From top student in college to scientific research powerhouse

Chapter 18 He actually wanted to sell!

Li Jiaxin and the other two never left.

They simply went back to their hotel to rest. Having traveled over a thousand kilometers to Jiangzhou, they couldn't possibly leave that same day; it would be best to resolve the matter once and for all.

The three of them continued their discussion along the way.

"It sounds like there's nothing wrong with it. I won't go into the research methodology, but the model is definitely real."

"That doctoral student is really skilled. He explained things in great detail, and he explained the analysis of each parameter, the results analysis, and even some microscopic correlations very clearly."

"He also has a very good understanding of the basic theories and technologies of semiconductor manufacturing."

Wang Changjiang suddenly said, "Doesn't the company conduct campus recruitment at Jiangzhou University every year? We need to reserve such talent in advance."

Li Jiaxin laughed and scolded, "You're thinking too far ahead."

Du Cheng changed the subject, pondering before asking, "It's true that the doctoral student is highly skilled, and he said that the model can be improved with data. Is that true?"

"That should be okay, right?"

Wang Changjiang said, "If we can figure it out, then we can definitely narrow down the scope. The problem lies in the difficulty of perfecting it, and also, to what extent it can be perfected..."

"So, it's certain that the model can be improved. I don't know how much of the difficulty he mentioned is exaggerated, but the research is indeed very important to us."

Li Jiaxin gave a summary.

The semiconductor industry is highly competitive. For conventional semiconductors, the goal is to minimize manufacturing costs, while breakthroughs in cutting-edge technologies require even greater precision.

The company invests a large amount of research and development funds every year, which are calculated in hundreds of millions of yuan.

If there were a model that could accurately calculate the properties of a substrate, even if only within a certain range, it could provide direction for research and development and help save a lot of time and money.

The three returned to the hotel and explained the situation to Shi Yaokun, the team leader and deputy director of the materials department.

Shi Yaokun asked in a concluding manner, "So, the model can be improved by filling in data, but the improvement process is difficult, right?"

That's exactly what they meant.

Li Jiaxin nodded.

Shi Yaokun pondered for a moment and then said, "Go again tomorrow and ask if you can buy their research results and methods."

“We take the results and methods and conduct our own research.”

Li Jiaxin, Wang Changjiang, and Du Cheng were all stunned.

Li Jiaxin hesitated before speaking, "Team Leader Shi, isn't this a bit inappropriate?"

Wang Changjiang and Du Cheng nodded in agreement.

When a university is found to have a good research direction, the conventional approach is to conduct university-industry cooperation.

Buying research results is normal, but buying research methods too?
That's a bit like bullying someone.

Shi Yaokun said frankly, "I know this is not good, but the other party is just a doctoral student with limited abilities."

"The model is so difficult to perfect, requiring extremely high computational power and highly skilled personnel for analysis. Wouldn't it be more convenient for us to buy the research methodology and organize the research team at the R&D base?"

"We're not forcing anyone to buy or sell; we're just asking to see if it's worth it. Whether it's sold or not is entirely up to us!"

"Maybe they'll agree?"

Li Jiaxin and the other two exchanged glances and agreed that Shi Yaokun's words made sense.

The other party is a doctoral student with limited abilities.

By purchasing the research results and methods, and then organizing personnel directly at the research base to conduct the research, the research and development speed will be faster and the results will be more accurate.

However, it wouldn't sound good if this got out!

Li Jiaxin sighed deeply, "It seems I'm going to offend my old classmate this time..."

……

When the people from the startup company left, Zhou Qi did not go with them.

He is the administrative assistant in the Faculty of Science, specifically responsible for university-industry cooperation.

Zhang Minghao's explanation was too technical; he couldn't understand it at all—semiconductor substrates, devices, complex mathematical models—and just sat there blankly the whole time.

Only after Li Jiaxin and the other two left did he have a chance to find out the specifics.

"Doctoral student's research?"

"Models, refinements... Interested in new technologies? Semiconductor research, perhaps?"

Zhou Qi roughly understood.

By the time I saw the Faculty of Science administration building, it was almost time to leave work.

Administrative Director Wang Guiyuan was packing his things when he saw Zhou Qi return and immediately asked, "How did it go?"

"What are these tech startups here for?" His tone was clearly indifferent.

Xinchuang Technology is a large semiconductor company, ranking among the top five in the domestic semiconductor industry, with a total market value of over 200 billion yuan and an annual R&D investment of several billion yuan.

Such a semiconductor company must have its own large-scale R&D base.

Even if there is a school-enterprise cooperation, it has nothing to do with Jiangzhou University. The only thing the university has to do with 'semiconductors' is the Applied Electromagnetic Laboratory.

The Applied Electromagnetic Laboratory is a small research institution with only three full-time researchers and an average annual funding of less than two million. What makes it so attractive to large semiconductor companies?

Zhou Qidao said, "A doctoral student's research, such as mathematical models, involves semiconductor manufacturing."

"I didn't understand either. It was all about substrates and devices, it's all math."

"People who start new tech companies leave, but they might come back."

"PhD student?"

Wang Guiyuan asked in surprise, "What kind of doctoral student's research could attract the attention of a major company?"

"Xue Kun's student is named Zhang Minghao." Zhou Qi wrote down the name.

"Xue Kun? Zhang Minghao?"

Wang Guiyuan was taken aback, then immediately said, "I actually know this student!"

“He was a student that Xue Kun specifically requested, but when he enrolled, there was still a slight delay in the document review. After submitting it, Dean Tan said it was approved.”

"Why?" Zhou Qi asked, puzzled.

"It was on the news!"

Wang Guiyuan said, "I was expelled from Donggang University for my doctoral studies because of problems with my experiments."

"Now it seems he really is capable; even a doctoral student's research can attract the attention of large companies. No wonder Xue Kun specifically asked for him..."

……

The next morning, Li Jiaxin and his two teammates returned to the applied electromagnetic laboratory.

Zhou Qi followed again.

He's just here to go through the motions; it's hard to say whether a cooperation will actually be reached, but he still needs to show his attitude.

The group headed straight to the conference room.

Li Jiaxin sat down, glanced at Xue Kun several times, and finally spoke after a long while, "We went back and discussed it."

"A perfected model requires a lot of computation and a lot of complex analysis, right?"

Zhang Minghao didn't understand what the other person meant, but he still nodded affirmatively, "That's right."

“Model refinement is complex, troublesome, and time-consuming, and we hope to refine it as soon as possible.”

"The newly established microelectronics research base boasts a large research team, a top-tier talent pool, a world-class research environment, and a wealth of semiconductor experimental data..."

"By conducting research at the newly established microelectronics research base, we believe the model will be improved more quickly and accurately!"

Li Jiaxin talked at length, going on and on, leaving everyone present completely bewildered.

He finally got to the point: "So, we discussed it and hoped to fund the purchase of the model and the underlying research and analysis methods."

Simply put, we want to buy the research results and methods!

After Li Jiaxin finished speaking, he, Wang Changjiang, and Du Cheng all felt a little embarrassed.

When others have good ideas or research directions, they just come and pay to buy them...

That's going too far!
Most of the research and development between enterprises and universities is conducted through university-enterprise cooperation.

It's really unreasonable to buy the research methodology along with the research results after only a small success.

"You want to buy research methods?!"

Xue Kun's tone immediately changed, and the others' expressions also turned sour.

Buying research results is understandable, but buying research methods?

Isn't this blatant bullying?
If you're going to collaborate, then collaborate! Buy the research methods and do the research yourself. How can a company do something like that?!
Everyone else looked at Zhang Minghao.

Zhang Minghao was also taken aback. He thought the other party wanted to discuss cooperation, but he didn't expect them to be buying a package deal on methods.
That's great!
Don't think that the research is easy; it is actually very difficult. The reason he was able to get results so quickly is because he frequently used "Correct Perception" in the process.

Can others really do it using the same method?
His eyes lit up, and he pursed his lips, asking hesitantly, "How much are you asking?"

Li Jiaxin was stunned.

Shouldn't it have been a stern rebuke and a direct rejection? Why this reaction?
Everyone else was stunned as well.

He actually wanted to sell!

(End of this chapter)