need for workforce development in this globally critical industry this year, the ECTC conference has made student engagement and involvement a significant focus. 

More than 2,000 scientists, engineers, and businesspeople from more than 20 countries are expected to attend the 75^th annual ECTC, which will take place May 27-30, 2025 at the Gaylord Texan Resort & Convention Center in Dallas, along with 135+ exhibitors.

In celebration of the 75^th anniversary of this great conference, the ECTC Executive Committee is announcing three new initiatives to complement our existing student-focused offerings. They are a Local Student Engagement Program, a Student Volunteer Service Program, and a Student Competition. They aim to inspire students, enhance their participation, foster engagement, and provide valuable learning opportunities in the fascinating and fast-growing field of microelectronics packaging.

The three new student initiatives are:

• Local Student Engagement Program: On Wednesday, May 28, this program will bring ~25 students and their teachers and professors from local high schools/community colleges to the conference, offering a unique opportunity for young students to interact with industry professionals and gain insights into the electronics packaging and semiconductor manufacturing industries. ECTC will provide complimentary transportation and one-day registration to all participants. The agenda includes breakfast with ECTC Executive Committee members; attendance at the keynote presentation and an exclusive Q&A session with the keynote speaker; a guided tour of the Exhibit Hall and individual meetings with industry participants there; participation in the Wednesday morning Interactive Presentations session and discussions with the paper presenters; a luncheon with ECTC Technical Committee members; and a closing Q&A session with ECTC Executive Committee members. All participants will receive a certificate of attendance and a gift from the ECTC conference.
• Student Volunteer Service Program: This will enlist ECTC student attendees who have already chosen the electronic packaging industry as their career path to build and expand their professional network through working with ECTC Technical Committee members. Participating students will be assigned to technical sessions and will help the session chairs with session-related duties. The activities include breakfast with the session chairs, counting the attendees during the session for each talk, and collecting scoring sheets at the end of the session. The students will receive a certificate of appreciation from ECTC for their service.
• Student Competition: In this previously announced competition, students will describe their innovative solutions to enhance the thermal performance and reliability of high-temperature microelectronic components and systems in five key technical areas:
• Predictive Modeling and Mitigation of Warpage in Optical MEMS Bare Die Integration on PCB or Flex Substrate
• Modeling CTE Mismatch Effects in Multi-Material Packages
• Reducing Thermal Resistance and Improving Reliability in High-Temperature Power Electronics Modules
• Addressing Thermal-Mechanical Challenges in Heterogeneously Integrated Opto-Electronic Packages
• Developing a Condition Monitoring Concept for Electronic Components or Systems

The winning three teams will present their work at the Student & Start-up Innovation Challenge on Wednesday, May 28 from 6:30–8:30 p.m. to an international audience of industry leaders, researchers, and academics.

ECTC 2025 offers other opportunities to students as well:

• Student Reception: On Tuesday, May 27 from 5-6 p.m., Texas Instruments will host a student reception during which students attending the conference can engage with members of the ECTC Executive Committee and top leaders from industry, research, and academia to explore the latest trends in microelectronics technology.
• Student Interactive Presentation (IP) session: On Friday, May 30 from 10 a.m. to noon, students whose papers have been accepted will present their research during this dedicated session, enabling them to receive direct feedback from industry and academic leaders on their work.
• Awards: ECTC recognizes students’ contributions to microelectronics packaging research through several prestigious awards. Intel sponsors the Intel Best Student Paper Award and the Intel Outstanding Student Paper Award to honor exceptional student research. Texas Instruments awards the TI Best IP Student Paper Award to the top student in the IP session.
• ECTC Student Travel Award: To encourage student participation, the IEEE Electronics Packaging Society which sponsors the ECTC conference offers the ECTC Student Travel Award, providing 15 students with a certificate and reimbursement for travel expenses (up to a specified limit).

Click here to learn more about ECTC 2025.