Michael Thompson

Professor Michael Thompson is a tenured faculty member in the Department of Materials Science and Engineering at Cornell University's College of Engineering. He holds the Dwight C. Baum Professorship in Engineering and specializes in advanced materials processing, particularly semiconductor materials under pulsed laser exposure. His research focuses on transient thermal processing (nanosecond to sub-second timescales) for material property modification and characterization, with applications in semiconductors, EUV lithography, and photonic materials. Thompson has authored over 120 papers and 20 patents, emphasizing industrial challenges like front-end junction formation and flexible electronics.

Education: B.S. in Physics (CalTech, 1979), M.S./Ph.D. in Physics (Cornell, 1982/1984). He has received prestigious awards including the North American Award for Technical Contribution to the Semiconductor Industry (2009), multiple Cornell Excellence in Teaching Awards, and the Stephen H. Weiss Presidential Fellow designation (2021). His teaching focuses on thermodynamics and electronic properties, with a commitment to making abstract concepts accessible through real-world examples.

Service: Leads curriculum development, ABET accreditation, and industry outreach. His lab develops novel methods for autonomous materials discovery using AI-driven approaches. Current projects include laser spike annealing for semiconductor doping and high-throughput synthesis of metastable materials.