NREL Solar Cell Wins Technology Transfer Prize
CompoundSemi News StaffMay 11, 2009...The Inverted Metamorphic Multijunction (IMM) Solar Cell was named the NREL's 2009 Award for Excellence in Technology Transfer by the Federal Laboratory Consortium for Technology Transfer.
Mark Wanlass of NREL’s Concentrating Photovoltaics (CPV) Group reportedly invented the original IMM cell. The NREL says that the design established a solar cell efficiency of 37.9% under concentrated light equal to 10 suns in 2005. In 2008, a modified version of the IMM design set a new record of 40.8% efficiency under 326 suns at NREL.
Since 2005, NREL and Wanlass have collaborated with Emcore Corp of Albuquerque, New Mexico to develop a commercial version of the IMM cell under a Cooperative Research and Development Agreement (CRADA.)
Commercialized versions of the IMM cell are targeted at the space satellite market and for Earth-based concentrated photovoltaic arrays, which use lenses or mirrors to focus sunlight onto the solar cells.
Wanlass and Emcore's director of research and development Paul Sharps will receive the award at a ceremony on May 7 at the FLC national meeting in Charlotte, North Carolina USA.
The NREL's solar cell R&D team of Jeff Carapella, Anna Duda, Daniel Friedman, John Gneiss, Sarah Kurtz, Bill McMahon, Tom Moriarty, Andrew Norman, Waldo Olivarez, Jerry Olson, Manuel Romero, Scott Ward, and Michelle Young will share in the award. NREL News Release
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ZTE to Purchase $50 Million of TriQuint Wireless Components; DOD Accredits TriQuint as Category 1A 'Trusted Foundry'
CompoundSemi News StaffMay 11, 2009...TriQuint of Hillsboro, Oregon USA, reports that ZTE Corporation of China has agreed to purchase $50 million of its RF components for wireless in 2009. Additionally, TriQuint announed that the United States Department of Defense (DOD) has accredited its Richardson facility as a category 1A 'Trusted Foundry' for 100mm gallium arsenide (GaAs) components.
According to the supply agreement, ZTE will procure CDMA, GSM and WCDMA ASICs. Ralph Quinsey, President and CEO of TriQuint Semiconductor commented, <i>"Not only does this agreement strengthen the relationship of the two companies, but our innovations will bring high quality voice, data, and video communications to people everywhere."</i>
<a href="http://www.compoundsemi.com/documents/view/cldoc.php?id=117444#top">TriQuint News Release</a>.
<p>TriQuint notes that the DOD accreditation certifies that it processes meet stringent product control and secure handling standards during all stages of circuit fabrication. DOD accreditation also creates an avenue for increased high security MMIC (monolithic microwave integrated circuit) business, TriQuint Director of Defense and Aerospace Product Marketing, Dr. Gailon Brehm indicated. Accreditation through the Trusted Access Program Office (TAPO) and the DOD’s Defense Microelectronics Activity (DMEA) requires following policies and procedures regarding ‘chain of custody’ during manufacturing to safeguard against supply chain interruption, modification or tampering with devices as well as unauthorized reverse engineering. <a href="http://www.compoundsemi.com/documents/view/cldoc.php?id=117443#top">TriQuint News Release</a> May 11, 2009...BluGlass revealed that BLK of Korea has signed an exclusive sales and marketing agreement for the company's RPCVD technology for the next two years. Under the terms of the agreement, BLK will acquire a BLG-150 deposition tool to produce LEDs and establish its RPCVD plant in Gwanju Technology Park. BluGlass News Release.
BluGlass also reports that it is expanding its research into its Remote Plasma Chemical Vapor Deposition (RPCVD) for the production of indium gallium nitride (InGaN) solar cells. BluGlass points out that solar cells made from InGaN can potentially convert almost the entire spectrum of sunlight including infrared, visible, and ultraviolet radiation. The company says that furthermore, the InGaN cells have the potential to be the most efficient solar cells ever produced, to last a long time, and to be relatively inexpensive. BluGlass cites the material's wide bandgap tunability as the reason the material has the theoretical potential of reaching 50 percent efficiency.
"While solar applications are a natural progression for BluGlass, RPCVD technology is well suited to these alternative applications, our LED business still remains our primary business, and we look forward to updating you on progress soon," said company CEO Giles Bourne.
BluGlass News Release
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JDSU Consolidates Manufacturing; Releases Powerful New Pump Laser
CompoundSemi News StaffMay 6, 2009...JDSU announced that it will be closing its gallium arsenide-based vertical cavity surface emitting laser (VCSEL) fab in Louisville, Colorado USA, which formerly belonged to the acquired company, Picolight.
Also in recent news, JDSU is making available its new 5100 series 450mW terrestrial pump laser for the undersea optical networking market.
The news of the planned closure was revealed during the company's quarterly conference call. (Ref: Earnings Conference Call for Q3 of 2009).
JDSU announced the sale of its Shenzhen facility in February. Along with the fab closure, a company spokesman said that JDSU would also make unspecified staff cuts. The company hopes to save $35 million per year with closure. JDSU attempted to sell the Picolight fab, but did not find a buyer. The company's San Jose facility can also produce the VCSELs. So as a cost cutting measure, the company says it it will shutting down its former Picolight fab by September of 2009.
The new laser is proof that the company has apparently not slowed the R & D and product development, which is the company's lifeblood.
The company boasts that the new pump laser has the highest power available for 980nm pump lasers on the undersea optical market. The lasers will reportedly power undersea optical amplifiers that are needed to transmit fiber optic signals along cables that span thousands of kilometers along the ocean floor, acting as critical trans-continental links for broadband communications.
Company News Release China's CIOMP Orders Aixtron MOCVD Systems for LEDs and Lasers
CompoundSemi News StaffMay 6, 2009...The CIOMP, the Changchun Institute of Optics, Fine Mechanics & Physics, based in P.R. China, has reportedly ordered two new Aixtron MOCVD systems. One is the AIX 200/4 and the other is the AIX 200/4 RF-S. According to Aixtron, CIOMP will use the systems for the development of ultra-high-brightness (UHB) GaN-based LEDs and AlInGaP-based red diode lasers. Aixtron also indicated that the systems will be delivered in the second quarter 2009.
Professor and Executive Director of Key Laboratory of Excited State Processes, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Mr. Song Hang, commented, "We have formulated a plan to introduce two new advanced MOCVD tools to our new state of the art facilities via a contract with Aixtron AG. They have demonstrated that their overall package of process know-how, technical excellence and support will ensure we have a quick and straightforward commissioning of the new tools in the coming months."
Professor Wang Lijun, who will be responsible for the diode laser AlInGaP-based system, added, "Aixtron's AIX 200/4 will become our principal R&D system and I am confident that it will be the best match to our specific laser fabrication development requirements. It has attractive new features which together with the implemented design innovations will, I believe, optimize the uptime and yield for AlInGaP epitaxial layer deposition."
Aixtron News Release Aixtron and Semileds Report Fabrication of UHB Blue LEDs on 6-inch sapphire Wafers
CompoundSemi News StaffMay 4, 2009...Aixtron and Semileds announced that the companies have successfully collaborated on a project to fabricate GaN-based blue LED chips on 6-inch sapphire wafers. Aixtron says that the achieved optical results were encouraging, and the companies have refined the process enough to bring it close to production capability.
According to Aixtron, the 6-inch sapphire wafer process is based on MOCVD and a series of follow-on device fabrication steps through to final test. The LED structure was deposited on a 1000 µm thick 6-inch sapphire substrate using an AIX 2800G4 HT MOCVD reactor in the 6x6-inch configuration.
Dr. Chuong Tran, President and COO of Semileds, commented, "Judging from the uniformity of the 18,000 1x1 mm Vertical LED on Metal Alloy chips from one single wafer, we can clearly see the yield advantage of this larger wafer MOCVD process. One of the contributing factors to yield enhancement is the significantly reduced edge area compared to the area equivalent of nine 2-inch wafers."
Dr. Christian Geng, General Manager Greater China of Aixtron added, "The process obviously works from A to Z. I expect that once the price of a 6-inch substrate becomes competitive many of our customers will convert their AIX 2800G4 HT systems from 42x2-inch to 6x6-inch configuration since it merely requires the exchange of the so-called Satellite Disks." Aixtron News Release Microsemi Acquires Defense & Security Business from Endwave Corporation
CompoundSemi News StaffMay 4, 2009...Microsemi Corporation, an RF IC maker based in Irvine, California USA, reports that it has acquired the defense electronics and security (D&S) business of Endwave Corporation. Under the terms of the agreement, Microsemi is acquiring the D&S assets for a total equity value of $28 million in cash plus the assumption of specified liabilities. Microsemi says it can make the D&S business more profitable.
Microsemi plans to combine Endwave's high frequency RF component portfolio with its own, thereby covering the technology spectrum up to 100 GHz.
Microsemi notes that the D&S business has been awarded contracts from several Microsemi customers in recent years to supply the innovative products that the business had developed. These customers include companies such as Boeing, Cobham, L3, Lockheed Martin, Northrop Grumman, and Raytheon. Microsemi says that the acquisition will expand its product portfolio into defense electronics applications such as theater-wide video and voice communications, advanced radar systems, remote sensing and broadband transmission systems. Microsemi says it also plans to expand the newly acquired business into new, related markets such as satellite and space.
James J. Peterson, President and Chief Executive Officer of Microsemi Corporation stated, "Endwave's industry-leading RF technology and its focus on emerging high-growth defense electronics and security applications make it an excellent complement to Microsemi's own product suite." Microsemi News Release Global Handset Shipments Fell at Fastest Rate Ever, Strategy Analytics SaysMay 1, 2009...Market research firm Strategy Analytics reports that global mobile handset shipments plunged 13 percent year-over-year, to reach 245 million units in Q1 2009, the fastest sales decline in the 27-year history of the industry. The company cites de-stocking by cautious retailers and a worldwide economic downturn as the main reasons for the fall.
Alex Spektor, Analyst at Strategy Analytics said, “Our records indicate that Q1 2009 represented the fastest ever decline in annual shipment growth since the modern cellphone industry began in 1983."
Neil Mawston, Director at Strategy Analytics, commented, "Shipment growth contracted for all the top five major vendors, forcing some of them, such as Nokia, to rein in costs and slash thousands of jobs. However, one bright spot was found among the smartphone specialists. Apple, for example, more than doubled its volumes year-over-year due to healthy demand for its wildly popular 3G iPhone."
Samsung was the top performer among the big five vendors during Q1 of 2009, and its market share reached a record high of 19 percent.
In one of the only bright spots in the industry, Apple exceeded expectations in shipping 3.8 million iPhones during the quarter. Company News Release Our news features are reported
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