Dr. Robert Rhoades is the Co-Founder President and CTO of X-trinsic. He earned a Ph.D. in Electrical Engineering from the University of Illinois in 1992. His background includes 2 years at Oak Ridge National Laboratory researching high density plasma technology followed by 3 years at Motorola as a senior process engineer leading the effort to bring CMP into manufacturing for the first time. In 1997, he joined a small slurry company, Solution Technology, Inc, which was later acquired by Rodel, Inc (now part of Dupont). During five years at Rodel, he led the global process team and managed multiple applications labs in the USA and Asia. In 2002, Dr. Rhoades joined Entrepix as CTO and helped launch a new business model providing process and equipment services for customers using CMP for everything from R&D prototypes through volume production on virtually any material. In 2017, he joined Revasum, a polisher and grinder OEM based in San Luis Obispo, CA, where he served as CTO and led development efforts for advanced polishing and grinding equipment, particularly focused on ultrahard materials such as silicon carbide. Dr. Rhoades is a named inventor on more than 12 patents or patent applications and has authored more than 110 technical publications and conference presentations.
Bob is currently the Director of Customer Operations for X-trinsic. He is a highly regarded sales executive with over 40 years of experience in semiconductor processing and precision optics. Bob started his career as an optical technologist then general manager of a company making precision night observation devices for M-16 combat rifles, Bell UH-1 (Huey) and AH-1 (Cobra) helicopters, and M1A1 Abrams tanks. He Spent 19 years with Strausbaugh, including being an executive account manager at the very beginning of CMP technology (he sold the first CMP polisher to IBM in the 1980’s). Then joined Solution Technology, a slurry manufacturer, as VP of Sales. The company was soon acquired by Rodel, then Rohm & Haas, and is now part of DuPont Electronic Materials. Bob also has entrepreneurial talents having started his own company representing several semiconductor and materials suppliers, then spent 10 years helping grow Axus Technology. He is currently serving as President of the CMP Users Group (sponsored by AVS).
Director of Process Technology for X-trinsic Inc. He has spent his career conducting research and developing processes for the fabrication of exceptionally hard materials including sapphire, silicon carbide, and diamond. While at II-VI, Inc., he initially worked on the transition from 3inch to 100mm SiC wafers. Later, he spearheaded the efforts to develop the first fabrication methods to effectively produce large diamond optics for extreme ultra-violet lithography systems. In 2005, he joined Cree, Inc. (later Wolfspeed) and drove the development of the first single-wafer processes in preparation for 200mm wafer production. This involved working in tandem with the original equipment manufacturers to modify their machines for the unique requirements of silicon carbide. It also required heavy coordination with consumable suppliers to optimize their products to enable cost-effective, high yielding wafer production.
Thea is an accomplished communicator and marketer, with a proven record of creating effective and powerful brand messages for global communications. After successfully leading the communications efforts that resulted in a $36 million ASX fundraise and a listing on the ASX with an above valuation first trade, Thea developed the Revasum name, brand and strategy to bring a new company into the Semiconductor Equipment Manufacturing space. With her creative problem-solving skills, she started Omnes One Marketing to help startups develop their brands and communications strategies to help secure their next stage funding opportunities, resulting in over $80 million raised in seed and Series A funding for 13 startups. Thea has managed and run all corporate communication for Granite Construction Inc. and partnered with the CEO and executive team to craft messages to inform, align and engage employees around key corporate initiatives using various communication platforms and vehicles.