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Editorial: What's Happening?
... When your trusty laptop crashes and heads for the recycle bin, and days later your backup desktop decides to have an attack and has to go to the computer doctor, and... on top of that, your landline phones start to malfunction and you've given your cellphone to your spouse...
Jump down to the full story
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Features:
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The SSLdesign Summit
Agenda is posted
August
26-27 2008
Weehawken, NJ
NY/NJ Metro Area Mark
your calendars now and don't hesitate to contact us if you would like information
on how to be involved as a sponsor, speaker or showcase exhibitor. View the conference
page for the latest information.
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Kopin Selected for Award of NASA Solar Cell Development Contract
CompoundSemi News StaffMay 1, 2008...Kopin of Taunton, Massachusetts USA, a leading provider of heterojunction bipolar transistor (HBT) wafers, has been selected for a solar cell development contract from NASA. The contract is Phase II of a Small Business Technology Transfer Research (STTR) program to develop indium nitride (InN)-based quantum dot solar cells. Kopin's will partner with groups at Virginia Tech and Magnolia Optical Technologies.
"The goal of this STTR program is to develop high-efficiency solar cells that are resistant to extreme conditions while achieving high solar electric power conversion efficiency," said Dr. Roger Welser, Kopin's Director of Technology and New Product Development. "The advanced patent-pending solar cell structure incorporating InN-based nanostructures can harness a very large fraction of the solar spectrum while minimizing the effects of high temperatures and high-energy radiation. This technology will enable photovoltaic power systems of future NASA space exploration missions to operate in extreme environments with high temperature and radiation exposures."
Dr. John C.C. Fan, Kopin President and Chief Executive Officer commented, "This STTR project is part of Kopin's long-term goal to address the emerging terrestrial renewable energy market by realizing the ultimate objective of high conversion efficiency at low costs.” Kopin News Release Sunrgi Claims PV System with Wholesale Rate of 5 Cents Per kWh
CompoundSemi News StaffApril 30, 2008...Sunrgi a maker of solar concentrator systems introduced its Xtreme Concentrated Photovoltaics (XCPV) at The National Energy Marketers Association’s 11th Annual Global Energy Forum in Washington, DC. The company boldly contends that its new patent pending solar energy system will soon allow production of electricity at a wholesale cost of 5 cents per kWh. The company notes that at this price it is competitive with producing electricity using fossil fuels, and it is also a fraction of current solar energy cost. XCPV (Xtreme Concentrated Photovoltaics) is a system that concentrates the equivalent of more than 1,600 times the sun’s energy onto the world’s most efficient solar cells. The company boasts of 37 percent efficiency for its working prototype.
Sunrgi points out what it claims differentiates its XCPV system from any other solar energy system. According to the company the differences include: a proprietary, integrated low profile technology for concentrating sunlight; a proprietary technology and methodology for cooling solar cells; a low cost, modular system optimized for mass-production; a requirement of less land area or “roof top” space than typical solar energy systems; a technology roadmap for continuous improvement; low-cost field installation; and, a custom-designed system for easy operation and maintenance. “In a little more than a year we were able to develop and successfully test XCPV,” said Robert S. (Bob) Block, co-founder and Sunrgi principal. “We expect the Sunrgi system to become available for both on- and off-grid power applications, worldwide, in twelve to fifteen months.” Company News Release SAFC Hitech Adds Cleanroom to Facility
CompoundSemi News StaffApril 30, 2008...SAFC Hitech of St. Louis, Missouri USA, a focus area within SAFC, which is a member of the Sigma-Aldrich Group, announced the opening of a $9 million state-of-the-art cleanroom at the Company's Sheboygan Falls, Wisconsin campus. The facility comprised of an ISO Class 4 cleanroom, a distillation suite and office space, takes up 5,000 square feet. The new facility became fully operational in late April 2008. It offers in-house trace metals analysis and the capability to clean and fill containers in a tightly-controlled environment. The Sheboygan campus was selected as the site for the new cleanroom because large-scale manufacturing of products already goes on their for the material science industry for SAFC. The facility supports the silicon semiconductor, compound semiconductor, and performance materials markets.
"One of SAFC's primary business objectives is to continue to build the SAFC Hitech segment into a global leader in the supply of ultra-pure, high quality materials and technical solutions to the electronics industries we serve," commented SAFC President, Frank Wicks. "As the demand for new and increasingly efficient materials continues to grow, so does the need to attain higher and higher levels of quality and dependability from our products." SAFC Hitech News Release
May 1, 2008...Veeco Instruments, a compound semiconductor equipment maker based in St. Paul, Minnesota USA, will co-sponsor two major awards again in 2008 for those in the Molecular Beam Epitaxy (MBE) community, the Al Cho Award and the MBE Innovator Award. According to the company the awards recognize individuals whose innovations have significantly advanced the field of MBE. Each award consists of a monetary honorarium and an engraved plaque.
The MBE Innovator Award, which was initiated in 2003, is co-sponsored by Veeco Instruments Inc. and the International MBE Organization. The purpose of the International MBE Organization is to share the latest research, progress, and discoveries about MBE in addition to sharing the new materials, applications and devices from MBE. The mission of the organization is also to provide news about the further development of MBE as a high-volume manufacturing technology. The Al Cho Award, initiated in 2004, is co-sponsored by Veeco Instruments Inc. and other participants within the MBE community. Nominations for each award can be submited until the end of the business day on June 15th. More information and nomination forms can be found at www.mbe2008.ca.
Universities, government organizations, or commercial companies worldwide can be nominated. Nominees must have shown or are currently showing innovation in MBE technology. The International MBE Advisory Committee Officials will select each winner from the submitted nominations. The recipients of each award will receiving the award at the Thursday evening International MBE Conference banquet in early August. Veeco News Release Canada to Fund Nanotech Research Including Solar Projects
CompoundSemi News StaffApril 28, 2008...The Nanotechnology Initiative of the National Research Council of Canada (NRC), the Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada (NSERC) and the Business Development Bank of Canada (BDC), announced the five winners of a special $15-million nanotechnology research funding competition. Each proposed project will get $3 million in funding. Two of the five winners will develop new solar technology.
Researchers from the Universite de Sherbrooke and the University of Ottawa will work with scientists and engineers from the NRC Institute for Microstructural Sciences (NRC-IMS) and the NRC Institute for Research in Construction (NRC-IRC), in Ottawa to use quantum dots to produce more efficient concentrator solar cells. Researchers from Universite de Laval, Queen's University, the University of Toronto and Simon Fraser University will work with scientists and engineers from the NRC Institute for Microstructural Sciences (NRC-IMS), the NRC Institute for Chemical Process and Environmental Technology (NRC-ICPET) and the NRC Steacie Institute for Molecular Sciences (NRC-SIMS) in Ottawa will use novel polymeric nano-composite semiconductor materials to produce more efficient solar cells.
"Canada already has considerable expertise in the field of nanotechnology, and the government is ensuring that our country takes its place among the most innovative nations of the world,” said Mr. Galipeau, Royal Galipeau, Member of Parliament for Ottawa-Orleans and Deputy Chair of Committees of the Whole House. National Research Council Canada-NRC News Release Brighter Lasers for Tomorrow's Technologies
CompoundSemi News StaffApril 28, 2008...Twenty-two of Europe's top research teams have joined forces to develop new generation high brightness lasers. The research teams come from industry, internationally recognized research laboratories, and leading academic institutions. Funding of €16.25m (with €9.7m from the European Commission's Information Society Technologies Programme) will go towards the project called WWW.BRIGHTER.EU, which runs until September 2009. The project name stands for 'World Wide Welfare: High-Brightness Semiconductor Lasers for Generic Use'.
The researchers expect that the new high brightness lasers will eventually transform the fields of healthcare, communications, and entertainment.
Ultimately the collaboration hopes to make lasers smaller, brighter, more efficient, and cheaper in an extended range of colors (wavelengths). Additionally, they hope to couple more light power into smaller diameter optical fibers. Partners from 10 European countries will work together on the project that builds upon the successful WWW.BRIGHT.EU project, which was completed in 2006. Two leading universities represent the UK in the BRIGHTER Consortium: The University of Nottingham and the University of Cambridge.
Project coordinator, Michel Krakowski of Alcatel-Thales III-V Lab in France, said, “There are huge markets for laser diode technology. There are a lot of applications that currently are not possible to address without high-powered diode lasers, either because of cost, colour or portability. The goal of this project is to develop new lasers with increased power and brightness. It's about how tightly we can focus the beam.”
WWW.BRIGHTER.EU News Release IBM, Matheson TriGas, and Taiyo Nippon Sanso Partner on Semiconductor Manufacturing Technology
CompoundSemi News StaffApril 28, 2008...IBM, Matheson Tri-Gas/ Taiyo Nippon Sanso are collaborating on the development of manufacturing materials and processes for CMOS at 32nm and under. Matheson Tri-Gas and its parent company, Taiyo Nippon Sanso hope to research and develop new high purity gas molecules and new delivery systems for the manufacturing of atomic-scale semiconductors.
IBM will add its CMOS research capabilities to the collaboration. “Taiyo Nippon Sanso Group including Matheson Tri-Gas' cutting-edge source gases and advanced purification equipment, when integrated with IBM's state-of-the-art CMOS research capabilities, enables both companies to accelerate the pace of semiconductor innovation,” said Bernie Meyerson, Vice President Strategic Alliances and Chief Technical Officer for IBM Systems & Technology Group.
"This relationship with IBM will enable the Taiyo Nippon Sanso Group to position itself as a leading edge material supplier in the semiconductor material market beyond 32nm," said Mike Hara, Senior Managing Director of Taiyo Nippon Sanso Corporation. Matheson Tri-Gas News Release Researchers Seek Long-Wavelength Lasers at One-Tenth the CostApril 28, 2008...Researchers at Chuo University have developed technology that they claim could cut the cost of manufacturing crystals for high-output long-wavelength lasers by up to 90 percent, according to an article in Nikkei Net.
The researchers found that gallium arsenide (GaAs) can transform laser light into the relatively long wavelength of 5-20 microns. However, the crystal orientation must be optimized to produce a high-output laser.
Associate professor Ichiro Shoji led the research team. They reportedly layered GaAs crystals 100 microns thick in a vacuum at room temperature using argon particles to blow off the oxide film covering the surface of the crystals. The researcher were able to use this method put together crystals with clean surfaces with no gap in between, the article indicated.
A laser with a 1.06 micron wavelength was exposed to the clean surfaced crystals, and the result was an output wavelength of 10 microns.
Thus far, the research team has only managed to create six layers of crystals in this manner. The team hopes to increase the crystal thickness to a practical level to commercialize the technology in about three years for use in semiconductor processing and materials analysis.
The researchers contend that if the technology can be made commercially feasible, it could produce lasers long wavelength lasers at one-tenth of the cost, the article indicated. LED Lighting Drives Revenue Growth at Cree for Q3 of Fiscal 2008
LIGHTimes StaffApril 23, 2008...Cree reports that its revenues for the third quarter of fiscal 2008 are up 38 percent compared to the same period a year ago and up 5 percent compared to the previous quarter.
Cree’s revenues for the quarter rose from $90.3 million in Q3 of fiscal 2007 to $125 million in Q3 of fiscal 2008. However, Cree reported that its net income of $5.7 million for the third fiscal quarter of 2008 went down compared to the same quarter of 2007 when it was $21.1 million. During the quarter Cree acquired LED Lighting Fixtures Inc. Also, Austin, TX, and the Tianjin Economic Development Area (TEDA) in China joined Cree’s LED City initiative.
“Cree’s strategy to drive revenue growth by focusing on LED lighting continued to pay dividends in Q3, as we delivered financial performance that was in line with our previously announced
guidance,” stated Chuck Swoboda, Cree Chairman and CEO. “Revenue growth was led by
higher sales of LED components, which exceeded sales of LED chips for the first time. In
addition, we took another bold step in leading the LED lighting revolution with our acquisition of
LED Lighting Fixtures, which positions us even better to drive the adoption of LED lighting going
forward. For Q4, we target growth from XLamp® LEDs, high-brightness LED components and
our new LED lighting solutions, all of which are benefitting from the rising demand for energy efficient LED lighting.”
Cree is reportedly targeting revenues of $129 million to $133 million for the fourth quarter of fiscal 2008. Cree Financial Results News Release IXYS Ranked Higher On Mercury News ‘Silicon Valley 150’
CompoundSemi News StaffApril 23, 2008...IXYS Corporation of Milpitas, California USA, announced that it was recently ranked # 94 in The San Jose Mercury News "Silicon Valley 150". The Mercury News produces an annual listing of the top 150 public companies, headquartered in Santa Clara, Santa Cruz, southern San Mateo, and southern Alameda counties. The companies are ranked on the basis of worldwide revenues for the most recent available four quarters. IXYS reports that it has moved up six places in the rankings. For the one-year period ending December 31, 2007, IXYS earned $299.2 million in revenue, an 8% increase over calendar year 2006. As oil prices have increased, the demand for power conversion efficiency, especially in wind and solar power, has increased. For this reason, IXYS is thriving. IXYS focuses on providing power semiconductors for equipment used in harnessing wind and solar power for conversion to the U.S. electrical power grid.
"According to recent reports, Silicon Valley's tech companies had a stellar 2007, setting records in sales and profits. It is against this competitive backdrop that IXYS once again outperformed," commented Dr. Nathan Zommer, CEO of IXYS. "We continue to develop new technologies to address the need for energy efficiency; we expect that these R&D efforts will lead to future sustainable growth of our revenues and profits. We are equally pleased in seeing that we are ranked # 86 based on profits, and # 84 based on our profit margins among the leading companies of Silicon Valley." Company News Release BeamExpress Secures $1.3 Million in First Round of Investment
CompoundSemi News StaffApril 23, 2008...BeamExpress SA, a laser technology company based in Lausanne, Switzerland reports having secured a first round investment of $1.3M with I-Source (France). BeamExpress says that the investment proceeds will be used to expand the team and move from prototype to series production. Jean-Claude Charlier and Prof. Eli Kapon launched BeamExpress SA as a Spin-off of BeamExpress Inc. when it was sold to NeoPhotonics Inc. in 2006. At that time, the vertical cavity surface emitting laser (VCSEL) technology was transfered to the newly formed company headquartered in Lausanne.
In cooperation with EPFL, the Swiss Institute of Technology in Lausanne, BeamExpress SA designs and manufactures high-speed long-wavelength lasers with extremely low power consumption. These lasers are used for next generation high-speed computing and communication applications. The company notes that the market is changing with the rapid adoption of silicon photonics, which now require light sources emitting in the long-wavelength range (1200nm up to 1600nm). BeamExpress’ VCSEL technology is reportedly ideal for these applications.
“The secret of our VCSEL high performance, lies in our “Localized wafer fusion” technology which makes possible the use of InP- and GaAs-based materials giving high power, single mode laser beam with narrow line width," commented Professor Eli Kapon, Co-founder and Chief Scientist of BeamExpress and Director of the Laboratory of Physics of Nanostructures. Beam Express SA News Release Our news features are reported
by the CompoundSemi News staff writers.
For submissions or content suggestions, you can contact us using
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For more information and to reserve promotion space contact
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The
McDonald Report
Commentary & Perspective...
What's Happening?
Jo Ann McDonald, founding editorApril 23, 2008...When your trusty laptop crashes and heads for the recycle bin, and days later your backup desktop decides
to have an attack and has to go to the computer doctor, and... on top of that,
your landline phones start to malfunction and you've given your cellphone to
your spouse because your spouse needs it more than you do, its amazing how pretty
soon all desire for electronic communication seems to stop. Even the usual blare
of the television set seems unappealing. Back online again (however reluctantly),
one simply reaches a point where one has to catch up with at least the
compound semi industry news.
All the above actually happened to over the last few weeks, thus it's been
extremely quiet in our home-on-the-range Texas "office." As a result,
I've spent much more time out on the ranch than usual, where our Texas bluebonnets
abound and everything's as green as Ireland during our brief but beautiful Spring.
After the first few days, I must admit that the absence of communication devices
didn't bother me at all. Quite the contrary. But when I finally got back up
and running, and started looking around my usual CS industry online haunts,
I was amazed how much had occurred in our industry over such a relative short
period of time. I found Emcore's CPV deals with China and communications acquisitions
from Intel, to be especially interesting because, like so many others who have
been linked in one way or the other to that rather unique company over the years,
I've been more than a bit curious about where old Emcore was headed these days.
A scan of the general news was truly uplifting. Lots of progress. Lots of players.
Possibly too many players when it comes to the wide bandgap (WBG) electronics
sector. At least that's what I read between the lines in the guest editorial
our good friend Tom Hausken wrote for our mid-April editorial. (Do I sense
the "IC" phase on our horizon? "IC" in this case standing
for Industry Consolidation?) If you didn't read Tom's editorial, it's a
must that you do. The title is Widebandgap
Electronics - The "Good" Kind of Challenges. In case you don't
know him personally, or weren't interviewed by him for his most recent study,
Tom's the Director of Components Practice for Strategies Unlimited and considered
an expert on the WBGs in particular and the communications sector in general.
I thought his editorial was excellent, and I want to thank him again for filling in for
me while I was in my communications blackout. [By the way, some people run the
word "widebandgap" all together, some separate "wide" from
the rest. I noticed that Tom does it one way in his editorial, another in his
study. Me? I take the shortcut and use "WBG".]
What Tom didn't do is hype his latest Strategies Unlimited report...
which was the underlying reason he did the editorial. So I'll hype it for him.
The title of this latest update is Wide
Bandgap Electronics: Technology Trends and Market Forecasts - 2008 and clicking
on that title will take you to SU's site where you can peruse the table of contents
for this "must have" 300 pager and order a copy. The pricetag of $4,250
may seem steep if you haven't ever read one of SU's major reports, but trust
me, it's a bargain. And possessing a copy will not only make you incredibly
smarter, but if you're in the WBG business, it will surely make your WBG forays
more successful. In it, you'll see confirmation that GaN-based electronic devices
are finally truly commercial, taking perhaps longer that we'd hoped to follow
the success of GaN-based LEDs and lasers.
WiMAX base station apps are finally looking real, and the study offers genuine
meat on application trends and pricing. But the most interesting feature of
this updated study is that it offers a model for projecting future prices with
three possible scenarios. One scenario assumes that breakthroughs in epitaxy
quality lead to one pricing path and some volume applications. Another assumes
a more moderate pricing path, with some selective successes. A third assumes
that pricing will continue more or less as the status quo, with only moderate
growth but lucrative niche products. If, after you read and compare the three
scenarios and have something to say publicly about their prospects, feel free
to submit to me a follow-up guest editorial espousing your opinions. It's an
important topic and one that continues to deserve attention.
The next topic that caught my attention was our upcoming BLUE
2008 conference in Taiwan. Who could miss it. It's blasted and hotlinked
all over all of our popular CS-related industry resource sites! [Speaking
of shortcuts, you can easily remember how to access the conference site by simply
going to "BlueTaiwan.com". We're very much into easy access and shortcuts
here at CompoundSemi Online Inc.!] This is our 6th annual BLUE event, which
kicks off with a "beer bust," compliments of Epistar, on Tuesday evening,
May 6th, at the Ambassador Hotel in Hsinchu. The conference itself begins bright
and early on Wednesday morning at 8am and runs through Thursday late afternoon,
May 8th. My partner and publisher, Tom Griffiths, has again put together an
incredible lineup of speakers. Take a look at he agenda
and see for yourself what he and our three co-chairs have in store. I'd like
to personally thank those three outstanding industry leaders for their time
and assistance: Dr. Yi-Jen Chan, Vice President & Gen'l Director of ITRI
Electronics & Opto Research Labs; Dr. Bernd Schulte, Chief Operating Officer
of Aixtron; and Dr. Robert Walker, who now serves as a Principal at Sierra Ventures
having successfully put BridgeLux on the international LED-maker map.
Lead keynoters for BLUE 2008 is Strategies Unlimited's Director of Opto-Electronics
Practice, Dr. Robert Steele,
deemed the premiere industry forecaster for the high brightness LED and solid
state lighting (SSL) industry. Bob will delve into the current market trends
for LEDs and their applications, backed up by the real data that consistently
has made a difference in everyone's business planning. The title of Bob's talk
just before lunch on day one, Wednesday, May 7th is, simply: World Market
Overview and Opportunities. What he has to share is far from simple, however.
And prior to Bob's keynote will be a report from another of our industry's top
analysts, Dr. Asif Anwar, Director of GaAs and CS Technologies at Strategy Analytics.
Title of Asif's talk is Epi Material and Laser Diode Market Update. And
conference co-chair Bob Walker weighs in on this section with an update on Green
Technologies. Many will remember that Bob Walker
authored the classic Asian LED market study for Strategies Unlimited. At BLUE
this year, now as a venture capitalist at Sierra Ventures, Bob's talk is titled
Green Technologies - An Investor's Viewpoint of the Opportunities and Pitfalls.
Our second keynoter for BLUE 2008 and in the staring role is the extraordinarily,
one of a kind, highly personable (and often amusing) Michael
Lebby, President of OIDA, the international Optical Industry Development
Association, which is based in Washington DC. If you haven't ever heard Michael
(the man in black) speak, you're in for an incredible treat. You'll also learn
while you laugh. Michael's talk at the end of Day 1 of this outstanding two
day conference is titled, The Next Decade - New Opportunities From Solid
State Lighting. Whereas most talks are about the here and now... and how
we got here, Michael will focus on the future and share his unique and intriguing
thoughts on future opportunities for solid state lighting. He's a true visionary,
and you'll want to be there in person.
So if you've been in tune with what's happening lately... or not (like me with
my communications meltdown) I'm sure you'll agree that the near and longterm
future, indeed, is starting to look as bright and robust as the devices our
incredible CS industry helps create. On behalf of our co-chairs, keynoters,
and all the other speakers and sponsors that will be attending BLUE 2008, register
now to attend and get connected in ways that only by personally attending
can accomplish. That way you'll be sure to be part of that bright future.
If you have questions about the
solid state lighting and compound semiconductor industries or have news
or views to share, I'm Jo Ann McDonald, Editor of LIGHTimes and CompoundSemi News.
Feel free to contact me directly, anytime. 
My direct tel at the ranch is
+1-325-463-5345
From time to time Jo Ann may comment on companies in which she holds a
modest investment - be sure to read
her disclosure at some point in time... |
