On Wednesday the 12th of November, Martin van den Brink, President and Chief Technology Officer of ASML, spent the day in Twente. He ended the day by giving a lecture in the DesignLab of the university he studied more than 30 years ago. In fact, it was the first time in all those years he returned to the University of Twente to give a lecture, as he normally does not accept invitations for lectures, speeches and interviews. The lecture was organised by KIVI Students Twente, in collaboration with the study associations Arago, Astatine and Scintilla, as well as with the MESA+ institute.

Right after he studied applied physics in Enschede and electrical engineering in Arnhem, Martin van den Brink joined ASML in 1984. At the time, ASML was a small start-up of Philips, with 50 people working a "wooden shed", as moderator Victor van der Chijs put it in his introduction. After this introduction, Martin van den Brink elaborated on the years that followed, explained the fundamentals of ASML's lithography machines, and introduced the state-of-the-art machinery that the multibillion euro company produces today. Insightful was his comparison in computational power and possibilities between 1984 and today. It made the audience realise how the speaker has not only experienced this growth first-hand, but has also contributed to this progress at the forefront of technology! This comparison came with the insight that one should never be afraid of "exponential curves", which was the main message of the talk. Martin van den Brink explained very well how, at any point in time, the past looks easy, while the future always looks difficult. Exponential growth should not be feared; it is this type of development which truly offers possibilities for profit and business. He also doesn't believe in Moore's law coming to an end soon, as some critics do believe, as he argued there will always be new ways to improve.

What further changed in the course of the last few decades is the fact that big technological discoveries can no longer be accomplished by small teams. Instead, as the systems have become more and more complex, larger and larger collaborations are required. Therefore, he plead for investing in connections, both on organisational level, as on personal level in education.

At the end of the lecture there was some time for the audience to ask questions. Here, Martin van den Brink explained how important he thinks learning pure technical knowledge is, compared to spending too much time on acquiring management and organisational skills. He also thinks that the technical educational programmes at the university should always focus on making sure students "get their fundamentals right." In the end he also shared a great story about a crucial moment in the history of ASML (a story that he also told on the company's YouTube channel).

At the drinks afterwards, Martin van den Brink stayed quite long to talk some more with the many young people that were present at the event. It is not surprising that many of these conversations were about technical aspects. Some of his employees were present as well, and they also confirmed that, even in the management role that he has, a lot of his meetings are still purely technical, where everyone is welcome, and speaks on the same level and with the same passion. It is this sort of thing that makes that describing Martin van den Brink as an "engineer in every fibre of his being" might still be an understatement.

Description

Martin van den Brink is Chief Technology Officer (CTO) and President of chip machine manufacturer ASML. Together with CEO Peter Wennink, he heads this electronics giant, where he has worked since the start-up phase. ASML's story can be described as a success story of American proportions. Almost everyone at our university knows this company; it is one of the big Dutch market world leaders that is highly regarded both in our country and elsewhere in the world (with a market share of reportedly around 80 per cent). In 1984, however, this was different. Back then, the headquarters of the newly founded company consisted of a wooden shack on the site that is now the High Tech Campus in Eindhoven, where only a small number of people worked at the time. Employees of the time recount with verve how a young Martin van den Brink drew out one of the first successful lithography machines on a flip-chart board in the early years.

After studying physics in Twente and electrical engineering in Arnhem, Martin van den Brink joined the newly founded company in 1984. Since then, he has risen to President and CTO. In these positions, he leads the technical development of ASML, which now employs more than 14 thousand people. Within ASML, and far beyond, he is greatly appreciated: both as a person and a director, and because of his vast technical knowledge. The more than 10 patents to his name speak for themselves, and he is considered a great innovator and pioneer within his field. This has since led to an honorary doctorate from the University of Amsterdam, a royal honour as Ridder in de Orde van de Nederlandse Leeuw is, a Bob Graham Award for "marketing excellence", a Cledo Brunetti Award for his contributions in the field of nanotechnology, and Robert N. Noyce Medal for his extraordinary contribution to the microelectronics industry.

There is even an award named after Martin van den Brink himself. It is presented every two years to someone who has contributed greatly to the importance of Dutch systems architecture in the global economy. In the description of the award, Martin van den Brink is described as the most successful system architect the Netherlands has known. Thanks in part to ASML's precise lithography machines, we now have tablets, phones and laptops of the high quality we are used to, and ASML's success is largely attributed to Martin van den Brink.

On Wednesday 12 October, one of the most seasoned UT alumni will return to UT to talk about his success story.

Afterwards, there will be an opportunity to talk afterwards over a drink. Participation is completely free. Be there!

Speaker(s)

Martin van den Brink, ASML

Location

University of Twente, Design Lab

Organiser

KIVI Students Twente

Name and contact details for information

Rob Lammerink

r.e.m.lammerink@student.utwente.nl

ASML