Hoya Reveals SiC Output ExpectationsApril 22, 2003...Hoya shared with Nikkei Business
Daily last week that it intends to begin selling its new SiC wafers
by the end of this April. Sales projections have been set at an income goal
of 60 billion yen, by 2010, 60% of which will be targeted to the Japanese domestic
market, and that Hoya will make and sell their SiC wafers through its subsidiary,
Hoya Semiconductor Technologies. Estimated output of their cubic SiC is 100
150mm-diameter wafers per month, and that production will take place at Hoya's
plant in Sagamihara, Kanagawa Prefecture. The company also estimated that It
will invest 610 million yen to raise their monthly output to 300 wafers by this
autumn and then raise their output to 1,000 wafers by the end of this year.
Nikkei also reported that "the unit will aim for sales of 1 billion yen
in the first year and 6.5 billion yen in fiscal 2007." As background, we
refer readers to our
coverage last June, introducing Hoya's new SiC initiative.
 |
April 22, 2003...Bookham Technology of Abingdon, UK has announced that it has adopted Agilent
Technologies' MMIC design-flow solution. As an early adopter of the program,
Bookham has been working with Agilent to help improve the software package as
a means of helping ensure a smooth transfer for Bookham customers who will be
using the newest Agilent "Advanced Design System" software, and Bookham
has already migrated its MMIC model and design libraries to that latest release,
known as ADS 2003A. Company
news release. In-Stat Reports MEMS Up During DownturnApril 22, 2003...Blue spectrum players aren't the only ones doing well during the current overall
economic downturn. According to a recent report out of market research firm,
In-Stat of Scottsdale, Arizona USA, MicroElectroMechanical Systems (MEMS) suppliers
turned in a surprisingly good report card for 2002 as well. According to In-Stat,
MEMS-based solutions to the optical networking market thrived, due to the fact
that many of these devices have now passed Telcordia standards, giving them
real respectability within the market. As a result, a number of companies saw
their shipments move beyond sampling and into volume production in 2002. According
to In-Stat, even though near-term market conditions will remain tough, the long-term
prospects for the communications market remain very strong, with revenues seeing
a CAGR of 41.8% through 2007. “While device reliability is no longer the
issue – company stability is. Fully 50% of the companies known to be developing
MEMS solutions for optical networking have closed their doors, and the question
lingers as to who will be next,” says Marlene Bourne, a Senior Analyst with
In-Stat/MDR. Even so, those remaining in the market were still able to raise
more than $55 million in venture capital funding throughout 2002. According
to Bourne, “Other trends in this market include a noticeable change in the
types of devices that have gone into volume production – more companies are
now offering variable optical attenuators and tunable filters, and there has
been a discernible shift to small and 3D switches. In addition, the increased
presence from Asia-Pacific companies cannot be ignored.” The report is titled
MEMS and Optical Networks: Down But Not Out (#IN030600EA) and more details
are included in In-Stat's company
news release.
 |
GCS Announces Newest Wireless LAN HBT Foundry ProcessApril 22, 2003...Keeping up with the trend toward the latest 802.11a/b/g wireless LAN standards,
Global Communication Semiconductors, Inc. (GCS) of Torrance, California, has
announced that its proprietary high performance InGaP HBT process will now be
offered specifically as a production level foundry service to customers working
on those converging standards. (Ref: April 3 Editorial
"World Without Wires). "GCS has a number of proprietary InGaP HBT
processes. Our P2 process was developed specifically for 802.11 power amplifiers.
This process provides a better breakdown voltage and has a self-limiting current
feature that prevents total burnout," commented Dr. Sam Lee, CEO of GCS.
"This process gives a competitive edge to our customers addressing the rapid
growth WLAN market. It has long been recognized that GaAs based power amplifiers
and particularly InGaP HBT designs are exceptionally suited for the more demanding
linearity requirements of 802.11a and 802.11g WLAN standards." GCS'
P2 process claims better gain, linearity and lower dc power consumption as compared
to SiGe and other GaAs based technologies and that the power consumption of
modules off the P2 process has been reduced by 30% allowing for significantly
longer battery life that is crucial for laptop and other portable WLAN applications.
GCS currently offers foundry services for InGaP HBT, InP HBT and pHEMT processes
and foundry services for QWIP detectors, modulators & PIN diodes used in the
surveillance, security and fiberoptic communication markets.Company news release. Color Kinetics Signs OEM Licensing Agreement with ZumtobelApril 22, 2003...Color Kinetics of Boston, Massachusetts USA, a pioneer of intelligent advanced
LED-based illumination technologies, and Zumtobel Staff Lighting, Inc. of Highland,
New York USA, an innovative architectural lighting solutions provider, today
announced an agreement designed to help the companies meet rising demand for
progressive architectural lighting products that blend innovative design with
advanced LED technology and intelligent control. Through this agreement, Zumtobel
Staff Lighting will leverage Color Kinetics' patented Chromacore technology
and integrate Color Kinetics components to add a full spectrum of controllable
colors and lighting effects to a new line of sophisticated, European-inspired
lighting products for the North American market. The products will be unveiled
in May at Lightfair International 2003 in New York. "Zumtobel Staff Lighting
is a widely recognized leader in architectural lighting, and we're thrilled
to extend the advantages of intelligent LED illumination technology to their
North American customer base," said Bill Sims, President and COO, Color
Kinetics. "This collaboration will serve to advance the adoption of next-generation,
LED-based lighting through a unique set of products that open up a realm of
visionary applications for Chromacore." Chromacore is an innovative technology
that applies microprocessor-controlled, multicolored, high-brightness LEDs to
generate rich, saturated colors and color-changing effects without the cost
and efficiency constraints of conventional lighting methods. Both Color Kinetics and Zumtobel will be exhibiting at Lightfair
Internationa May -6-8 in New York City. Company news release. Lamina Offers Attractively Priced LTCC-M Package for HB-LEDsApril 22, 2003...Lamina Ceramics of Westampton, New Jersey USA, noted for its manufacture of
multi-layer ceramic ICs packages, has introduced what it says is an especially
affordable HB-LED package with superior heat dissipation capability. The new
packaging is based on Lamina's Low Temperature Co-fired Ceramic on Metal (LTCC-M)
technology that addresses the price and heat dissipation concerns of high brightness
LED arrays. Lamina reports that their LTCC-M package costs approximately half
that of conventional packages and can withstand high operating temperatures,
making it an excellent choice for high brightness LED arrays geared to the high
end of the market, i.e. those devices being designed to replace incandescent
bulbs. The new package, that has an operational temperature limit of 250° C,
compared to ~ 70° C for many conventional plastic packages, has been achieved,
in part, due to its 170 W/mK thermal conductivity, which helps keep die junction
temperatures low even when devices are closely spaced. Prototypes can be delivered
within four weeks and pricing starts at $0.25, dependent on size and complexity.
Company news release. Our news features are reported
by the CompoundSemi News staff writers.
For submissions or content suggestions, you can contact us using
editor -at - compoundsemi.com
For more information and to reserve promotion space contact
Info7 -at - compoundsemi.com
or call +1 (512) 257-9888
|
