Semiconductor today

Neo Performance Materials Inc of Toronto, Canada has completed the sale of its equity ownership interest in Neo Rare Metals (Oklahoma) LLC in Quapaw, OK, USA – which produces gallium trichloride – to the facility’s general manager & co-founder Kevin Reading...

The ChipNL Competence Centre has been launched, aiming to advance technological capabilities and foster innovation in the Dutch semiconductor ecosystem. The European Commission and the Rijksdienst voor Ondernemend Nederland (RVO) have jointly allocated a budget of €12m for the next four years. Specifically, the four-year project aims to stimulate innovation, collaboration and talent development and to enhance global competitiveness of the Netherlands and Europe in semiconductor technologies...

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

POET Technologies Inc of Toronto, Ontario, Canada — designer and developer of the POET Optical Interposer, photonic integrated circuits (PICs) and light sources for the data-center, telecom and artificial intelligence (AI) markets — has signed a master agreement, an optical engine purchase agreement and a deed of consignment with Kuala Lumpur-based Globetronics Manufacturing Sdn Bhd (GMSB) to make optical engines for POET in Penang, Malaysia...

Sivers Semiconductors AB of Kista, Sweden (which supplies RF beam-formerICs for SATCOMs and photonic lasers for AI data centers) is in advanced discussions with its strategic customer Ayar Labs of San Jose, CA, USA (which provides silicon photonics-based chip-to-chip optical connectivity solutions) to partner on the next phase of engagement focused on manufacturing at scale to support deployment of Ayar Labs’ in-package optical interconnect solutions...

Power Integrations Inc of San Jose, CA, USA (which provides high-voltage integrated circuits for energy-efficient power conversion) has introduced a wide-creepage package option for its InnoSwitch3-AQ flyback switcher IC for automotive applications. A wide drain-to-source-pin creepage distance of 5.1mm eliminates the need for conformal coating, making the IC compliant to the IEC60664-1 standard in 800V electric vehicles (EVs) while simplifying manufacturing and increasing system reliability...

Odyssey Semiconductor Technologies Inc of Ithaca, NY, USA says that its only, and final, liquidating distribution will be of $0.11 per share, to be paid on or about 23 December, to holders of its common stock, as of the record date of 19 August...

The Fraunhofer Institute for Applied Solid State Physics IAF of Freiburg, Germany says that, as part of the pilot line ‘Advanced Packaging and Heterogeneous Integration for Electronic Components and Systems’ (APECS), it will continue to expand its semiconductor research infrastructure in the coming years, supported by national funding of €4.35m via the state of Baden-Württemberg. A cheque was symbolically handed over in a visit on 16 December by Dr Patrick Rapp, the Minister for Economic Affairs, Labour and Tourism...

Epitaxial deposition and process equipment maker Veeco Instruments Inc of Plainview, NY, USA says that, following evaluation of its Lumina metal-organic chemical vapor deposition (MOCVD) system, Taiwan-based PlayNitride has qualified it for the production of micro-LEDs, and placed an order for two systems for delivery in 2025...

Within the framework of the EU Chips Act, the APECS pilot line has begun operation, providing large industry players, SMEs and start-ups with access to cutting-edge technology for ‘Advanced Packaging and Heterogeneous Integration for Electronic Components and Systems’ as it aims to establish a foundation for resilient and robust European semiconductor supply chains...

In its 2023–24 annual report, Compound Semiconductor Applications (CSA) Catapult has highlighted success in its two focus areas — Net Zero and Future Telecoms — and its continued support for clusters of compound semiconductor expertise across the UK...

Cree LED Inc of Durham, NC, USA (a Penguin Solutions brand) has announced a multi-year, global agreement providing (with limited exceptions) a license for its patented technology to Daktronics of Brookings, SD, USA (which provides large-screen video displays, electronic scoreboards, LED text and graphics displays, and related control systems)...

As its next-generation XbloX platform, analog/mixed-signal, MEMS and specialty foundry X-FAB Silicon Foundries SE of Tessenderlo, Belgium has launched XSICM03 (available now for early access), advancing silicon carbide (SiC) process technology for power metal-oxide-semiconductor field-effect transistors (MOSFETs). A significantly reduced cell pitch enables increased die per wafer and improved on-state resistance without compromising reliability, the firm says...

The European Commission has approved, under European Union (EU) State aid rules, a direct grant of €81m from Spain to support Diamond Foundry Europe (a subsidiary of Diamond Foundry Inc of San Francisco, CA, USA) in setting-up a new factory — involving a total investment of about €675m — for the production of semiconductor-grade rough synthetic diamonds in Trujillo in Extremadura, an area eligible for regional aid under Article 107(3)(a) of the Treaty on the Functioning of the EU (TFEU)...

Silicon photonics continues to evolve rapidly, with diverse applications signaling significant opportunities ahead, notes market analyst firm Yole Group. Specifically, the market for silicon photonic integrated circuit (PIC) die is estimated to be increasing at a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 45% from 2023 to at least $863m by 2029, notes the firm in its annual report ‘Silicon Photonics 2024 – Focus on SOI [silicon-on-insulator], SiN [silicon nitride], and LNOI [lithium niobate-on-insulator] platforms’, which this year explores the photonics landscape, emphasizing materials for PICs, optical interconnects, and other applications...

As part of an R&D program, global mining group Rio Tinto is assessing the potential for extracting and valorizing the gallium that is present in bauxite processed in its alumina refinery in Saguenay–Lac-Saint-Jean (the only one in Canada)...

Fabless company Wise-integration of Hyeres, France — which was spun off from CEA-Leti in 2020 and designs and develops digital-control of gallium nitride (GaN) and GaN integrated circuits for power conversion — has agreed a strategic distribution partnership covering Europe, the Middle East and Africa (EMEA) with global electronics distributor and supply chain solutions provider Astute Group of Stevenage, UK...

The US Department of Commerce has signed a non-binding preliminary memorandum of terms (PMT) to provide up to $225m in proposed direct funding under the CHIPS and Science Act to tier-1 automotive supplier Bosch. The investment would support Bosch’s planned investment of $1.9bn to transform its manufacturing facility in Roseville, California, for production of silicon carbide (SiC) power semiconductors. This direct funding would support the expansion of Bosch’s largest SiC device factory globally, which would significantly increase the firm’s production capacity and create up to 1000 construction jobs and up to 700 manufacturing, engineering and R&D jobs in California...

After beginning construction in November 2023, the new €100m Innovation Center of deposition equipment maker Aixtron SE in Herzogenrath, near Aachen, Germany has been opened by Mona Neubaur, Minister for Economic Affairs, Industry, Climate Protection and Energy & Deputy Prime Minister of the State of North Rhine-Westphalia...

Lumentum Holdings Inc of San Jose, CA, USA (which designs and makes optical and photonic products for cloud, optical networking and industrial and consumer laser applications) has appointed Paul Lundstrom to its board of directors, expanding the membership to nine members (eight of whom are independent)...