(Frankfurt a. M., September 8, 2023) A lack of skilled workers, supply bottlenecks and strong competition from the US and Asia: in Germany, microelectronics is a field faced with major challenges. This makes campaigns like the INVENT a CHIP (IaC) school competition all the more important for getting young people interested in microchips & co, especially since the small components are fundamental to many developments in consumer electronics, the energy transition and protecting the environment. A total of 1,076 pupils from 137 schools submitted their quiz solutions in 2023. During the quiz, the pupils had to answer up to 20 questions about challenging aspects of microelectronics. This included topics such as the use of microchips in space, global positioning via satellites, microchip production, as well as brain research as part of the ADDONISS experiment on the International Space Station ISS.
First place for Dormagen’s Leibniz Gymnasium: commitment to STEM pays off
The pupils participating from the Leibniz Gymnasium in Dormagen, 80 in total, achieved the highest average quiz score, taking first place in the INVENT a CHIP school competition for the third time. The prize money of €1,000 will go towards expanding and implementing additional STEM projects at the school. As a supervising teacher, Jörn Schneider has actively promoted the INVENT a CHIP competition for years, demonstrating that consistent commitment to STEM subjects pays off. He states: “Taking part in IaC is a stepping stone to introducing our pupils to microelectronics. We get started as early as sixth grade through a small electronics project and repeatedly address the topic in small projects right through until the final years of school. Activities include soldering circuit boards and designing an electronic circuit. I’m involved in the STEM field in various ways, which primarily include quantum physics, quantum computers and projects on electronics and microcontrollers. As an old ‘hobbyist and tinkerer,’ I like to pass on my enthusiasm for electronics to my pupils”. This commitment has paid off, as the Leibniz Gymnasium has repeatedly been among the Top 10 at the INVENT a CHIP quiz since 2010.
Second and third place: an impressive number of participants
The second place in the INVENT a CHIP school competition with €750 in prize money went to the Schloss Hasenberg boarding school in Geisenheim, where 89 pupils participated in the competition. Third place with €500 in prize money was awarded to the 218 participants from the Heinrich Hertz technical college in Düsseldorf. Together with the INVENT a CHIP challenge and the accompanying camp, the INVENT a CHIP school competition forms the core of the overall contest. On top of the 20 quiz questions, further campaigns entail learning the basics of chip design and developing a first chip design.
