Epiwafer

Ennostar announced a major advance in its microLED based optical I/O development project, and demonstrated a new prototype that offers substantially higher modulation bandwidth compared to its previous effort, while simultaneously maintaining low power consumption and excellent thermal management

The company says that it was able to increase the single-channel -3 dB modulation bandwidth of its blue Micro LED to 2.1 GHz at a current density of 2 kA/cm². Ennostar's new demonstration also features a modulation bandwidth of up to 3.3 GHz at a current density of 5 kA/cm².

Following our earlier listing of the MOCVD microLED R&D and production equipment being sold by an East-Coast U.S. company — headlined by a new, never-used 200 mm Veeco Propel GaN MOCVD system — we're pleased to report that the listing has generated significant interest from companies, labs and research institutes.

The seller has told us that several parties are already in discussions, and that a decision on the buyer (or buyers) is expected within the the next week. With the process moving quickly, any company, university or institute that has been considering this equipment should move now to make its interest known.

An East-Coast U.S. company is selling off a set of MOCVD microLED R&D and production equipment, including a 200 mm Veeco Propel GaN MOCVD system, along with a full complement of metrology, test and facilities equipment. The seller has asked MicroLED-Info to help locate buyers, and we are happy to connect interested companies directly with the seller.

This is a notable opportunity. Veeco's Propel platform is the single-wafer GaN MOCVD line built on Veeco's TurboDisc reactor design. Tools of this type rarely reach the secondary market, and several of the items here are brand new and unused.

The equipment falls into two groups: the Veeco MOCVD system, and a set of supporting metrology, test and facilities equipment that is being parted out as individual items.

China-based microLED microdisplay developer JBD announced that it has completed a major upgrade of its microLED microdisplay mass-production architecture, and has shifted from 4-inch manufacturing to a 12-inch reconstructed wafer platform. This is a sort of medium step before full 12-inch LED epiwafer deposition.

JBD says that the current wafer mismatch between the 4-inch LED wafer and the 12-inch silicon backplane wafer has become a key factor limiting cost efficiency and substrate utilization. JBD has integrated its "die-to-carrier-to-wafer" bonding scheme into its volume production architecture. Under this process, small-format epitaxial wafers are diced into individual dies, followed by pre-bond inspection and sorting to identify and remove defective chips at an early stage. Qualified dies are then reconstituted onto a temporary 12-inch carrier substrate with high placement accuracy and uniformity, creating a reconstructed epitaxial wafer for subsequent wafer-level bonding with a matching 12-inch silicon backplane.

MicroLED display developer Sitan Semiconductor announced a strategic partnership agreement with Changelight, LED epiwafer producer, with a strong presence in the automotive-market.

It seems as if this partnership is mostly focused on automotive microLED applications. The two companies aim to collaborate and co-develop high-performance microLED for automotive displays. Chagelight will likely contribute its high-performance microLED sapphire epiwafer and chip capabilities, while Sitan will be in charge of developing automotive displays based on these microLEDs chips.

Last year we reported that India's Ministry of Electronics and IT (MeitY) is considering supporting the construction of a microLED production line in India, or to support the establishment of a supply chain for microLED development and production.

Yesterday the Indian government has approved a new project in Gujarat, by Crystal Matrix Limited, to establish a microLED and mini-LED production facility. The new fab, to be located in Dholera, Gujarat, will produce 6-inch GaN microLED and miniLED wafers, and will also produce mini-LED and micro-LED displays. The project's total cost is estimated at 3200 Cr INR (or about $336 million USD).

3D Nanowire microLED developer Aledia announced that it has successfully demonstrated a fully functional monolithic RGB epitaxial wafer. This breakthrough validates the company’s end-to-end monolithic RGB process, enabling the emission of red, green, and blue light from a single epi wafer processed in one run.

Aledia’s proprietary nanowire-based approach enables the simultaneous growth of nanowires with diameters
ranging from 100 nm to 400 nm, depending on the color, all within a single process step.

STRATACACHE announced that it is engaging customers to provide domestically produced GaN-on-Silicon microLED epiwafers, aimed at both display and photonics applications. The move is part of the company’s broader strategy to scale North American microLED production at the companies Eugene Photonics Foundry and reduce dependence on Asian supply chains.

According to CEO Chris Riegel, the Eugene, Oregon fab is now accepting orders for Q3-Q4 200mm wafer production and is actively engaging with foundry customers in the photonics and display sectors. Riegel notes the growing demand for uLED-based photonic interconnects and highlights that “besides our Eugene Photonics Foundry, there is no scale domestic (U.S.) Gan-on-Silicon microLED manufacturing.”

ALLOS Semiconductors announced a strategic partnership with Ennostar Corporation, to bring bring 200 mm GaN-on-Si microLED epiwafers into volume production. 

This partnership will enable ALLOS to offer its customers GaN-on-Si epiwafers at mass volume. This basically means that Ennostar has become ALLOS manufacturing partner, while ALLOS operates in a "fabless" model. In addition to manufacturing, Ennostar will also contribute its advanced LED-related technologies to further enhance the product performance.

China-based San’an Optoelectronics announced that it is progressing with its microLED products for AR applications, and is moving from the technology verification state, to the small-batch verification stage. 

San'an further says that it is working with both domestic and global device makers to optimize its microLED products.