Semiconductor today

PowerAmerica — a public–private research initiative established in 2014 as the US Department of Energy (DOE)’s first Clean Energy Manufacturing Innovation Institute — has issued a request for proposals for projects lasting up to 24 months, focused on the development of advanced wide-bandgap power semiconductor technologies, power electronics assemblies, and packaging and manufacturing processes with the potential to improve performance and lower cost...

Cadmium telluride (CdTe) thin-film photovoltaic (PV) module maker First Solar Inc of Tempe, AZ, USA has inaugurated its new fully vertically integrated manufacturing facility in Iberia Parish, Louisiana. The $1.1bn facility, which spans about 2.4 million square feet and is about 11 times the size of the New Orleans Superdome, currently employs over 700 people and is expected to have 826 staff by the end of the year...

The US Department of War has awarded $29.9m via Title III of the Defense Production Act (DPA) to ElementUSA Inc of Fort Lauderdale, FL, USA to enable the development of a demonstration facility in Gramercy, Louisiana for extracting gallium and scandium from existing industrial waste...

NUBURU Inc of Centennial, CO, USA — which was founded in 2015 and developed and previously manufactured high-power industrial blue lasers — has executed the €2m first tranche of financial support for Tekne S.p.A. (a provider of integrated electronic warfare and cyber capabilities in military vehicles), following the updated Tekne agreement announced 12 November...

Photonic simulation CAD software developer Photon Design Ltd of Oxford, UK has provided laser design and simulation training on the JePPIX ‘PIC Design Course’ 2025, held at Eindhoven University of Technology (TU Eindhoven) on 27 October to 7 November...

GlobalFoundries of Malta, NY (GF, the only US-based pure-play foundry with a global manufacturing footprint, including facilities in the USA, Europe and Singapore) and Navitas Semiconductor Corp of Torrance, CA, USA — which provides GaNFast gallium nitride (GaN) and GeneSiC silicon carbide (SiC) power semiconductors — have announced a long-term strategic partnership to strengthen and accelerate US-based GaN technology, design and manufacturing. Together, the firms will collaborate, develop and deliver solutions for critical applications in high-power markets that demand the highest efficiency and power density, including AI data centers, performance computing, energy and grid infrastructure and industrial electrification...

ams OSRAM GmbH of Premstätten, Austria and Munich, Germany has launched the new-generation FIREFLY SFH 4030B and SFH 4060B infrared light-emitting diodes (IREDs), which are claimed to set new standards for infrared LEDs in augmented reality (AR) and virtual reality (VR) applications such as eye tracking in smart glasses and AR/VR headsets...

The Ohio State University (OSU) has purchased a Close Coupled Showerhead system for metal-organic chemical vapor deposition (CCS MOCVD) from Aixtron SE of Herzogenrath, near Aachen, Germany. The tool will be used for epitaxy of gallium oxide (GaO) and aluminum gallium oxide (AlGaO) for materials and device development on 100mm substrates...

At the SEMICON Europa 2025 event in Munich, Germany (18–21 November), micro/nanotechnology R&D center CEA-Leti of Grenoble, France has launched a three-year, multi-lateral program on micro-LED technology for ultra-fast data transfer, with a particular focus on accelerating artificial intelligence (AI) growth. The lab- to-fab initiative draws on the institute’s expertise in micro-LED process technology. Beginning in January, it aims to engage manufacturers of micro-LEDs, optical fibers, photodiodes and interconnects, as well as chipmakers, system integrators, and hyperscalers...

Sweden-based AlixLabs AB (which was spun off from Lund University in 2019) has closed a €15m (~SEK165m) Series A funding round led by long-term investors Navigare Ventures, Industrifonden, and FORWARD.one, and joined by Sweden-based STOAF as well as Global Brain (an independent Japanese venture capital firm that manages strategic funds and invests in semiconductor startups), further strengthening AlixLabs’ international reach and industry partnerships...

Intelligent power and sensing technology firm onsemi of Scottsdale, AZ, USA says that its board of directors has authorized a new share repurchase program of up to $6bn over the next three years, launching on 1 January 2026 after the previous $3bn authorization expires on 31 December. Under the prior authorization, onsemi has repurchased $2.1bn of its common stock over the last three years, in particular spending about 100% of the company’s free cash flow in 2025 for share repurchase...

Mojo Vision Inc of Cupertino, CA, USA — which is developing and commercializing micro-LED display technology for consumer, enterprise and government applications — has appointed Dr Anthony Yu to its advisory board. The firm is applying its micro-LED technology to the development of high-speed optical interconnects for AI infrastructure. The addition of Yu to the board brings decades of silicon photonics leadership experience to support the firm’s product strategy and go-to-market execution...

GlobalFoundries of Malta, NY (GF, the only US-based pure-play foundry with a global manufacturing footprint, including facilities in the USA, Europe and Singapore) has announced the acquisition of commercial pure-play specialty silicon photonics foundry Advanced Micro Foundry Pte Ltd (AMF) – a spin-off of the Institute of Microelectronics (IME), a research institute of Singapore’s Agency for Science, Technology and Research (A*STAR) – marking what is described as a pivotal step in GF’s strategy to advance innovation in silicon photonics. The acquisition will expand GF’s silicon photonics technology portfolio, production capacity and R&D in Singapore, complementing its existing technology capabilities in the USA and unlocking new market opportunities with a broader set of data-center and communication technologies...

Filtronic plc of Sedgefield and Leeds, UK — which designs and manufactures RF and millimeter-wave (mmWave) transmit & receive components and subsystems — has completed a multi-year project to develop novel plastic QFN packaging for gallium nitride (GaN) devices, marking what is described as a significant milestone for UK sovereign capability in advanced semiconductor technology...

Wolfspeed Inc of Durham, NC, USA — which makes silicon carbide (SiC) materials and power semiconductor devices — has launched 1200V SiC six-pack power modules for high-power inverters. By combining its latest Gen 4 SiC MOSFET technology and innovative packaging, the modules are claimed to deliver three times more power cycling capability at operating temperature than competing solutions, and 15% higher inverter current capability in an industry-standard footprint...

The University of Arkansas has opened its Multi-User Silicon Carbide Facility (MUSiC), which is claimed to the only open-access fabrication facility of its kind in the USA...

UK-based Oxford Instruments says that it is playing a key role to support the industry’s first fully automated 6-inch indium phosphide (InP) wafer fabrication capability for photonic devices, led by compound semiconductors and optical networking solutions provider Coherent Corp of Saxonburg, PA, USA...

Tokyo-based Shin-Etsu Chemical Co Ltd says that its QST substrate has been adopted for the 300mm gallium nitride (GaN) power device development program at nanoelectronics research center imec of Leuven, Belgium, where sample evaluation is in progress. In the evaluation, a 5µm-thick high-electron-mobility transistor (HEMT) device achieved a record breakdown voltage, for a 300mm QST substrate, of more than 650V...

Tokyo-based Shin-Etsu Chemical Co Ltd says that its QST substrate has been adopted for the 300mm gallium nitride (GaN) power device development program at nanoelectronics research center imec of Leuven, Belgium, where sample evaluation is in progress. In the evaluation, a 5µm-thick high-electron-mobility transistor (HEMT) device achieved a record breakdown voltage, for a 300mm QST substrate, of more than 650V...

SemiQ Inc of Lake Forest, CA, USA — which designs, develops and manufactures silicon carbide (SiC) power semiconductors and 150mm SiC epitaxial wafers for high-voltage applications — has expanded its family of 1200V Gen3 SiC MOSFETs, launching five SOT-227 modules that offer RDSon values of 7.4mΩ, 14.5mΩ and 34mΩ. The firm’s GCMS modules, which feature Schottky barrier diodes (SBDs), have lower switching losses at high temperature, especially compared to non-SBDs GCMX modules...