Applied Materials - GPS Engineer

Leading technical support and tooling development for semiconductor manufacturing equipment.

Key Responsibilities

• Managed the image processing and computing modules within the team
• Created various tools to troubleshoot issues in the field
• Participated in R&D discussions and provided requirements for future developments
• Resolved complex opto-mechanical issues on-site and at customer FABs

Impact

Data-Driven Field Support

Before: Manual field issue tracking with limited visibility into patterns

After: Automated daily collection feeding into Tableau dashboard used by multiple teams for decision-making

• Improved time-to-diagnosis for recurring issues
• Reduced escalations through early pattern detection
• Dashboard reviewed daily by managers for prioritization

Urgent Alert System

Built monitoring system that surfaces critical lab issues to management in real-time:

• Faster response to equipment failures
• Reduced wasted lab time and resources
• Clear escalation paths for different severity levels

Onboarding Redesign

Designed structured onboarding program for new team members:

• Consistent ramp experience regardless of mentor availability
• Defined graduation criteria for independent work readiness
• Documentation created became permanent team resource

Failure Narrative: Opto-Mechanical Drift Investigation

Encountered persistent imaging drift at a customer site that wasn't responding to standard calibration procedures.

Investigation approach:

1. Systematic isolation of variables (thermal, mechanical, optical)
2. Data collection across multiple operating conditions
3. Correlation analysis against module tolerance specifications

Root cause: Module tolerance stack-up causing misalignment under specific thermal conditions

Resolution: Implemented monitoring script to detect early drift signatures and established calibration schedule tailored to operating environment

Outcome: Reduced recurrence and faster diagnosis of similar issues

Technologies & Tools

SolidWorks Composer, Tableau, Python scripting, Image Processing systems, Database design