“The goal is to develop designs that are first time right”

As Chief Expert MEMS Design and Simulation, I shape the technological and methodological direction of complex MEMS sensors and support their transition into robust, high-volume production products. Working at the intersection of design, technology, simulation, and system integration, I support teams throughout the entire development process.

A key focus is maintaining a consistent end-to-end system perspective while ensuring close alignment between design and technology through coordinated roadmaps. The goal is to use predictive models and cause-and-effect-based approaches to develop designs that are “first time right” and ready for series production at an early stage.

The field has evolved significantly toward data-driven and automated development approaches. Simulation and virtual validation have become essential for shortening development cycles and reducing risks early in the process.

Artificial intelligence is accelerating this transformation by supporting optimization and decision-making. At the same time, the demand for customer-specific, system-oriented solutions continues to grow.

In addition to core sensor applications, new areas such as acoustic systems are emerging, increasing both complexity and innovation potential.

At the core are design and architecture decisions spanning different time horizons.

Across projects, I make decisions on the appropriate level of simulation detail, select the most efficient modeling approaches, and ensure the effective system-level integration of different engineering disciplines.

From a strategic perspective, I focus on developing relevant technologies and methodologies, driving the targeted use of simulation capabilities, and advancing critical design elements that will shape future product generations. Throughout all these activities, maintaining close alignment between design, wafer technology and system remains essential.

This role combines deep technical expertise with the opportunity to shape development approaches across disciplines. I am particularly motivated by analyzing complex physical interactions and translating them into practical solutions. International collaboration constantly provides new perspectives and inspiration.

What I find especially exciting is the opportunity to explore emerging technologies at an early stage and derive tangible product improvements using those technologies.

Our Component-level simulation enables us to understand, validate, and optimize the behavior, performance, and limitations of our MEMS sensor early in the development process and enables subsequent system evaluations. This allows for a more precise alignment between requirements and design, early identification of risks, and faster and better-informed decision-making. The result is shorter development cycles and more robust, highly competitive products.

A major success factor is the early identification of promising target concepts, which helps reduce the number of development iterations. Predictive models and system-level analyses enable informed decisions even before physical prototypes are available. This leads to shorter development times, more efficient use of resources, and higher design quality. Standardized, automated, and globally scalable workflows ensure both scalability and rapid responsiveness to new requirements.

The field is being driven by increasing performance requirements, growing system complexity, and ongoing cost pressure.

Key trends include:

• End-to-end simulation throughout the entire development process
• The use of AI for optimization and the exploration of new solution spaces
• Co-simulation and Reduced Order Models (ROMs)
• Increasing digitalization of development processes

The ability to model complex systems quickly and reliably, while harnessing rapidly evolving AI capabilities, will become a decisive competitive advantage.

Innovation emerges through close interdisciplinary collaboration across technology development, design, system integration, and customer projects. Shared understanding is fostered through workshops, co-simulation projects, and methodological initiatives.

By combining expertise across locations, best practices can be rapidly scaled and leveraged globally. The goal is to establish innovation as a connected and sustainable process throughout the entire organization.