Linking semiconductor fab footprints to planetary limits (Attributional LCA+)

Context

Semiconductor manufacturing is growing rapidly, while its processes are increasing in complexity and resource intensity. The imec.netzero virtual fab model is used to quantify life-cycle footprints of semiconductor technologies. While footprints are essential, decision-makers often need a more direct interpretation: how does a footprint relate to environmental limits, and what reduction level is needed to stay within those limits? Absolute environmental sustainability assessment approaches address this question by comparing footprints to carrying-capacity references (e.g., planetary-boundary-inspired budgets).

This work supports real-world fab decision-making by translating LCA footprints into clear “how far from the limit” and “how much reduction is needed” metrics, which helps prioritise improvements and communicate targets transparently.

Objective

The objective of this internship is to develop a clear and reproducible ‘footprint-to-limits’ interpretation layer for imec.netzero. This will be achieved by:

• Reviewing practical absolute sustainability / planetary boundary approaches that can be applied to industrial life-cycle results.
• Selecting suitable carrying-capacity references for a small set of priority impact categories relevant to fabs.
• Defining a straightforward mapping from attributional LCA results to metrics such as ‘share of limit’ and ‘required reduction’, with clearly stated assumptions and units.
• Proposing a default allocation approach (with one sensitivity alternative) that is practical for fab-related use cases and can be implemented consistently.

Responsibilities

You will actively engage in the research, selection, and packaging of absolute-sustainability references, and in preparing a calculation template that converts imec.netzero attributional LCA outputs into limit-related metrics. This will involve working closely with the sustainability research team to align methodological choices with the intended decision context, and with the tool team to ensure the outputs are implementation ready.

In practice, this will involve:

You will turn existing fab footprint results into limit-related metrics using a clear, reproducible conversion template.

• Comparing candidate references per impact category and documenting scope, assumptions, and limitations in a structured format.
• Building and testing a simple conversion template (e.g., Excel/CSV + documentation, optionally Python) that computes ‘share of limit’ and ‘required reduction’.
• Running a small proof-of-concept on existing fab footprint results to demonstrate interpretability and usability.
• Preparing concise documentation that explains how to use the outputs correctly and what conclusions are (and are not) supported.

Skills and Learning Objectives:

Applicants are expected to have a general background in engineering or environmental science. Familiarity with life-cycle thinking is a plus. Comfort with structured data (Excel/CSV) is required; Python is a strong advantage. During the internship, you will gain proficiency and enhance your skills in the following key areas:

• Interpretation of attributional LCA for complex industrial systems
• Absolute sustainability / planetary-boundary-informed assessment concepts
• Building transparent calculation templates and reproducible documentation
• Connecting scientific methods to decision-ready outputs in an operational tool