Contributor: John E.J. Schmitz
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John E.J. Schmitz was awarded his Ph.D. in Chemistry in 1984 from the Catholic University of Nijmegen (Netherlands). The title of his thesis is "Thermodynamic and Electrochemical Activation Parameters of Transistion Metal Compounds". In this work the reaction and activation entropy of oxidation or reduction reactions were studied of certain complex chemical compounds.
In 1984 he started a career in semiconductor technology at Philips Research Labs in Eindhoven, the Netherlands and worked after that in several development and manufacturing positions in locations in the USA, France and again the Netherlands. In 2002 Schmitz became the Chief Operating Officer Manufacturing Technology of SEMATECH (Austin, Texas) a consortium that develops semiconductor manufacturing technology, materials, and equipment for their member chip maker companies. Here he founded the International Sematech Manufacturing Initiative (ISMI) and created The Advanced Technology Development Facility Inc.
In 2005 Schmitz returned to Europe where he is currently leading the Process Technology Research group of NXP Semiconductors.
Schmitz has been intrigued with thermodynamics and especially the concept of entropy since his PhD thesis, and brings this fascinating science to everyone with an elegant, yet simple writing style that has garnered rave reviews. His passion for the subject matter is apparent from a recently published book entitled "The Second Law of Life. Energy, Technology and the Future of Earth As We Know It". In this book the link between the entropy concept and global environmental problems is explained.
John Schmitz holds six patents in the semiconductor field and has published over 45 scientific articles and a technical book in the field of integrated circuit technology ("Chemical Vapor Deposition of Tungsten and Tungsten Silicides for VLSI Applications").
Schmitz currently lives in a small town in Belgium with his wife, Pieternel, and his children; Lucas, Juliette, Emmeline, and Jasper.
Reviews of "The Second Law of Life. Energy, Technology and The Future of Earth as We know It"
This is one of the most personal science based books I've ever read, explaining not just the history of the topic, but the author’s own personal journey into discovering it's wonders and implications for us all. For fellow fans of Carl Sagan's 'Cosmos' TV series on Astrophysics, this book has the same style. I hope you all enjoy it as much as I did.
– Matt Grimshaw, Future Fab International
Imminently readable, it gives the layman reader an understanding of the fundamental principles of energy as well the urgent issues facing our lives and our planet. It should be read by every intelligent person.
– Robert H. Lieberman, Physics Department, Cornell University
The book gives an excellent overview of thermodynamics and entropy...Certainly, the relationship with environmental issues is clear and will hopefully give some people insight into the ideas of recycling.
– Martin Heerschop, GE Commercial Finance
As a lay reader, I found John Schmitz’s book on thermodynamics to be fascinating and easy to follow. Schmitz gives the reader a solid understanding of basic thermodynamics theory and the concept of entropy, along with a systematic description of how these ideas were developed and how they relate to everyday life.
– Paul Newman, McCombs School of Business, University of Texas at Austin
For more information about The Second Law of Life and energy and environmental topics go to John Schmitz' web blog.