Semiconductor today

Advanced materials company Space Forge Inc (which operates from Florida’s Space Coast) has signed a strategic memorandum of understanding (MoU) with United Semiconductors LLC (which specializes in bulk crystal growth and substrate production of III-V compound semiconductors from its facility in Los Alamitos, CA). The agreement formalizes the ongoing collaboration that started over a year ago...

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The US National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) has created a silicon carbide (SiC)-based power module with what is claimed to be record efficiency, power density, and low-cost manufacturability...

The 8-inch specialty foundry DB HiTek of Seoul, South Korea says it is in the final stages of development of its 650V E-mode gallium nitride (GaN) high-electron-mobility transistor (HEMT) process for power semiconductor applications. Also, at the end of October, the firm is offering a dedicated GaN multi-project wafer (MPW) program...

Wolfspeed Inc of Durham, NC, USA — which makes silicon carbide (SiC) materials and power semiconductor devices — has announced the commercial launch of its 200mm SiC materials products, marking a milestone in its mission to accelerate the industry’s transition from silicon to silicon carbide. After initially offering 200mm SiC to select customers, the firm says that the positive response and benefits warranted a commercial release to the market...

ams OSRAM GmbH of Premstaetten, Austria and Munich, Germany has introduced the first product in its new Vegalas Power series of high-power laser diodes, targeting increasing popular projector applications such as immersive home movie experiences, automotive head-up displays or industrial machine vision. The firm now offers the full range of optoelectronic components required for projection: from light sources in various colors and power classes to sensors. In addition to projection, other application areas also benefit from the new laser diodes, including weed control or stage lighting...

The University of Massachusetts Lowell says that Electrical Engineering assistant professor Anhar Bhuiyan (who joined the faculty in fall 2023) is leading two US National Science Foundation (NSF) grants totaling $797,000 for research into next-generation power components for satellites and spacecraft — as well as for electronics on Earth...

Infineon Technologies AG of Munich, Germany is introducing a 12kW reference design for high-performance power supply units (PSUs), specifically designed for AI data centers and server applications, and targeted at R&D engineers, hardware designers, and developers of power electronics systems. Leveraging all relevant semiconductor materials silicon (Si), silicon carbide (SiC) and gallium nitride (GaN), the reference design is said to offer high efficiency and high power density...

Eulitha AG of Kirchdorf, Switzerland (which provides lithography equipment and services for the nanotechnology, photonics and optoelectronic markets) says that several Asian vertical-cavity surface-emitting laser (VCSEL) foundries have adopted its deep ultraviolet (DUV) patterning platform for 6-inch wafer production. Eulitha recently shipped multiple systems to support the rapidly growing demand for VCSELs used in applications ranging from LiDAR, 3D sensing, data centers, and next-generation optical communications...

Silicon photonics-based chip-to-chip optical connectivity firm Ayar Labs of San Jose, CA, USA — which is pioneering co-packaged optics (CPO) for large-scale AI workloads — and high-performance ASIC design firm Alchip Technologies Ltd of Taipei, Taiwan have announced a strategic partnership to accelerate AI scale-up infrastructure. The collaboration fulfills hyperscaler demands for advanced AI accelerators and platforms that deliver enhanced performance, efficiency and scalability...

Ion implantation system maker Axcelis Technologies Inc of Beverly, MA, USA has launched the Purion Power Series+ ion implant product platform, designed specifically to enable improved device performance and increase productivity for next generation power devices, including emerging superjunction architectures...

Enphase Energy Inc of Fremont, CA, USA (which supplies microinverter-based solar and battery systems) has opened US pre-orders for the new IQ9N-3P Commercial Microinverter. This is Enphase’s first microinverter powered by gallium nitride (GaN) technology and designed for three-phase 480Y/277V (wye) grid configurations, without using external transformers...

Infineon Technologies AG Munich, Germany and electrical component maker Lingji Innovation Technology Co Ltd (a subsidiary of Beijing-based Ninebot Ltd) have signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) to further drive gallium nitride (GaN) technology in the area of light electric vehicles (LEV). Infineon provides GaN products supporting Lingji to develop high-performance electric two-wheeler inverter systems based on its new-generation CoolGaN G5 power transistors to drive advances in energy efficiency and performance...

Scintil Photonics of Grenoble, France (a fabless firm developing and commercializing silicon photonic integrated circuits with integrated lasers for AI data centers) has completed a $58m (€50m) Series B funding round led by Yotta Capital Partners and NGP Capital with strategic participation from NVIDIA. The round includes new participation from BNP Paribas Développement, alongside existing investors including Supernova Invest, Bpifrance Digital Venture, Innovacom, Bosch Ventures, and Applied Ventures ITIC Innovation Fund (AVITIC)...

Wolfspeed Inc of Durham, NC, USA — which makes silicon carbide (SiC) materials and power semiconductor devices — has received court approval for its plan of reorganization...

Fabless company Wise-integration of Hyeres, France — which was spun off from CEA-Leti in 2020 and designs and develops digital control for gallium nitride (GaN) and GaN IC-based power supplies — has appointed Ghislain Kaiser as chief executive officer. He succeeds CEO & co-founder Thierry Bouchet, who will continue to serve as chief technology officer & general manager, leading worldwide R&D and driving the technological vision...

Compound Semiconductor Applications (CSA) Catapult has appointed tech entrepreneur Rupert Baines as a non-executive director, working with members of the board to support its corporate governance and to inform its long-term strategy...

In a trading update for full-year 2025, epiwafer and substrate maker IQE plc of Cardiff, Wales, UK says that, as previously noted, trading in first-half 2025 was impacted by macroeconomic uncertainty and, as a result, some end-customer demand was fulfilled with existing inventory. The firm has continued to experience weakness in wireless markets, due mainly to softness in mobile handset sales, and this is expected to persist through 2025. In addition, delays to federal funding cycles in US military and defence sectors are resulting in the deferral of orders into 2026...

In a trading update for full-year 2025, epiwafer and substrate maker IQE plc of Cardiff, Wales, UK says that, as previously noted, trading in first-half 2025 was impacted by macroeconomic uncertainty and, as a result, some end-customer demand was fulfilled with existing inventory. The firm has continued to experience weakness in wireless markets, due mainly to softness in mobile handset sales, and this is expected to persist through 2025. In addition, delays to federal funding cycles in US military and defence sectors are resulting in the deferral of orders into 2026...

At the International Symposium on Automotive Lighting (ISAL 2025) in Darmstadt, Germany (22–24 September), Nichia Corp of Tokushima, Japan — the world’s largest gallium nitride (GaN)-based light-emitting diode/laser diode (LED/LD) manufacturer and inventor of high-brightness blue and white LEDs — is presenting its portfolio of Pixelated Light Source (PLS) solutions for adaptive driving beam (ADB) headlamps...