PUCMM develops Dominican Republic's first university microchip

The Pontificia Universidad Católica Madre y Maestra (PUCMM) has developed the first university-level microchip in the Dominican Republic. The project, which involved 27 students, professors, and alumni over approximately one year, resulted in the production of 50 silicon units using 180-nanometer technology.

The development process spanned electronic architecture, simulation, verification, and physical design. To move from digital design to physical manufacturing, the university collaborated with international partners, including GlobalFoundries for circuit fabrication, Synopsys for design tools and training, and Keysight for simulation and testing.

President Luis Abinader expressed support for the initiative, noting its alignment with the National Strategy for the Promotion of the Semiconductor Industry (ENFIS) and the government's goal to integrate the country into the global semiconductor supply chain. Abinader also endorsed a proposal to create a shared semiconductor laboratory for use by multiple Dominican universities.

The current microchip features an arithmetic-logic unit, registers, and control logic. The university is already working on a subsequent version with neural processing capabilities to explore artificial intelligence applications directly through hardware. Potential early applications include the healthcare sector, such as monitoring systems for patients at risk of pressure ulcers.