Semiconductor today

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)...

Penn State is to receive $3m from the US Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) as part of a larger grant awarded to defense, aerospace and technology company Northrop Grumman. The joint project aims to develop a novel method for integrating gallium nitride (GaN) with silicon substrates, since GaN provides superior performance and faster switching speeds for power-intensive applications while silicon offers scalability and affordability. This hybrid approach can lead to more efficient power electronics with lower production costs, suiting high-demand applications like electric vehicles, power electronics and data centers, where efficiency and durability are critical...

Silicon photonics-based chip-to-chip optical connectivity firm Ayar Labs of San Jose, CA, USA has secured $155m in a Series D funding round led by Advent Global Opportunities and Light Street Capital. Other new strategic and financial investors participating in the round include 3M Ventures and Autopilot...

NUBURU Inc of Centennial, CO, USA — which was founded in 2015 and develops and manufactures high-power industrial blue lasers — says that NYSE Regulation has sent it a warning letter, as provided under Section 1009(a) of the NYSE American LLC Company Guide, describing violations by the firm of Sections 301 and 713 of the Company Guide...

According to market analyst firm Yole Group, the semiconductor laser market is growing at a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 9% from $3.1bn in 2023 to more than $5bn in 2029, continuing to be driven by several factors...

Celestial AI of Santa Clara, CA, USA has been selected by a committee of venture capitalists and industry entrepreneurs to receive this year’s Global Semiconductor Alliance (GSA) ‘Start-Up to Watch’ award for its innovative and transformative Photonic Fabric technology platform and customer engagement model...

Japan-based ROHM Co Ltd and Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co (TSMC) have entered a strategic partnership on development and volume production of gallium nitride (GaN) power devices for electric vehicle applications...

Intelligent power and sensing technology firm onsemi of Scottsdale, AZ, USA has agreed to acquire the silicon carbide junction field-effect transistor (SiC JFET) technology business, including the United Silicon Carbide subsidiary, of Qorvo Inc of Greensboro, NC, USA (which provides core technologies and RF solutions for mobile, infrastructure and defense applications) for $115m in cash...

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 expanded its board of directors to six members by appointing Bob Tirva as director and member of the Audit Committee. Along with the five incumbent directors, he will serve until the next annual meeting of shareholders or until his successor is duly elected or appointed...

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 — has launched the EPC9178, the latest reference design for photovoltaic (PV) optimizers. Designed to deliver high reliability while addressing critical challenges in energy efficiency and cost-effectiveness through the reduction of passive components in solar energy systems, the EPC9178 demonstrates the transformative potential of GaN technology for renewable energy solutions, says the firm...

At the 70th annual IEEE International Electron Devices Meeting (IEDM 2024) in San Francisco, CA, USA (7–11 December), nanoelectronics research center imec of Leuven, Belgium has presented results on the heterointegration of indium phosphide (InP) chiplets on a 300mm RF silicon interposer. The chiplets’ integration comes with a negligible 0.1dB insertion loss at 140GHz. In addition, no performance degradation is observed upon assembly of a two-stage InP power amplifier (PA). As the first to achieve this, imec claims that its findings mark a milestone in developing compact, energy-efficient modules for above-100GHz communication and radar sensing...

The Global Semiconductor Alliance (GSA) has named Qorvo Inc of Greensboro, NC, USA (which provides core technologies and RF solutions for mobile, infrastructure and defense applications) as the Most Respected Public Semiconductor Company in its category for 2024. Qorvo received the same award for the first time in 2022...