Killam professor started by taking radios apart
Written By: Scott Lingley
2003-03-26

Many researchers are finding nanotechnology aspects to their work, "so there’s not a well-accepted definition" to describe nanotechnology itself, Dew said of his area of expertise. “What we’re trying to work toward as a framework for defining nanotechnology is when you’re trying to build systems that have dimensions that are less than a hundred nanometres, and for which that dimension imparts some kind of qualitative properties that you’re exploiting.”
Though Dew’s scientific pursuits fall under the general heading of nanotechnology, thin film technology and microdevices, household appliances were the early test subjects for his youthful curiosity while he was growing up in Prince George, BC.
“I was taking apart radios and putting together circuits for many years as a kid--not always successfully, but that’s part of experimentation.” Dew said. “My interests extend from a life-long interest in science in general, and in an interest in moving into application, trying to bring to society the benefits of scientific discovery.”
After completing his Bachelor of Applied Science and Masters in Physics Engineering at the University of British Columbia, Dew was looking to pursue his interest in thin-film technology and found a perfect fit at the U of A.
“Thin film technology...wasn’t a micro-electronics research area, but it’s an enabling technology that all of microelectronics is based on. So when I came to the University of Alberta, we had at the time the Alberta Micro-electronics Centre, which was where the thin film research was done, and so it was a natural area to develop that application.”
Starting at the U of A as an assistant professor in 1992, Dew earned international recognition as the co-inventor of SIMBAD, a software package that helps integrated circuit manufacturers develop faster and more reliable microchips. The software has been sold to micro-electronics firms in 17 countries and continues to be marketed internationally. He was recognized for this achievement with the first Douglas Colton Medal for Research Excellence in Micro-electronics. GROFILMS, the successor to SIMBAD, has also earned Dew recognition in his field. Commercialization plans for this application are underway.
Since then, the accolades for Dew’s research, teaching, and administrative skills have hardly ceased. He has received three Faculty of Engineering Teaching Awards and has received consistently high ratings from the more than 1,000 students he’s taught during his nine years at the U of A, even though his duties as associate dean (research and planning) makes him eligible for complete teaching relief.
“I certainly enjoy the teaching aspect, and I’ve done moderately well at that,” Dew said. “I enjoy the interaction with the students--their questions are really what motivates me to try to deliver a good lecture. If I can’t get them to think beyond what my words are, to ask another question, then I don’t think I’ve succeeded.
"So being in the classroom and getting that student interaction is very important. The other motivation is, as associate dean with responsibility for academic planning, if I’m not involved in the primary activity of our teaching function, it’s hard for me to keep in touch with what the needs are and keep my head based in reality.”
However, Dew is hardly less active outside the classroom. A process he helped develop with NorTel is currently being implemented for high-performance transistor fabrication, while his work in collaboration with NUCRYST Pharmaceuticals involves the manufacture of antibacterial coatings for medical bandages.
Dew shows an equal devotion to fostering the progress of nanotechnology overall and, aside from attracting funding for his research activities, he is involved in projects that promise to help support the growth of nanotechnology and secure the U of A’s reputation as a centre for development and research.
“One of the things that’s been quite exciting for me is I’m co-ordinating an initiative called the Sun Centre of Excellence for Integrated Nanotools. The idea behind the centre is to develop computational systems to support the development of nanotechnologies...The Canadian Micro-electronics Corporation is a sponsor, and their role in life is to enable university research and industrial research on microsystems, and extending this to the nanosystems is an obvious direction for them to go.”
Dew admits his academic and administrative activities don’t leave him a lot of spare time, but his family takes first priority when he’s away from the halls of academe.
“My life mostly revolves around my family these days. I have two kids--one’s just about five and the other is seven. I try to make sure my weekends are there for them.”
This article originally appeared in Express News.