Universitas Indonesia (UI) inaugurated Prof. Dr.Eng. Ir. Arief Udhiarto, S.T., M.T., IPU., as a permanent professor in the field of Nanoelectronic Devices, Faculty of Engineering (FT), at Balai Sidang, UI Depok Campus, on Wednesday, November 6. On that occasion, Prof. Arief delivered his inaugural speech titled “Budidaya Pasangan Elektron-Hol untuk Kemaslahatan dan Kemandirian Bangsa”(Cultivating Electron-Hol Pairs for the Benefit and Independence of the Nation).
In his speech, Prof. Arif said that, currently, society is stunned by the progress of Generative Artificial Intelligence (GenAI), which allows electronic devices to learn and make decisions based on data. The development of AI continues to drive the progress of electronic devices, making them smarter and more responsive to user needs. This drives society so spoiled with various sophisticated equipment that helps them in their daily activities.
On the other hand, said Prof. Arief, society is faced with the reality that military drones and guided missiles can be fired from thousands of kilometers away and destroy targets with a very high level of precision. This fact makes us aware that electronic technology is not only limited to communication and entertainment equipment. Electronic technology has become a geopolitical and security issue for a country.
This trend shows how electronic devices are increasingly integrated into everyday life, providing greater convenience and functionality while simultaneously becoming a threat to human survival. “Behind all the sophistication and convenience is a small object in the form of a chip/IC that contains thousands to tens of billions of semiconductor devices in micro or nanometer sizes. Chips have become the heart of all modern technological advances today,” said Prof. Arief. He also described the importance of a deep understanding of electronic devices and how the electron-hole pairs (electrons and holes) in them drive the technological advances that society enjoys today.
He further explained that the development of semiconductors is a key factor in determining the strength of the global economy. The chip and semiconductor industry, which is now a giant industry, contributes to the world economy and significantly influences geopolitics. Therefore, he emphasized the challenges faced by today’s semiconductor technology, especially in facing the limitations of physics due to the size of devices that are almost close to the size of atoms.
As a solution, Prof. Arief conveyed the development of “Beyond CMOS” technology, such as single electron transistors (SET), organic electronics, and Tunnel Field-Effect Transistors (FET), which have the potential to open a new era in the efficiency and capability of electronic devices.
Based on this, Prof. Arief invited all parties—including the government, academics, and industry—to unite to build a national semiconductor ecosystem that can support Indonesia’s technological independence. He also appreciated the steps of the Indonesian government which has designed a roadmap for the development of a semiconductor ecosystem through the Indonesian Semiconductor Consortium (ICDeC), which involves 16 universities and industries to support the development of chip design in Indonesia.
“Considering the urgency and strategic nature of this technology, as an academic, I invite all parties to work together to prepare the nation’s best talents to become semiconductor craftsmen for the benefit and independence of the Indonesian nation,” he said.
Prof. Dr.Eng. Ir. Arief Udhiarto, S.T., M.T., IPU., completed his undergraduate and master’s degrees at FTUI, namely Bachelor of Engineering in 2001 and Master of Engineering in 2004. Then, in 2012 he successfully obtained a Doctor of Engineering degree in Nanovision Technology, Shizuoka University, Japan. Then, he obtained a Professional Engineer degree at FTUI in 2023. He is known to be active in producing scientific works that have been published in various national and international journals. Some of these scientific publications include Fabrication of Organic Light Emitting Diodes (OLEDs) using the Lamination method in a Vacuum-Free Environment (2023); Probing ionization characteristics of underwater plasma arc discharge using simultaneous current and voltage versus time measurement in carbon nanoparticle synthesis (2022); and Band-to-band tunneling mechanism observed at room temperature in lateral nondegenerately doped nanoscale p-n and p-i-n silicon devices (2021).
The inauguration ceremony of his professorship led by UI Rector, Prof. Ari Kuncoro, S.E., M.A., Ph.D., was also attended by the Depok Metro Police Chief, Arya Perdana, SH., SIK., M.Si.; Head of Technical Committee 07-03 Nanotechnology, National Standardization Agency and Head of the Research Organization for Energy and Manufacture, BRIN, Dr. Haznan Abimanyu; Project coordinator UI-JICA Project for Human Resources Development, Ms. Hitomi KOTAKA; and North Sulawesi Police Chief for the 2021-2022 period, Irjen. Pol. (Purn.) Drs. Mulyatno, S.H., M.M.
