Data Challenge Rules

Eligibility

• Student Status: All participants must be currently enrolled students (either undergraduate or graduate) at a university or college within the United States.

• Email Verification: All participants must register for and participate in the competition using a valid email address from an accredited educational institution’s domain (e.g., ending in “.edu”).

• Verification: The competition organizers reserve the right to verify the eligibility of any participant or team at any point during the competition.

Team Formation & Registration

• Team Composition: Teams must consist of 1 to 5 members. A team of one is considered a valid team. Teams may be composed of a mix of undergraduate and graduate students from one or multiple universities.

• Registration Deadline: All teams must be registered by July 10, 2026.

• Registration Process:

  • One team member (the "Team Lead") must complete the official registration form at [Link to Registration Form].

  • The following information is required for each team member during registration:

    • Full Name

    • Valid ".edu" Email Address

    • University Name

    • Student Status (Undergraduate, Graduate, Other)

    • Major or Field of Study

  • Teams must also provide a unique Team Name.

• Team Changes: Changes to team members are not permitted after the registration deadline. All communication from the organizers will be sent to the email addresses provided at registration.

The Competition Dataset

• Data Access: Upon the official start of the competition, registered teams will be provided with GitHub access to the competition dataset. 

• Data Usage: The dataset provided to participants for the sole and exclusive purpose of participating in this competition. Using the dataset for any purpose outside of the competition—including personal projects, other academic work, commercial applications, or sharing with non-participants—is strictly prohibited.

• No Additional Resources Provided: The competition does not provide access to any computational or other resources beyond the dataset.  

Submission & Evaluation Criteria

• Competition Submission: Participants must submit, as a team, a final report, executable code, and a presentation slide deck describing the results of their work. Teams will submit all materials as a single Zip file through a Qualtrics Link emailed to participants after the event launches. 

• Review Criteria: Submissions will be evaluated based on:

  • accuracy of predicted local geometry,

  • ability to capture spatial track variations,

  • accuracy of derived width or boundary predictions,

  • robustness across different laser powers,

  • quality of uncertainty estimation,

  • interpretability of thermal descriptors or learned features,

  • ability to distinguish process-driven variation from substrate-driven variation

• The judges will select three to five (3–5) finalist teams, who will have a ten-minute presentation during the Final Event on July 31, 2026. The top three teams will win prizes, as well as special prizes awarded for Best Presentation Design and Most Innovative Approach.

Contact Information

For questions during the competition, please use the [#help channel in Slack]. This ensures all participants have access to the same information. 

For questions about the registration form and website, please contact TAMIDS@tamu.edu.