Dr. Lawrence Overzet

Professor of Electrical and Computer Engineering

Head of the Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering (2015-2022)

Licensed Professional Engineer

Past Accolades

Fellow of AVS

Senior member of IEEE

Golden Key International Honor Society

UT System Regents’ Outstanding Teaching Award, 2011

Polykarp Kusch Lecturer, 2005

Research Interests

Plasma science, plasma processing, etching, deposition, micro-plasmas, semiconductor device manufacturing, carbon nanotubes, semiconductor device theory

Education

BS, MS, PhD in electrical engineering from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign

Electrical, Computer Engineer Wins Plasma Prize

Dr. Lawrence Overzet, professor of electrical and computer engineering at The University of Texas at Dallas, received the 2021 Plasma Prize from the Plasma Science & Technology Division of AVS. The award was announced during the AVS Virtual Symposium.

AVS, a professional group focused on surface, interface, vacuum and thin-film science and technology, awards the Plasma Prize annually for outstanding scientific and technical contributions to the fields of plasma science and technology.

Overzet’s research in the Erik Jonsson School of Engineering and Computer Science focuses on the plasmas used in semiconductor device manufacturing. He has studied plasma etching and plasma deposition — either removing or adding materials using plasma technologies that are used to fabricate electronic components in computers and other everyday equipment. He also studies both microscopic plasmas and plasmas formed at atmospheric pressures which are used in a variety of applications including medicine, sterilization and lighting.

In particular, his group has diagnosed the low-pressure plasmas used in semiconductor processing and developed diagnostics for pulsed plasmas. In addition, his group has developed a high-density plasma source and a balanced-charge approach to plasma processing using ion-ion plasmas. In conjunction with colleagues in France, he has developed micro-plasma sources and diagnostics. Finally, in conjunction with a UT Dallas colleague, he has studied the growth of spinnable carbon nanotube forests and the use of sheets of interlocked carbon nanotubes in batteries.

He has taught many different courses at UT Dallas covering a broad range of topics from the theory of electronic devices to processing technology and from electromagnetic fields and waves to plasma science and technology.

Overzet, a licensed professional engineer and holder of nine patents, has received several honors, including fellow of the AVS, the University’s Polykarp Kusch Lecturer in 2005 and a recipient of the University of Texas System Regents’ Outstanding Teaching Award in 2011. He is also a senior member of the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers, and a member of the Golden Key International Honour Society. He is a father of four and grandfather of three and said he is a disciple of Jesus Christ.

Overzet joined the Jonsson School in 1988, soon after the school was founded, and he served as head of the Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering from 2015 to 2022. He has published roughly 100 journal articles and 300 presentations at international symposia. He earned bachelor’s, master’s and doctoral degrees in electrical engineering from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign.