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YOU CAN BUILD THE MACHINE THAT PRINTS COMPUTER CHIPS

A lithography stepper that patterns real chips for 3,015 dollars, plus the rest of a semiconductor line — all documented.

by Hacker Fab project, started at Carnegie Mellon University

FULL CAD BOM FIRMWARE DOCS

Open-hardwareScience

difficulty
●●●●●
time
months, per tool
license
license not specified
repo
repo ACTIVE0 stars

WHAT YOU’LL NEED

  • 3D printer + filament — printable parts — files are in the repo
  • Electronic parts — full list with part numbers in the repo BOM
  • Dev board / microcontroller — runs the project firmware

Partner

Show off your build — Record and edit your build video by editing the transcript, not the timeline.Try Descript
Videos
1

COMPAREE VERDICT

Hacker Fab is a documentation project for building a complete semiconductor fabrication line: the stepper that patterns circuits, the furnace that dopes silicon, the sputter tool that deposits metal, the evaporator, the spin coater. Every tool has a build guide, a bill of materials with vendor part numbers, and a standard operating procedure. The Lithography Stepper V2 is the flagship: 3,015 dollars in parts, 2 µm resolution, and it uses a gutted DLP projector as the light engine. The lineage runs back to Sam Zeloof and Huygens Optics, and the design is intended for university labs and serious maker spaces, not kitchen tables. Around ten of these fabs exist, from Carnegie Mellon to IIT Bombay, and one has already hit 1 µm features. The documentation is thorough and the community is active, but this is not a weekend project. You need lab space, ventilation for photoresist and etchants, and time measured in months per tool. The tube furnace reaches 1100°C, the sputtering system runs high vacuum, and the stepper alone involves optical alignment that will test your patience. The biggest surprise is that it works at all — real patterns, real chips, no industrial tooling required. But the second biggest is that the bottleneck is not the money or the motors, it is the chemistry and the discipline. If you have a lab and the will to learn cleanroom technique, this is the project. If you are hoping to pattern chips in your garage, you will need a different garage.

NOT IN THE REPO

  • —Complete build guides, BOMs with vendor links, and standard operating procedures for five major tools: lithography stepper, spin coater, tube furnace, sputtering system, thermal evaporator.
  • —Lithography Stepper V2 build cost documented at $3,015, reaches 2 µm optical resolution on chips up to 2 cm × 2 cm.
  • —The stepper uses a modified Texas Instruments DLP projector, Thorlabs and Edmund Optics parts, a 3D printed XYZ stage, and GRBL firmware.
  • —No GitHub repository — documentation lives at docs.hackerfab.org, licence not stated on the docs site.
  • —Around ten labs worldwide have built these tools as of August 2026; one lab has patterned 1 µm features.
  • —Contributors range from PhD researchers to high school students; no prior nanofabrication experience required, but lab space, ventilation, and chemistry handling are assumed.

Can I build this?

Print3D printed XYZ stage for the stepper, plus fixtures and mounts documented per tool
BuyModified TI DLP projector, Thorlabs and Edmund Optics optical components, vacuum pumps, tube furnace elements, photoresist, etchants, silicon wafers — full BOMs with vendor links provided
ToolsLab space with fume hood and ventilation, vacuum systems, high-temperature furnace capability, optical alignment tools, multimeter, microscope, access to chemistry suppliers
SkillsAdvanced: optical alignment, vacuum system operation, high-temperature processes, photoresist spin coating and development, chemical handling. University lab or serious maker space infrastructure required.
TimeMonths per tool — the stepper alone is weeks of assembly and alignment, plus learning cleanroom technique and iterating on process parameters
Cost$$$, stepper documented at $3,015, full fab will reach five figures — optical components and vacuum hardware dominate
SafetyPhotoresist chemistry and etchants require fume hood and proper PPE. Tube furnace operates at 1100°C, burn hazard. Sputtering and evaporation systems run high vacuum, implosion risk if not properly constructed. Hydrofluoric acid (HF) not required but other etchants still corrosive.

Build at your own risk. Projects involve tools, electronics and sometimes mains voltage — follow the creator’s safety notes.

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Videos

RuntimeBRT tour of HackerFab at IIT Bombay

Walkthrough of a student-built fab, shows the stepper and other tools in operation

Gallery

https://img.youtube.com/vi/oqOlrGPgng8/maxresdefault.jpg

Start here

Navigation into the creator’s own docs — we don’t rewrite the guide, we route you to the source.

  1. 1.Read the documentation site (Start with the overview, then pick one tool and read its build guide end to end before ordering anything)
  2. 2.Join the community(The docs site does not list a Discord or forum, check for updates or contact Carnegie Mellon directly)
  3. 3.Source the optics first(Thorlabs and Edmund Optics parts have lead times and the stepper will not align without them — order early)
  4. 4.Secure lab space and ventilation(Photoresist, developers, and etchants cannot be used safely without a fume hood)

Resources

Documentation, files and community threads for this build — we link straight to the original sources and never rehost the creator’s files.

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KNOWN ISSUES

  • The licence is not stated on the docs site — confirm whether the designs are open for commercial use or modification before committing.
  • No GitHub repository means no issue tracker and no version history — if the docs site goes offline, the project goes with it.
  • The $3,015 figure is for the stepper alone; a complete fab (furnace, sputter, evaporator, coater) will push well into five figures.
  • Optical alignment of the stepper is the single biggest time sink — expect iteration, and the 2 µm spec assumes you get it right.
  • Chemistry suppliers often will not sell to individuals — university affiliation or a business account will be required for photoresist and etchants.
  • The tube furnace and sputtering system require high-voltage or high-vacuum infrastructure that most maker spaces do not have.

Can I build just the stepper without the rest of the fab?

Yes, the stepper is documented as a standalone tool and you can test it with purchased photoresist-coated wafers. You will still need a fume hood for the developer and a microscope to check the result.

What resolution can I actually expect?

2 µm is the documented spec for the Stepper V2, and one lab has reported 1 µm features. Your result will depend on optical alignment, photoresist quality, and exposure discipline — expect to iterate.

Is this legal to build at home?

The tools themselves are legal, but the chemistry (photoresist, developers, etchants) is regulated and often requires a business or institutional account to purchase. Disposal of chemical waste is also regulated.

How does this compare to commercial steppers?

Commercial steppers cost hundreds of thousands to millions and reach sub-micron resolution with full wafer coverage and automation. This reaches 2 µm on small chips and requires manual alignment — it is a research and education tool, not production equipment.

Community builds

No community builds yet — be the first, we feature the best ones.

Discussion1

FROM THE COMPAREE TEAM

Around ten of these fabs exist, from Carnegie Mellon to IIT Bombay, and one lab has already patterned 1 µm features. If you had the lab space, which tool would you build first — the stepper, the furnace, or the sputter system?

CompareeTEAM6d ago

Practical notes from our verification: the documentation lives at docs.hackerfab.org with no GitHub mirror, so there is no issue tracker or version history to fall back on. The licence is not stated on the site, which is unusual for a project this mature. The $3,015 figure is real and itemised in the BOM, but that is the stepper alone — a complete fab (furnace, sputter, evaporator, coater) will cost significantly more. The biggest practical hurdle is not the money or the motors, it is the chemistry: photoresist suppliers often will not sell to individuals, and you need a fume hood for safe handling. The RuntimeBRT video shows a student-built fab at IIT Bombay in operation, which is the best proof that this works outside Carnegie Mellon.

Hacker Fab project, started at Carnegie Mellon University

Hacker Fab began at Carnegie Mellon and grew into a multi-university effort to document the tools of a semiconductor fab. The lithography stepper design builds on earlier work by Sam Zeloof and Huygens Optics. Contributors include PhD researchers, undergraduates, and high school students across roughly ten labs worldwide.

Web

Star the project on GitHub

DISCLAIMER

  • Comparee is not the author of the projects featured here. All rights to each project belong to its creator — every page links to the original source, and we never host creators’ files.
  • Information is provided without warranty and may become outdated as projects evolve. Prices are indicative bands only — always check the creator’s parts list for current costs.
  • Building and operating any project is at your own responsibility. Protective equipment, safe workshop practice and compliance with local regulations are the builder’s responsibility.
GitHub repo