My brother and several of his friends do this for a living at Intel. Most of them have Electrical Engineering PhDs, though I believe one is a Chemical Engineer. My brother's thesis specifically was in 2d transistor design and worked under a Material Science professor. I believe most universities have professors who teach Semiconductors classes, whether it is under the name Computer Engineering, Electrical Engineering, Electronics Engineering, Chemical Engineering, or Material Science.
It would be difficult to learn on your own as explained in the article: you need a lot of specialized equipment, a high class of clean room, and a lot of very dangerous chemicals. (My brother once described what the hydrofluoric acid he used semi-regularly does to person and completely horrified our parents).
Downside of this field is that there are very few job opportunities without relocating. If you're in the US, you can work at Intel... or Intel. Unless you're willing to move to Taiwan and work at TSMC.
It would be difficult to learn on your own as explained in the article: you need a lot of specialized equipment, a high class of clean room, and a lot of very dangerous chemicals. (My brother once described what the hydrofluoric acid he used semi-regularly does to person and completely horrified our parents).
Downside of this field is that there are very few job opportunities without relocating. If you're in the US, you can work at Intel... or Intel. Unless you're willing to move to Taiwan and work at TSMC.