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Editorial: Cautious Optimism at Photonics West?
... This year's annual "really big show" for the photonics sector, Photonics West, could well mark a turning point for many compound semi companies. Hopefully, that turn will be upwards after far too many companies being trapped far too long in the down-draft created when all the hot air that...
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January 30, 2004...After a long battle in the courts, Professor
Shuji Nakamura of the University of California Santa Barbara (UCSB) has won
an especially large settlement for his breakthrough work in the development
of blue spectrum LEDs based on Group III Nitride materials. The work was originally
performed during Shuji Nakamura's tenure at Nichia Corporation in Anan, Japan,
where he was employed as an engineer from 1979 until 1999, the key blue spectrum
patents having been originally established by Shuji, using his affiliation with
Nichia, in the mid 1990s. The Japanese court award was for 20 billion Japanese
yen ($188 million USA), the amount originally sought by Shuji Nakamura when
filing his suit in August of 2001.
According to initial coverage in Japan via the Nikkei
wire service, the size of Nichia at the time the work was done, and the
lack of a clearcut holder of the actual patents involved, was a key issue. The
Japanese court concluded that Nichia, which is headquartered in Anan, in the
relatively remote Tokushima Prefecture, has subsequently earned 120.8 billion
yen in royalties for the work initiated by Shuji Nakamura. The ruling is being
considered by the international technology community as a huge triumph for the
actual individual "inventor" behind a subsequently successful technology.
In this case, the technology involved is based on Group III Nitride materials,
aka "the blue spectrum," and a technology we specifically champion
in CompoundSemi News and
Nitride News.
Specifically, the court ruled that "an inventor's remuneration in the
transfer of the patent should be based on his contribution to the invention,"
and thereby assessed that Shuji had contributed approximately 50% to the production
of the original blue LED device, and therefore, that he should receive 60.4
billion yen in past compensation. Presiding over the suit was Japan's Judge
Ryoichi Mimura who was quoted as saying, when handing down the ruling, that
Shuji Nakamura deserved that amount because ''the invention was a totally
rare example of a world-class invention achieved by the inventor's individual
ability and unique ideas in a poor research environment at a small company.''
The ruling was immediately appealed by Nichia to the Tokyo High Court. Responding
to questions from the Japanese press, Shuji Nakamura commented that he assumed
the case will go to the Japanese Supreme Court.
While our coverage of Shuji Nakamura's incredible career dates back to 1995,
for the benefit of our press colleagues in the mainstream technology and business
press, an online archive of news relating to Shuji and to Nichia complete online
coverage dating back to 2000 is available via the Nichia
article search on CompoundSemi Online. Any and all of this information
may be used by the press, and we would appreciate appropriate attribution.
Shuji Nakamura is very well known to the compound semi community, and in addition
to the many international technology honors he has received over the years for
his breakthrough work in blue spectrum LEDs and laser diodes, he was presented
CompoundSemi Online's first Pioneer
Award at Blue 2003 in Dallas last summer. In 1999, just prior to his
departure from Nichia, he conducted our original Nitride
101 workshop, which was videotaped and well-viewed internationally, included
an on-camera interview relating his history of invention. This news first reported Friday. For follow-up information and an indepth editorial and historical perspective on this news, see our Feb 1 editorial, "Shuji Wins."
nLight Raises Another $12 Million in Third Round FinancingJanuary 28, 2004...High power laser diode maker, nLight Photonics of Vancouver, Washington USA,
has raised $12 million in its third round of financing. This funding was led
by a consortium of previous investors including: Adams Capital Management; Menlo
Ventures; Mohr, Davidow Ventures; and Oak Investment Partners. “nLight has
developed solid traction in all the key market segments,” remarked Bill
Ericson, General Partner at Mohr, Davidow Ventures. “The company has an expanding
list of customers and revenues; there are great economic drivers to migrate
to high-power diode lasers in many applications, so the addressable market for
these products continues to grow.” Adding to this, Scott Keeney, President
and CEO of nLight said, "This caps off a very successful year where
sales have grown substantially driven by our industry leading performance. In
addition to this funding, we have also won very important contracts from the
Department of Defense that will allow us to continue to drive improvements in
efficiency, reliability and cost.” Funded in 2000, nLight specializes in
630nm to 1600nm lasers and focus specifically on improved beam quality. Company
news release Osram Opto Showcases Cutting Edge LDs at Photonics WestJanuary 28, 2004...Osram Opto Semiconductors GmbH of Regensburg, Germany, a leader in the creation
and integration of HB-LEDs, is also making its presence known as a leading supplier
of laser diodes. The company is at Photonics West this week in San Jose, California
USA, showing off their most recent advancements in materials and design that
have have been incorporated into what Osram Opto is calling "a new generation
of single-quantum-well (SQW) laser diodes," which they feel exhibit outstanding
electro-optical and thermal-mechanical properties. The SQW laser diodes are
extremely robust and resistant to thermal fatigue, thus are favored in welding
type applications. These cutting edge lasers (literally) include a lower
laser threshold (up to 25% lower) and a 15% increase in operating efficiency,
relative to conventional laser diodes. Among the products to be featured at
the Osram Opto booth are their new high power laser bar in a new OEM package
(SPL LG81), and new red laser diodes (SPL CG65) that have an optical output
of 0.5 W and a wavelength of 650 nm. Produced in Osram Opto's new InGaAIP material
system, these red LDs are targeted at an increasing number of medical applications,
including photodynamic therapy for cancer treatment, ophthalmology, and dermatology.
And for those keeping close track of Osram Opto, the wholly owned subsidiary
of Osram, in FY 2003, the subsidiary had 3,285 employees who produced sales
totaling EURO 392 million. Company
news release Spectrolab Goes To MarsJanuary 28, 2004...No, they're not building a plant off planet, yet, but Boeing's Spectrolab in
Sylmar, California USA is helping the USA's NASA in its efforts to determine
if Mars will be suitable as a planet worth tapping for its natural resources.
It seems the high efficiency, triple junction solar cells that are powering
the latest Mars exploration vehicles are manufactured by Spectrolab. On January
14th, Spectrolab announced their advanced, compound semi-based triple junction
cells are providing the power to “Spirit,” the NASA-built spacecraft that landed
on Mars on January 4 to explore the red planet. Spectrolab solar cells are also
powering NASA’s “Opportunity” rover, which successfully landed on Mars January
24. “We’re proud to be part of the Spirit mission, in part because it continues
Spectrolab’s already solid track record of producing power on interplanetary
missions to Mars,” said David Lillington, president of Spectrolab. “Mars
Global Surveyor, now entering its third year of conducting critical monitoring
of Martian weather patterns, is powered by Spectrolab solar cells. And Spectrolab
multi-junction solar cells generated solar power from beyond Mars orbit aboard
the NEAR spacecraft, which reached the furthest distance from the sun than any
solar array has traveled. “ For those unfamiliar with how triple junction
solar cells function, excellent descriptions and details are included in the
company
news release.
Sanyo Helps Lead the DVD/HDD Market Charge From Red to BlueJanuary 28, 2004...Sanyo Electric Company is not only jumping on the DVD/HDD blue laser-based
bandwagon, but they're helping lead the parade by leveraging their experience in
red laser diodes. On January 19th, Sanyo outlined their plans to significantly
raise their production output of DVD recordable optical pickups, a key device
for the expanding the DVD recordable drive market. Sanyo's total market research
calculations for DVD recordable drives, including IT and AV use, were 5.5 million
units in fiscal year 2002, 30 million units in FY 2003 and 66 million units
in FY 2004. According to Sanyo, in order to meet what they see as "brisk
demand," the company intends to ramp their production capacity of DVD recordable
optical pickups. In FY 2002 that production rate was 1.6 million units and moved
rapidly to 15 million units, and projected output for FY 2004 will be 35 million
units. Also in FY 2004, Sanyo plans to start production for AV use DVD recordable
optical pickups, which they project will go to 250 million units for FY 2004.
The company made a capital investment of 9 billion yen in FY 2003 and is increasing
that to 13 billion yen in FY 2004 to finance the ramp. Most important of all
to the advanced laser diode community, is Sanyo's note that they intend to continue
and further develop their core competency of blue spectrum laser technology
for the next generation of high storage capacity disks. Company
news release APA Optics Consolidates and Expandes Aberdeen FacilityJanuary 28, 2004...APA Optics, which is noted as a leading developer of cutting edge GaN components
for communications and other electronic applications, earlier this month announced
that it has significantly expanded its Operations in Aberdeen, South Dakota
USA, bringing that facility's employee count of 15 up to 38 people, noting that
the increase in South Dakota took advantage of Aberdeen's relatively lower manufacturing
costs in responding to the increasing demands of its APA Cables & Networks (APACN)
products. The expansion has not affected the head count of the APACN operations
in Plymouth, Minnesota and APA said they plan to continue expansion of its Aberdeen
operations as market conditions dictate to reduce its overall manufacturing
costs, while maintaining APACN's operations in Plymouth. Meanwhile, back in
Minnesota, where APA is headquarted, the company has discontinued its optics
manufacturing, which will necessitate the elimination of 5 positions at its
facility in Blaine, Minnesota. APA also consolidated its fiberoptics communications
activities in Blaine by eliminating 3 positions and retraining personnel in
Aberdeen to support APACN operations. Blaine operations will now focus mainly
on Gallium Nitride (GaN) technology and products, with a smaller group of persons
supporting fiber optics activities. APA fortified their strategy by stating
that they believe that the company will be able to aggressively pursue GaN Markets
by dedicating most of its resources in Blaine, and utilizing GaN manufacturing
facilities in Aberdeen. APA noted that these actions were necessary due mainly
to continued low demand of Dense Wavelength Divisional Multiplexers (DWDMs),
and significant downward price pressures caused by off-shore Asian suppliers
for both optics and fiber optics products. Company
news release Our news features are reported
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The
McDonald Report
Commentary & Perspective...
Cautious Optimism at Photonics West?January 28, 2004...This year's annual "really big show" for the photonics sector, Photonics
West, could well mark a turning point for many compound semi companies.
Hopefully, that turn will be upwards after far too many companies being trapped
far too long in the down-draft created when all the hot air that was released
when the telecom "Bubble" burst. Downturns can be sobering times. They weed
out the weak and test the inherently strong. The recent news that Nortel is
selling off even more of its business indicates that the recession may not really
be over... at least for some of the previous leaders. But the worse appears
to be over for most of the companies we traditionally cover in these pages.
It's good to see JDS Uniphase back in the headlines. (See today's news).
That's encouraging. Photonics West is currently underway in San Jose, California
USA, deep in the bleeding heart of Silicon Valley, where a vast number of professionals
are still out of work.
Are things recovering enough to get the job hirings back on track? We'll
see. Cautiously optimistic is probably the operative term at this year's
Photonics West. All the optical communication survivors, and most notably, the
companies who have taken their belt-tightening time to really get themselves
slimmed down and highly focused, will be there. And so will the unemployed professionals
that can afford to get to attend the meet. That's the one thing semiconductor
industry professionals, especially those in the USA want right now. They want
good jobs, like the ones they trained themselves to do. And they want them soon,
because everyone's personal savings accounts are starting to dwindle to almost
nothing. While survival, in itself, is a measure of success, we look forward
to the Fire in the Valley reignighting. The world sorely needs what our
photonics companies have to offer.
JDSU's Back in Swing of ThingsJanuary 28, 2004...Photonics West is currently underway in San Jose, California USA. With the
telecom downturn looking like it may finally be over, it's interesting to see
where some of the biggest names of those "better days gone by" are
now headed after having trimmed to the bone to simply survive. No name was bigger
and more dynamic than JDS Uniphase. Now under new command, JDSU took the opportunity
of the Photonics West show to roll out their newest laser products and to demonstrate
their newest technologies. Highlighting their offerings were a flurry of high
power pump lasers. JDSU also previewed new technology scheduled to be available
later in the year which included their pulsed fiber laser marking system, the
"Industrial Diode Laser" and according to their company
news release, they also demonstrated what they're calling "blue solid-state
laser technology."
JDSU's into blue lasers? That got me to looking more carefully at their
information to see if this was the kind of nitride-based blue spectrum lasers
we champion so heavily in these pages. The answer is, I don't know yet. If any
of you out there know, I'd appreciate the update, and I'll contact JDSU directly
after they recover from San Jose to get more information. All I could find thus
far was the brief reference that JDSU's "new blue solid-state technology"
is designed to be "an easy and cost-effective transition from blue argon
gas lasers," and that "the demonstration utilizes fiber-coupled technology
and is expected to be available in 10 mW and 20 mW models in late Spring 2004."
So, is this a pumped up version to get blue, or is it what I like to think of
as "true blue" spectrum nitride based laser diodes.
Siteseeing @ FLX Micro Can Be Downright InformativeJanuary 28, 2004...FLX Micro of Solon, Ohio USA, the SiC-based sensor developer that uses an especially
interesting MEMS process, has undergone an online facelift, and the result is
professional, pleasing to the eye, and downright informative, and even educational. The new site,
www.flxmicro.com, is my favorite
type corporate site to visit. It's designed to easily and quickly source each
page (something we online editor types who feature hotlinks greatly appreciate).
It's fast and not flashy, and it doesn't have a bunch of slow to download
pictures nor pop-ups (something else tech press editors appreciate. Not
everyone in the world has a super-fast connection, you know). The new site
made it extremely easy for me to quickly check on the latest news (in case
I wasn't up to date, which I was) and to remind myself who's heading the
company... something everyone always wants to know. FYI... this is the company
Bob Lynch now heads as CEO. Before joining FLX, Bob was CEO of Nitronex.
What FLX does best is explain their field, quickly and concisely, on
the new site. There aren't actually that many players in MEMS based advanced
sensors, and even less who root themselves in the toughest of compound semi
starting materials, SiC. (At least there aren't that many who come on the mainstream
tech press radar screen.) FLX understands that their sensors can indeed solve
critical niche applications that demand reliability and long life, while functioning
in extremely harsh environments. The field of "harsh environments"
is one we should be hearing more about, not less, because it's one of the application
fields where the wide bandgap compound semiconductors can truly dominate. Harsh
environments are the type places where silicon-based devices stumble, and always
will stumble.
Target application areas for SiC sensors, for those unfamiliar with
the field, and as you'll see when visiting FLX's apps
section of their new site, include advanced engine control systems in the
automotive sector, and in the energy sector, they're targeted at the rugged
conditions surrounding a variety of resource exploration and production, including
seismic exploration, well head control on the ocean floor, pipeline transmission,
and in oil, gas, and water separation systems. Target environmental applications
include low pressure measurement for things such as HVAC systems, and there's
a growing number of applications for these sensors in industrial process controls
that demand high performance MEMS sensors capable of operating reliably over
long periods of time. Thanks for the interesting tour, FLX, and keep up the
good work!
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... |
