Semiconductor today

Photonic simulation CAD software developer Photon Design Ltd of Oxford, UK says that it has enabled pioneering, multi-junction vertical-cavity surface-emitting laser (VCSEL) simulation, within its HAROLD simulation tool...

On 23 July, the Vermont Gallium-Nitride (V-GaN) Tech Hub hosted an open house to showcase its new Test and Characterization Facility (TCL), which is described as a critical resource for accelerating the transition of advanced semiconductor technologies from development to commercial deployment...

Since the development of power diodes and thyristors in the 1950s, silicon has been the dominant material for power electronics across applications ranging from electric vehicles to wind turbines. However, the emergence of wide-bandgap semiconductors such as silicon carbide (SiC) and gallium nitride (GaN) has enabled industry to push to higher voltages and smaller form factors while increasing efficiency and maintaining reliability. At the same time, early-stage research into the next generation of semiconductor materials, ultrawide-bandgap (UWBG) semiconductors, threatens to disrupt this space further...

A Chinese research team has achieved consecutive breakthroughs in gallium nitride (GaN) heterojunction bipolar transistors (HBTs), with results published in IEEE Electron Device Letters (IEEE EDL) in both 2025 and 2026. The 2026 paper was selected as an Editor’s Pick, marking a transition for GaN HBTs from frequency characterization to practical power application evaluation...

Gallium nitride (GaN) power IC and silicon carbide (SiC) technology firm Navitas Semiconductor Corp of Torrance, CA, USA and South Korea-based Magnachip Semiconductor Corp (which designs and manufactures of analog and mixed-signal power semiconductor platform solutions) have announced a strategic partnership to accelerate adoption of SiC technologies in high-voltage (HV) and ultra-high-voltage (UHV) power markets...

Artificial intelligence (AI) interconnect technology company Palomino Laboratories Inc of Goleta, CA, USA has shipped its first micro-LED light engine prototypes to its first hyperscaler customer. Furthermore, the customer completed its evaluation and provided Palomino with test measurement results confirming that the measured micro-LED bandwidth exceeded Palomino’s initial design targets...

Deposition equipment maker Aixtron SE of Herzogenrath, near Aachen, Germany is now actively recruiting for a variety of roles at the new facility that it is building in Penang, Malaysia...

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 entered into a definitive purchase agreement with RZJ Capital Management LLC to acquire — for $1m in cash plus 10 million common shares at a deemed price of $0.20 per share — the remaining 20% interest in the Springer Rare Earth Element (REE) and Gallium Deposit, which spans 4750-hectares on the traditional territory of the Nipissing First Nations in Sturgeon Falls, about 70km east of Sudbury, Ontario...

AXT Inc of Fremont, CA, USA — which makes gallium arsenide (GaAs), indium phosphide (InP) and germanium (Ge) substrates and raw materials at plants in China — has appointed Jia-Bin Duh to its board, increasing the number of directors to six...

For first-half 2026, molecular beam epitaxy (MBE) system maker Riber S.A. of Bezons, France has reported revenue of €12.8m, up 19% on €10.7m in first-half 2025...

Singapore-based fabless silicon photonics company SILITH Technology has announced the first mass-production wafer delivery of photonic ICs from the Singapore fab of foundry United Microelectronics Corp (UMC) of Hsinchu, Taiwan, advancing the partnership between the two companies to scale next-generation silicon photonics manufacturing...

In booth B03 (Hall 16) at Power Electronics, Intelligent Motion, Renewable Energy and Energy Management (PCIM Asia 2026) in Shenzhen, China (26–28 August), Efficient Power Conversion Corp (EPC) of El Segundo, CA, USA — which makes enhancement-mode gallium nitride on silicon (eGaN) power field-effect transistors (FETs) and integrated circuits for power management applications — is showcasing its newest-generation GaN technology, demonstrating how its Gen7 GaN platform enables compact, high-performance power architectures for intelligent motion control and AI power delivery. The latest generation of eGaN devices combines ultra-low on-resistance, low switching losses and high-frequency operation to simplify system integration while improving efficiency, dynamic response, and thermal performance...

Epitaxial deposition and process equipment maker Veeco Instruments Inc of Plainview, NY, USA says that vertically integrated gallium arsenide (GaAs)-based quantum dot (QD) diode laser developer and manufacturer Innolume GmbH of Dortmund, Germany has purchased a GEN2000 molecular beam epitaxy (MBE) system to expand production for next-generation optical transceivers and silicon photonics applications. The investment supports the increasing demand for optical connectivity solutions for hyperscale AI infrastructure and cloud data centers...

Electrification and automation technology provider ABB of Zurich, Switzerland is acquiring Advantics of Saint-Genis-Pouilly, France, which provides silicon carbide-based power conversion solutions (integrating hardware, firmware and software to optimize performance across demanding applications including data centers, industrial microgrids, power generation and EV infrastructure)...

Epiwafer and substrate maker IQE plc of Cardiff, Wales, UK says that greater-than-expected trading in first-half 2026, with strong demand across all core segments, should yield revenue of at least £64m...

For coverage of all the key business and technology developments in compound semiconductors and advanced silicon materials and devices over the last month...

Researchers at Jilin University in China have reported a significant enhancement in the two-dimensional electron gas (2DEG) mobility of nitrogen-polar (N-polar) GaN/AlGaN heterostructures grown on silicon carbide (SiC) substrates by metal-organic chemical vapor deposition (MOCVD)...

NUBURU Inc of Centennial, CO, USA (a dual-use defense & security integrated platform company) has closed its best-efforts public offering, generating gross proceeds of about $38m, before deducting placement agent fees and other offering expenses...

NUBURU Inc of Centennial, CO, USA (a dual-use defense & security integrated platform company focused on non-kinetic effects and directed-energy technologies, electronic warfare and defense mobility programs, software-orchestrated defense systems and advanced manufacturing) has announced initial results from a laser dazzler counter-UAS test campaign conducted at the facilities of Tekne S.p.A. in Italy...

NUBURU Inc of Centennial, CO, USA (a dual-use defense & security integrated platform company focused on non-kinetic effects and directed-energy technologies, electronic warfare and defense mobility programs, software-orchestrated defense systems and advanced manufacturing) has announced a proposed best-efforts public offering of up to $38m of its securities...