Arizona’s emergence as a leading center in today’s booming semiconductor industry has been shaped by many factors over past decades — among them the founding, growth and expansion of ASU and the increasing numbers of engineering graduates it provided for growing companies such as Motorola and Intel. Michael Kozicki, a professor in the School of Electrical, Computer and Energy Engineering, part of the Fulton Schools, points out that ASU’s focus on engineering excellence, especially since the 1980s, has helped to attract tech businesses and produce talent to fuel the success of such companies as Microchip Technology and NXP Semiconductors and to draw the booming Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co. to the Phoenix area. The state now plays a leading role in the global microchip industry.