Computer Science Internship: Smart 5xWhy

Background Information

Machine Control & Infrastructure (MCI) is a department in ASML that defines, maintains and handles the input parameters of the Twinscan lithographic machine. Such parameters, also referred to as settings, are used by ASML's customers in order to define the structure and layout of a wafer along with all settings needed to correctly process a wafer.

In the occurrence of an issue, MCI adopts a question-asking technique, called "5 x Why" [1], that assists in finding the root cause of the problem (see reference A). Although the name of this technique suggests that 'Why' is asked five times, the actual number of times that 'Why' is repeated depends on the complexity of the problem. Nevertheless, it has been determined that asking 'Why' five times can lead to a satisfactory conclusion about the root cause of the problem.

A "5 x Why" investigation is carried out in the form of a questionnaire that has to be done by the individual(s) who have first-hand knowledge and experience with the issue. The individual(s) may not only respond to each 'Why' with technical details, about the problem, but also include other information, such as missing documentation, lack of communication, wrong expectations, lack of knowledge, and inadequate expertise. First, the problem is described in detail. Next, a series of 'Why' questions are asked that expect the individual(s) to provide answers about the preceeding why. Finally, the root cause is summarized.
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[1] Fun fact: In 350 BC, Aristotle suggested that in order to compile a complete investigation, distinguishing between voluntary and involuntary actions, the questions of 'what', 'who', 'when', 'where', 'why' and the occasional 'how' must be answered. This investigative technique is known as Aristotle's elements of circumstances.

Your Assignment

Sometimes, the answers given to the "5 x Why" investigation lack context, descriptiveness, clarity and flow. Furthermore, ASML domain specific language (DSL) and terminologies, used by software engineers, may cause ambiguities and confusion to the investigation when reviewed by stakeholders with non-technical backgrounds. Such communication problems require additional time and effort to be resolved. MCI is currently exploring ways to utilize artificial intelligence (AI) to:

1) Generate "Smart 5 x Why" questions. Beginning with the problem description, each 'smart why' question shall be generated based on the answer given to the previous 'smart why'.
2) Transcribe a report that contains the description of the problem, investigation/analysis, and root cause of the problem, into a series of "Smart 5 x Why" questions and answers.
3) Translate a report or "5 x Why" that uses ASML's DSL into a report or "5 x Why" with non-technical descriptions.
4) Extend a "5 x Why" questionnaire so that gaps in the answers are detected and new 'smart why' questions are generated requiring the individual(s) to provide further answers.

Your task is to choose and develop one of the aforementioned options as a working proof of concept (POC). This includes, but not limited to:
1) Research: Gain a deep understanding of the selected problem, form a hypothesis, and prepare a literature review of STAR (state of the art) techniques that address the problem. Your research can include descriptions of third-party libraries and/or models that can be used in your implementation. Each library should be compared and contrasted against other candidate libraries.
2) Design: Produce high level and low-level diagrams of your proposed architecture, flow-charts, models, training methods and algorithms. Your design should include time estimates for development, training and testing.
3) Implementation: Develop a working proof of concept. Low level testing, ex. data structures and algorithms, is recommended but not required.
4) Future Work: Propose optimizations, extensions and alternative approaches to solving the problem.

Note that each of these options imply that the AI program shall be developed using a generative pipeline whereby the underlying model "understands" ASML's DSL (domain specific language). Recently, a proof-of-concept AI bot was developed, called Meli, that can answer domain specific questions by extracting the answers from ASML's knowledge base. You are free to use Meli for reference or propose ways to extend Meli with your selected task.

You will be assigned a minimum of two mentors, one who will support you with infrastructure related tasks (ex. IT issues) and another who will support you with your project related tasks. You and your project mentor will schedule alignment meetings on a weekly basis in order to set targets and discuss the progress of your project.

References:

'A) "5 x Why" examples ()
B) Artificial Intelligence: A Guide to Intelligent Systems (3rd Edition), by Michael Negnevitsky
C) Real-World Natural Language Processing: Practical applications with deep learning, by Masato Hagiwara
D) Attention Is All You Need ()

Your Profile

To be the perfect match for this internship you:

Are a Bachelor or Master student in computer science, Artificial Intelligence;

Have experience in python, Artificial Intelligence, Natural Language Processing;

Have excellent communication skills as well as creativity and persistence

Are a team-player that is eager to learn, a critical thinker and like a challenge;

This is a graduation internship lasting 6 months for 4-5 days a week starting September 2024.

Diversity and Inclusion

ASML is an Equal Opportunity Employer that values and respects the importance of a diverse and inclusive workforce. It is the policy of the company to recruit, hire, train and promote persons in all job titles without regard to race, color, religion, sex, age, national origin, veteran status, disability, sexual orientation, or gender identity. We recognize that diversity and inclusion is a driving force in the success of our company.

Other Information

Change the world – one nanometer at a time
Become an intern at a Dutch company that’s a global industry leader. You’ll gain valuable experience in a highly innovative environment – one that sparks your imagination and creativity. In addition to a monthly internship allowance of maximum €600 (plus a possible housing and/or travel coverage), you’ll get practical guidance from experts in the field and the chance to work in and experience a dynamic team environment.

ASML: be part of progress
ASML is a high-tech company headquartered in the Netherlands. We manufacture the complex lithography machines that chipmakers use to produce integrated circuits, or computer chips. What we do is at the heart of all the electronic devices that keep us informed, entertained and connected. Every day, you use electronics that simply wouldn’t exist without our machines.

Behind ASML’s innovations are engineers who think ahead. The people who work at our company include some of the most creative minds in physics, electrical engineering, mathematics, chemistry, mechatronics, optics, mechanical engineering, and computer science and software engineering.

We believe we can always do better. We believe the winning idea can come from anyone. We love what we do – not because it’s easy, but because it’s hard.

Students: getting ready for real-world R&D
We’re a global team of about 29,000 people of 120 different nationalities and counting. Headquartered in Europe’s top tech hub, the Brainport Eindhoven region in the Netherlands, our operations are spread across Europe, Asia and the US.

In such an environment, your colleagues may be sitting next door, or they could be thousands of kilometers away in a different country – or even working for a different company.

An internship at ASML is the opportunity to get to know not only the world of industrial-strength R&D, but yourself – you’ll discover just what excites you most. Will you design a part of the machine, or make sure it gets built to the tightest possible specifications? Will you write software that drives the system to its best performance, or work side-by-side with the engineers of our customers in a fab, optimizing a system to the requirements of the customer?

Diversity and inclusion

ASML is an Equal Opportunity Employer that values and respects the importance of a diverse and inclusive workforce. It is the policy of the company to recruit, hire, train and promote persons in all job titles without regard to race, color, religion, sex, age, national origin, veteran status, disability, sexual orientation, or gender identity. We recognize that diversity and inclusion is a driving force in the success of our company.

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