Soitec, Silian to Develop GaN Wafers for LEDs

Soitec (Euronext) and Chongqing Silian Optoelectronics Science & Technology Co. Ltd. (Silian) have announced that they will jointly develop gallium nitride (GaN) template wafers to reduce LED manufacturing costs.

The partnership agreement aims at validating the manufacturability and enabling the commercialization of GaN template wafers using Silian’s sapphire substrates and Soitec’s hydride vapor phase epitaxy (HVPE) technology. They plan to begin sampling the template wafers this year.

The templates will be more cost effective than ones produced using metal organic vapor phase epitaxy (MOVPE) technology, said Chantal Arena, vice president and general manager of Soitec Phoenix Labs, where the HVPE technology was developed.

“This development of HVPE technology introduces a revolutionary business model and allows LED makers to free up as much as 60 percent of their MOVPE capacity,” said André-Jacques Auberton-Hervé, president and CEO of Soitec. “LED makers can now focus on improving the more custom-designed layers that make up the light-emitting part of an LED.”

Soitec manufactures semiconductor materials for the electronics and energy industries.

Silian, founded by China Silian Instrument Group Co. Ltd., supplies materials, devices and systems for the lighting industry.

For more information, visit: www.soitec.com or www.silianopto.com