John Madocks – President
John founded General Plasma 10 years ago and has 25 years of experience in thin film vacuum equipment. In the past 7 years John has invented several fundamentally new plasma sources and has patents issued or pending for significant improvements to ion sources and magnetron sputter cathodes. He is well known in the vacuum coating industry, presenting his inventions at industry conventions. John is a “larger than life” character whose passion for engineering and drive for excellence make General Plasma an innovation leader. John has a BS in Mechanical Engineering from the California Polytechnic Institute and is an avid outdoor hiking fan. Despite his busy schedule, John volunteers his time as a counselor with young people in Tucson. John is rarely seen without co-founder and chief security dog Ben, who provides General Plasma with a world class intruder detection system.
Dr. Quanyuan (Troy) Shangguan – Chief Technology Officer
Dr. Quanyuan (Troy) Shangguan is the Chief Technology Officer (CTO) at General Plasma Inc. (GPI). Dr. Shangguan is recognized as a veteran in the large-area thin film industry with a strong track record of innovation in low temperature polysilicon (LTPS) technology, thin film transistor (TFT) process technology, and chemical vapor deposition (CVD) process chamber development. Dr. Shangguan is acknowledged as an originator of remote plasma source (RPS) cleaning technology and the commercial use of inkjet for color filter technology.
As the Company’s CTO, Dr. Shangguan focuses on developing the next generation plasma process technology and equipment for flat panel displays, solar, and semiconductor manufacturing that will dramatically improve performance and reduce cost. In addition, Dr. Shangguan drives GPI’s overall technology strategy, advanced R&D programs and new business development.
In his prior role as Director of Advanced Technology at Applied Materials, Dr. Shangguan led technology initiatives enabling Applied to achieve and maintain its dominant market position in PECVD amorphous silicon TFT processing equipment, and increase its LTPS market share from 30% to 70%. He was named a Distinguished Member of the Technical Staff, the company’s highest technical honor. In 2007, Dr. Shangguan was presented with the “Hall of Fame” patent award for significant, commercially successful innovations. In 1999, R&D Magazine awarded Dr. Shangguan the 100 Best Products award for a solution to greenhouse gas reduction during chamber cleaning. Dr. Shangguan has been granted over 50 United States and international patents and has 40 additional patents pending. Dr. Shangguan holds a Ph.D in Physical Chemistry from the University of Oregon, and a bachelor degree in Chemistry from Nanjing University.
Patrick Marcus, PhD – Director of Electrical Engineering
Patrick has been with General Plasma since October 2000 and earned his doctorate in Biomedical Engineering and BA in Electrical Engineering from the University of Arizona. Patrick leads General Plasma’s electrical engineering and controls department and is responsible for developing innovative solutions to meet customer’s needs. His experience in control systems, custom electronics, and sensor design are reflected in the state-of-the-art control systems built in General Plasma’s products. Patrick also enjoys creating public sculptures which integrate solar powered displays of light, as well as a role as an assistant teacher of salsa dancing.
Mark George, PhD – Director of Research
Dr. Mark George holds a Ph.D in Chemical Engnineering from Lehigh University where he studied the chemical mechanisms and kinetics of heterogeneous surface cleaning processes. He has 20 years of experience in product, process and business development all related to thin film manufacturing technologies. As a member of Air Products and Chemicals’ Electronic Gases division he developed CVD precursor delivery systems and CVD processes for tungsten and tungsten silicide, dielectric materials and tungsten plasma etching. He was appointed to the business development department of Air Product’s Electronics Gases group. In this role Dr. George acted as technology team leader in the creation of Air Product’s Electronics Chemical Division. He led a multi-disciplinary team vetting acquisitions and new chemistry technologies for semiconductor manufacturing processes.
In 1998 Dr. George moved to Deposition Sciences, Incorporated as Director of Technology. In this role Dr. George directed process control improvements, production improvements, and process development of Reactive Sputtering, LPCVD and PECVD thin films for optical interference coatings. Dr. George led a development team that created new thin film materials and thin film optical designs of multi-layer optic thin films for applications in energy efficient lighting, telecommunications and aerospace.
Dr. George joined General Plasma Incorporated in 2007 as Director of Research. Dr. George assisted the process development effort for scaling GPI’s linear PECVD technology and thin film materials development for low-e glass, photovoltaics and energy efficient lighting. Dr. George is currently interim Sales and Marketing Director for GPI’s ion source and magnetron source components business unit. Dr. George has authored or co-authored 55 technical papers and is the holder of 8 U.S. and 2 European Patents with several patents pending.
Steve Smith – Director of Operations
Steve has been an integral part of General Plasma since January 2003. Steve has been intricately involved in the design and development of General Plasma’s advanced source technologies, taking them from concepts to products. Recently, Steve completed the delivery of a set custom photovoltaic production systems for our valued clients, starting from conceptual design to global deployment of 13 machines in 24 months. His leadership and organization expertise helped guide the team through this successful effort in this extremely short lead time effort. Prior to his career at General Plasma, Steve was a professional motorbike racer in the AMA series, a sport that raised his attention to detail to a whole new dimension – when flying around the track at triple digit speeds, it is imperative to know that your machine is operating in top condition, and the only way to do this is inspect every little detail before every race. The combination of his meticulous attention to detail, machine knowledge and logistics proficiency ensures General Plasma will continue to deliver first-class products on time. Steve received his BS in Mechanical Engineering from Gonzaga University. Steve is a devoted gear head and can often be seen driving around Tucson in an assortment of custom turned sports cars and bikes.