16/09/2026
A 19-year collaboration has evolved into a research-and-education pipeline connecting Sabancı University students and researchers with IHP’s high-frequency circuit and technology ecosystem.
Leadership, Participants and a Shared Vision
Participants at the 2026 Annual Review:
- IHP Microelectronics: Prof. Corrado Carta (Director, Circuit Design Department), Prof. Andreas Mai (Director, Technology Department), Dr. Melik Yazici (Scientist, Technology Department), Dr. Batuhan Sutbas (Group Leader, Circuit Design Department).
- Sabancı University: Prof. Dr. Yusuf Leblebici (President, Sabancı University), Prof. Dr. Emre Erdem (Dean, Faculty of Engineering and Natural Sciences - FENS), Prof. Dr. Yasar Gurbuz (Faculty Member, Electronics Engineering).
Opening remarks: a partnership with institutional significance
Prof. Dr. Yusuf Leblebici, President of Sabancı University, underscored the importance of the Sabancı University–IHP relationship as a long-term institutional partnership rather than a collection of individual projects. In the context of the annual review, the collaboration can be seen as a strategic bridge connecting Sabancı University’s education and research environment with IHP’s advanced microelectronics technology and circuit-design capabilities. Its value is particularly visible in the way students, faculty, research projects and international opportunities move through the same ecosystem—from teaching and internships to theses, publications, chip development and future joint projects.
“The real strength of the Joint Lab is its ability to turn sustained institutional cooperation into opportunities for people: students, researchers and faculty members who can work together at the frontier of microelectronics.”
— Prof. Dr. Yusuf Leblebici, President of Sabancı University
Closing remarks: building the next generation of high-frequency research
Prof. Corrado Carta, Director of IHP’s Circuit Design Department, emphasized the strategic value of the collaboration from IHP’s perspective as well. The Joint Lab provides a mechanism for IHP to engage directly with a strong university research and education environment while developing high-frequency technologies and circuits with students and researchers. The accumulated record of student mobility, joint publications and advanced circuit projects provides a strong basis for expanding the partnership toward sub-THz and THz systems, new technology modules, packaging, measurement and larger international research proposals.
“The next stage is about strengthening what has already been established: a durable platform for education, student exchange and ambitious research that creates value for both IHP and Sabancı University.”
— Prof. Corrado Carta, Director of Circuit Design Department, IHP Microelectronics
A collaboration measured not only in years, but in people, papers and silicon
What began in 2007 as a collaboration between Sabancı University and IHP has grown into a sustained platform for high-frequency integrated-circuit research, education and student mobility. At the 11 September 2026 annual review meeting on the Sabancı University campus, the two institutions looked back at nearly two decades of joint activity—and, more importantly, laid out a roadmap that puts students, advanced RF/mm-wave design and sub-THz/THz research at the center of the next phase.
- 19 Years of Continuous Collaboration: Established in 2007, official opening of Joint Lab in 2014, entering an expanded new phase in 2024–2026.
- 122 Student Internships: Extensive bilateral exchange offering Sabancı University students direct immersion in Europe’s premier microelectronics research cleanrooms and laboratories.
- 58 Joint Scientific Publications: 15 high-impact journal articles and 43 international conference papers co-authored by Sabancı University and IHP researchers since 2007.
- 5 Papers Accepted in 2026: Cutting-edge contributions spanning sub-THz power amplification, power detectors, and novel semiconductor device physics.
From 2007 Beginnings to an Expanding Research Horizon
The timeline is unusually long and fruitful for an academic–industrial research partnership. The collaboration began in 2007, followed by the official opening of the Joint Lab at Sabancı University in 2014. A dynamic new phase commenced in 2024 with institutional visits and intensified roadmapping. As the collaboration enters 2026, the number of projects expands into broader horizons—evolving from initial device and circuit studies into a deeply integrated model uniting curriculum, international internships, graduate research, and high-frequency chip fabrication.
The stated mission is scientific excellence through bilateral academic lectures and mobility, joint development of More-than-Moore technology modules, and benchmarking and application of new modules in RF, mm-wave, and sub-THz circuits. Today, the research envelope encompasses technology exploration, sensory and radar systems, high-speed communication transceivers, and advanced packaging.
The student pipeline is becoming the collaboration’s most visible asset
For Sabancı University Electronics Engineering students, perhaps the most consequential outcome of the Joint Lab is the scale and quality of the internship and mobility pipeline. Across 19 years, 122 students have completed internships at IHP’s facilities in Frankfurt (Oder), Germany. Undergraduate participation has remained exceptionally strong, highlighted in 2026 by 11 undergraduate Erasmus exchange students and two on-site graduate students conducting direct experimental work.
The annual review highlighted the distinguished academic trajectories of Joint Lab alumni, noting direct PhD placements at world-class institutions including MIT, UCSD, UCSB, EPFL, Columbia, Carnegie Mellon, TU Munich, and Boston University. The Virtual Lab architecture establishes an unbroken educational continuum: rigorous coursework at Sabancı University → hands-on IC design → international research exposure at IHP → thesis completion → peer-reviewed international publication.
2025–2026: Research Output Moves Decisively Toward the Sub-THz Frontier
The 2025/2026 period clearly demonstrates the maturity of the Virtual Lab as a research engine and talent incubator. Four Master of Science (M.Sc.) students—Alp Bilgin, Yankı Doğa Pekindil, Mete Kaan Lermi, and Hüseyin Kaya—successfully completed their theses in close joint collaboration with IHP’s Circuit Design Department. Their graduate research addressed key technological frontiers, including ultra-high-frequency switching from DC up to 300 GHz, high-efficiency SiGe BiCMOS power amplification, satellite communication (SATCOM) receiver modules, wideband amplification, and J-band radar front-ends. Simultaneously, undergraduate researchers spearheaded projects in passive sub-THz components and multiphysics modeling of quantum computing buses.
The 2026 publication pipeline is distinguished not only by its scientific depth, but by the prominent role of student researchers:
- [AWARD] Student Travel Grant Award (EuMC 2026): M.Sc. researcher Mete Kaan Lermi was honored with a prestigious Student Travel Grant for his research on a 220–290 GHz differential power amplifier in 130-nm SiGe BiCMOS, accepted for presentation at the European Microwave Conference (EuMC 2026). The work delivers state-of-the-art output power and efficiency in the sub-terahertz domain.
- [UNDERGRAD RESEARCH] Device Physics Breakthrough (PRIME & THERMINIC 2026): Demonstrating that research begins at the undergraduate level, Duru Bozkurt authored papers accepted at IEEE PRIME 2026 and THERMINIC 2026 focusing on the electro-thermal and multiphysics modeling of reconfigurable SiGeSn field-effect transistors. This work expands the Virtual Lab beyond classical circuit design into advanced semiconductor device physics.
- [CONFERENCE PAPER] Millimeter-Wave Radar & Sensor Detectors (EuMIC 2026): High-dynamic-range power detectors operating at 120/160 GHz were accepted to the European Microwave Integrated Circuits Conference (EuMIC 2026), presenting crucial building blocks for compact millimeter-wave radar and industrial sensing.
- [CONFERENCE PAPER] High-Efficiency D-Band Amplification (APMC 2026): Advanced D-band power amplifier research in 130-nm SiGe BiCMOS was accepted to the Asia-Pacific Microwave Conference (APMC 2026), achieving breakthrough power-added efficiency (PAE) and output power for next-generation wireless backhaul.
From Concept to Silicon: A Research Portfolio Built for Measurement
A defining strength highlighted during the review is that the Sabancı University–IHP collaboration does not stop at theoretical simulation or paper designs. The partnership maintains a complete, full-stack development cycle that translates design concepts into physical silicon chips and experimental characterization.
Looking ahead across 2026 and beyond, the joint research portfolio is actively expanding across next-generation radar systems, SATCOM receiver architectures, broadband communication ICs, and sub-THz imaging arrays. Multiple integrated circuit blocks and system-level test modules are moving through fabrication in IHP’s advanced BiCMOS technology nodes. By integrating on-chip circuit design with advanced interposer technologies and RF packaging, the team is establishing end-to-end measurement capabilities that validate system performance in real-world operating environments.
Projects and external funding: from collaboration to scale
The Joint Lab framework serves as an active vehicle for joint project acquisition and multilateral research funding across national and international programs, including TÜBİTAK–DAAD, European Union Horizon frameworks, and international partnerships.
Recent collaborative initiatives reflect an ambitious drive toward competitive European research consortia. An earlier joint proposal under the EU Horizon Twinning call, QCRYO (targeting cryogenic high-frequency circuits for quantum computing, prepared in collaboration with Finland’s VTT) and this intensive proposal effort laid valuable groundwork for international consortia. Currently, the team is channeling its primary European project efforts toward an ambitious EIC Pathfinder concept, which focuses on fully integrated sub-THz non-contact probing architectures for biofluidic applications. In parallel, the partnership continues collaborative research on reconfigurable millimeter-wave phased-array transceivers for 6G communication and radar sensing.
These competitive project initiatives mark a strategic shift from individual student placements toward large-scale, internationally networked research consortia—positioning competitive research grant acquisition as a pillar of the next phase.
The Next Phase: Predictable, International and Student-Centered
The forward roadmap presented at the review outlines clear, actionable targets for the coming academic cycles:
- Sustained Student Mobility: Maintaining a steady pipeline of 10+ student interns annually, supplemented by short-term researcher exchanges and continuous guest-scientist visits for Sabancı University researchers at IHP.
- Joint Educational Programs: Continuation of joint lectures and seminars, co-advising of B.Sc. graduation projects and M.Sc. theses, and establishing a structured joint Ph.D. pathway in partnership with TU Berlin.
- Frontier Research Expansion: Deepening joint exploration into sub-THz radar, THz spectroscopy, SATCOM transceivers, and novel microelectronic packaging.
- Multilateral Funding: Pursuing targeted bilateral Turkey–Germany calls, DFG, BMFTR, TÜBİTAK, and EU Horizon funding lines.
- Academic Community Building: Organizing recurring annual strategic reviews, specialized technical workshops, and international summer schools.
Why This Matters for Sabancı University EE Students and Faculty
For students, the Joint Lab delivers an opportunity unmatched in conventional academic curricula: direct immersion in an authentic, high-caliber international research ecosystem where semiconductor physics, integrated circuit design, packaging, and cleanroom measurement coalesce. The 2025/2026 track record proves that undergraduate and master’s students are not merely observers, but primary contributors—publishing at top-tier conferences, winning awards, and leading chip tape-outs.
For faculty and the wider Sabancı University community, the alliance bridges Sabancı University’s academic excellence with IHP’s world-leading semiconductor foundries and design infrastructure, creating a durable springboard for high-impact joint publications, international patents, and competitive global grants.
A Partnership Built for the Future: Celebrating 19 Years
The 2026 Annual Review affirmed that the Sabancı University – IHP partnership has grown far beyond a conventional exchange program. Its first 19 years established deep institutional trust, exceptional student mobility, and an internationally respected publication record. Today, the collaboration operates as a self-sustaining innovation engine: preparing the next generation of engineers, pushing silicon circuits toward the sub-terahertz frontier, and anchoring Sabancı University firmly within Europe’s leading microelectronics network.
