Semiconductor today

Mineral exploration company Volta Metals Ltd of Toronto, Canada (which owns, has optioned and is currently exploring a critical minerals portfolio of rare-earths, gallium, lithium, cesium and tantalum projects in Ontario) has begun laboratory-scale bioleaching recovery test work primarily targeting gallium and secondarily rare-earth elements (REEs) at Dr Vasu Appanna’s laboratory of Biomine Research and Development at Laurentian University in Sudbury, Ontario. Laurentian University is recognized for its applied research expertise in mining, mineral processing, and earth sciences...

High-performance semiconductor, Internet of Things (IoT) systems and cloud connectivity service provider Semtech Corp of Camarillo, CA, USA has acquired HieFo Corp of Alhambra, CA –which manufactures indium phosphide (InP) optoelectronic devices for optical transceivers used across data-center interconnects (DCI) and intra-data-center interconnects – for about $34m in cash...

In booth #2027 at the IEEE Applied Power Electronics Conference (APEC 2026) in San Antonio, Texas (22–26 March), Navitas Semiconductor Corp of Torrance, CA, USA is exhibiting a 250kW solid-state transformer (SST) platform developed by the Power Electronics Laboratory of Switzerland’s École Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne (EPFL) that enables the grid architecture required by next-generation data centers, eliminating bulky low-frequency transformers while improving end-to-end efficiency...

CoolSem Technologies of Eindhoven, the Netherlands (which was founded in 2025 and develops wafer-level thermal management technology to reduce thermal resistance and mechanical stress in advanced semiconductor and photonic devices) has established an Advisory Board to accelerate global growth and technology leadership...

Teck American Inc of Spokane, WA, USA (a subsidiary of Canada-based Teck Resources Ltd) has agreed to sell the past-producing Apex germanium (Ge), gallium (Ga) and copper (Cu) mine in Utah to Blue Moon Metals Inc of Toronto, ON, Canada, which says it will become a key stakeholder to support an integrated pipeline of US critical mineral projects to secure North American supply. The transaction adds to a working relationship with key shareholder Hartree Partners LP, which is described as a key partner with the US government on its recently announced US$12bn critical metals stockpile...

Teck American Inc of Spokane, WA, USA (a subsidiary of Canada-based Teck Resources Ltd) has agreed to sell the past-producing Apex germanium (Ge), gallium (Ga) and copper (Cu) mine in Utah to Blue Moon Metals Inc of Toronto, ON, Canada, which says it will become a key stakeholder to support an integrated pipeline of US critical mineral projects to secure North American supply. The transaction adds to a working relationship with key shareholder Hartree Partners LP, which is described as a key partner with the US government on its recently announced US$12bn critical metals stockpile...

The rapid rise of generative AI is driving continuous growth in demand for high-speed data transmission in data centers, notes market research firm TrendForce. Copper cable solutions, traditionally used for short-distance intra-rack interconnects, are increasingly facing challenges in both transmission density and energy efficiency...

The rapid rise of generative AI is driving continuous growth in demand for high-speed data transmission in data centers, notes market research firm TrendForce. Copper cable solutions, traditionally used for short-distance intra-rack interconnects, are increasingly facing challenges in both transmission density and energy efficiency...

Satellite communication (Satcom) technology provider Circuits Integrated Hellas (CIH) of Athens, Greece has launched the CI-ONE family of small-form-factor integrated PA + SPDT modules for Ka-band applications, delivering ultra-fast (5ns) switching speeds for next-generation Satcom architectures vital in 5G/6G, radar and aerospace applications...

Satellite communication (Satcom) technology provider Circuits Integrated Hellas (CIH) of Athens, Greece has launched the CI-ONE family of small-form-factor integrated PA + SPDT modules for Ka-band applications, delivering ultra-fast (5ns) switching speeds for next-generation Satcom architectures vital in 5G/6G, radar and aerospace applications...

Optica says that Steven DenBaars of University of California Santa Barbara (UCSB) has been selected as the 2026 recipient of the Nick Holonyak Jr Award for “pioneering contributions to high-efficiency GaN LEDs and laser diodes”...

Optica says that Steven DenBaars of University of California Santa Barbara (UCSB) has been selected as the 2026 recipient of the Nick Holonyak Jr Award for “pioneering contributions to high-efficiency GaN LEDs and laser diodes”...

Marking the final milestone in a £13m program part-funded by the UK Space Agency, Space Forge of Cardiff, UK (which has operations on Florida’s Space Coast) has announced completion of the National Microgravity Research Centre (NMRC), fulfilling the objectives of the Space Clusters Infrastructure Fund (SCIF) project awarded in November 2023. Administered by the UK Space Agency, the SCIF supports investment in the infrastructure needed to grow the UK’s regional space clusters, in line with the ambitions set out in the National Space Strategy...

Starlab Space LLC of Webster, TX, USA (which is developing an AI-enabled commercial space station, expanding access to low Earth orbit research) has announced a payload reservation agreement with United Semiconductors LLC (USLLC) of Los Alamitos, CA, USA (which since 2005 has been supplying the US defense sector and national laboratories with critical substrates). This will support the transition of USLLC’s space-based micro-gravity semiconductor crystal growth technology from demonstration aboard the International Space Station (ISS, which is to be retired in 2030) to sustained commercial-scale production in low Earth orbit...

NVIDIA of Santa Clara, CA, USA has announced multi-year strategic agreements with Lumentum Holdings Inc of San Jose, CA (which designs and makes photonics products for optical networks and lasers for industrial and consumer markets) to accelerate innovation in advanced optics technologies, including R&D, to enable next-generation AI infrastructure and systems designs...

Global mining group Rio Tinto is moving forward on an R&D project to extract primary gallium from its alumina refining process in Quebec, with a conditionally approved contribution from Natural Resources Canada under the Global Partnerships Initiative (GPI)...

At the Mobile World Congress (MWC 2026) in Barcelona, Spain (2–5 March), engineered substrate manufacturer Soitec of Bernin, near Grenoble, France and Nanyang Technological University, Singapore (NTU Singapore) are announcing results of their joint four-year research program into next-generation 6G connectivity. As 5G adoption becomes widespread and consumers are becoming accustomed to the speed and bandwidth it offers, Soitec and its research partners are laying the groundwork for the next revolution in wireless communication...

Epitaxial deposition and process equipment maker Veeco Instruments Inc of Plainview, NY, USA says that a global leader in optical communications laser manufacturing has placed orders for multiple Lumina metal-organic chemical vapor deposition (MOCVD) systems and multiple Spector ion beam sputtering (IBD) optical coating systems. These tools will be used to fabricate indium phosphide (InP) lasers for innovative optical communication solutions in the datacom industry. The order establishes Lumina as the customer’s production tool of record for InP epitaxy, while the Spector systems are used to deposit high-quality optical coatings on laser diode facets...

ams OSRAM AG of Premstaetten, Austria and Munich, Germany has completed the sale of its Entertainment and Industry Lamps business to optical technologies firm Ushio Inc of Tokyo, Japan (announced on 29 July 2025) for a cash and debt-free purchase price of €114m...

A new economic impact study released by cadmium telluride (CdTe) thin-film photovoltaic (PV) module maker First Solar Inc of Tempe, AZ, USA details its estimated contributions to the US economy. Using IMPLAN economic modeling software, the Kathleen Babineaux Blanco Public Policy Center at the University of Louisiana at Lafayette analyzed First Solar’s actual and forecasted US spending in 2025 and 2027. The firm expects to operate about 18GW of annual nameplate solar module production capacity across six manufacturing facilities in Alabama, Louisiana, Ohio and South Carolina by 2027...