"With companies coming here and the potential good students that we are training, I hope to build a good basis for the electronics industry here in Hengqin," Professor Rui Paulo D a Silva Martins, the Vice Rector of the University of Macau (UM), told GDToday on June 6.
On the same day, Martins participated in the ceremony for the joint laboratory of Zhuhai UM Science & Technology Research Institute (ZUMRI) and Amicro Semiconductor Co Ltd (Amicro) in the Guangdong-Macao In-Depth Cooperation Zone in Hengqin.
As an expert in the integrated circuit (IC) industry, Martins thought highly about Hengqin’s development in this field. Since the plan for constructing the Cooperation Zone in Hengqin in September 2021, the place has become a hotspot for the IC industry, and the government "has set up the basis good conditions, taxes and so on". "I think that everything is prepared for the development to be good and consistent in the future," Martins added.
Nurture talent in Hengqin and for Hengqin
As earlier in 1992, Martins moved to Macao and taught at UM. The diligent and hard-working students in the university galvanized him to make up his mind to stay in Macao to develop his career.
Martins was among the first batch of Macao residents exploring Hengqin. He first came to Hengqin 20 years ago, when the place was just a fishing village. "You could only find some fishermen and restaurants," Martins joked. He noted that he was impressed by the fast development of the place.
UMwas also among the first to settle in Hengqin. As early as in 2009, UM started to construct its Hengqin campus to enlarge its space. In 2019, UM set up a branch of its State Key Laboratory of Analog and Mixed-Signal VLSI in Hengqin with the Institute of Microelectronics. "We just started offering master's degrees in microelectronics and philosophy, and we are attracting more students," Martins said.
"Internship project in collaboration with companies is what we're doing here in Hengqin. We have several projects running with the Chinese electronics companies here." Martins explained that Hengqin matters a lot as its companies can provide working experiences for their students, adding that in the coming decade, they plan to train 500 master's and Ph.D. students.
He also hoped that "at least half of these graduates in the coming 10 years would choose to stay in Hengqin" due to the preferential policies being implemented here.
"We need to have more companies coming here"
Hengqin campus provides more opportunities to UM, allowing UM to have a chance to apply for national funds for research. According to Martins, before that, UM could only apply for Macao science technology development fund and such. Rui Paulo D a Silva Martins explained that UM needed to further strengthen its research and science technology to compete for national funds.
Zhuhai UM Science & Technology Research Institute is making full use of the Hengqin Plan to push forward the integration of industry, university, and research in recent years. It has achieved a lot of achievements in the field of sci-tech programs, commercial programs, patent applications, and the incubation of startup companies.
Martins was the Chair of UMTEC (UM company) from January 2009 to March 2019, and he also supported the incubation and creation of Digifluidic, the first UM Spin-Off, in 2018.
"Companies must take the initiative in this area's development, so we really need the companies to lay the groundwork." Martins thought that everything in Hengqin was set up for future development to be good and consistent thanks to the favorable conditions the government had established.
The joint laboratory is a good example of the integration of university, industry, and research. Based on the advantages of both parties, the laboratory focuses on the research and application of integrated circuits and robotics technology.
Martins believed that it would promote the development of an integrated circuit and microelectronics industry chain of the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area.
Author | Nancy Ye
Editor | Wing, Olivia, Nan, Abby, James
Photo provided to GDToday
