Category Archives: LED Packaging and Testing

Jülich researchers have succeeded in controlling the growth of organic molecules using a special trick. Molecules that repel each other play a key role in this process: due to their opposing forces, they always keep a certain distance from their neighbours. Therefore, they mix easily with a second, mutually attracting type of molecule that enters the spaces in-between and acts as a sort of “glue”. Tailored surface structures can thus be put together like pieces in a puzzle – in a seemingly self-solving manner. Applications in the field of organic electronics in particular could stand to benefit from this method.

Organic electronics is considered a pioneering technology of great promise. Organic light-emitting diodes, known as OLEDs, are today used all over the world. Further applications such as solar cells, sensors, and transistors are gradually finding their way into everyday use. However, as many fundamental correlations and processes have yet to be fully understood, these systems are still the subject of intensive ongoing research. In this context, the search for better mechanisms for the controlled and targeted production of active layer systems is one of the most important topics. Mixing molecules with opposing intermolecular interactions represents a possible new way of producing such structures in a targeted fashion.

Eutectic regions

In the system under study, the scientists at Forschungszentrum Jülich were able to observe three different monocrystalline mixed structures at different mixing ratios. Curiously, it is particularly interesting to study the system beyond the correct mixing ratio for these mixed crystalline phases. The scientists headed by Prof. Christian Kumpf from the Peter Grünberg Institute (PGI-3) found that in this case two phases coexist in equilibrium. In the phase diagram, this corresponds to eutectic regions, in which the equilibrium between the existing phases can be shifted in a large coverage regime by changing the mixing ratio, and thus the properties of the molecular layer can be tuned as desired.

In phase diagrams of conventional three-dimensional systems, usually no eutectic regions occur, but only eutectic points. This is, for example, the case for a number of metallic alloys, with soldering tin being a notable example. The large eutectic regions that occur in the heteromolecular layers investigated here are ultimately the result of the predefined size of the surface on which the molecules are adsorbed. The authors of the study were not only able to observe this behaviour experimentally, but also to explain it using fundamental thermodynamic considerations, and thus demonstrate that the existence of eutectic regions is a generic property of such two-dimensional mixed structures formed by molecules with opposing intermolecular interactions.

Over 60,000 attendees are expected at SEMICON China opening tomorrow at Shanghai New International Expo Centre (SNIEC). SEMICON China (March 14-16) offers the latest in technology and innovation for the electronics manufacturing industry. FPD China is co-located with SEMICON China, providing opportunities in this related market. Featuring nearly 900 exhibitors occupying nearly 3,000 booths, SEMICON China is the largest gathering of its kind in the world.

Worldwide fab equipment spending is expected to reach an industry all-time record, to more than US$46 billion in 2017, according to the latest version of the SEMI (www.semi.org) World Fab Forecast. In 2018, the record may break again, with spending close to the $50 billion mark.  SEMI forecasts that China will be third ($6.7 billion) for regional fab equipment spending in 2017, but its spending in 2018 may reach $10 billion – which would be a 55 percent increase year-over-year, placing China in second place for worldwide fab equipment spending in 2018.

On March 14, keynotes at SEMICON China include SMIC chairman of the Board Zhou Zixue. ASE Group director and COO Tien Wu, ASML president and CEO Peter Wennink, Intel VP Jun He, Lam Research CEO Martin Anstice, TEL CTO Sekiguchi Akihisa and imec president and CEO Luc Van den hove.

SEMICON China programs expand attendees’ knowledge, networking reach, and business opportunities. Programs this year feature a broad and deep range:

  • CSTIC: On March 12-13, the China Semiconductor Technology International Conference (CSTIC) precedes SEMICON China. CSTIC is organized by SEMI and imec and covers all aspects of semiconductor technology and manufacturing.
  • Technical and Business Programs: 
    • March 14: China Memory Strategic Forum.
    • March 15: Building China’s IC Ecosystem, Green High-Tech Facility Forum, and Smart Manufacturing Forum, in addition Power & Compound Semiconductor Forum (Day 1).
    • March 16: Smart Automotive Forum, MEMS & Sensors Conference Asia, plus Power & Compound Semiconductor Forum (Day 2)
  • Tech Investment Forum: On March 15, an international platform to explore investment, M&A, and China opportunities.
  • Theme Pavilions:  SEMICON China also features six exhibition floor theme pavilions: IC Manufacturing, LED and Sapphire, ICMTIA/Materials, MEMS, Touch Screen and OLED.
  • Networking Events: SEMI Industry Gala, China IC Night, and SEMI Golf Tournament

For additional information on sessions and events at SEMICON China 2017, please visit www.semiconchina.org/en/4.

The darkest form of ultraviolet light, known as UV-C, is unique because of its reputation as a killer – of harmful organisms.

With wavelengths of between 200 and 280 nanometers, this particular form of UV light penetrates the membranes of viruses, bacteria, mold and dust mites, attacking their DNA and killing them. Sanitization with UV-C light has been around for more than 100 years, following Niels Finsen’s discovery of UV light as an antidote to tuberculosis, which won the Faroese-Danish physician the 1903 Nobel Prize for Medicine.

Currently, most deep-UV lamps are mercury-based. They pose a threat to the environment, and are bulky and inefficient. A Cornell research group led by Huili (Grace) Xing and Debdeep Jena, along with collaborators from the University of Notre Dame, has reported progress in creating a smaller, more earth-friendly alternative.

Using atomically controlled thin monolayers of gallium nitride (GaN) and aluminum nitride (AlN) as active regions, the group has shown the ability to produce deep-UV emission with a light-emitting diode (LED) between 232 and 270 nanometer wavelengths. Their 232- nanometer emission represents the shortest recorded wavelength using GaN as the light-emitting material. The previous record was 239 nanometers, by a group in Japan.

“MBE-grown 232-270 nm deep-UV LEDs using monolayer thin binary GaN/AlN quantum heterostructures” was published online Jan. 27 in Applied Physics Letters.

Postdoctoral researcher SM (Moudud) Islam, the lead author, said: “UV-C light is very attractive because it can destroy the DNA of species that cause infectious diseases, which cause contamination of water and air.”

One of the major challenges with ultraviolet LEDs is efficiency, which is measured in three areas: injection efficiency – the proportion of electrons passing through the device that are injected into the active region; internal quantum efficiency (IQE) – the proportion of all electrons in the active region that produce photons or UV light; and light extraction efficiency – the proportion of photons generated in the active region that can be extracted from the device and are actually useful.

“If you have 50 percent efficiency in all three components … multiply all of these and you get one-eighth,” Islam said. “You’re already down to 12 percent efficiency.”

In the deep-UV range, all three efficiency factors suffer, but this group found that by using gallium nitride instead of conventional aluminum gallium nitride, both IQE and light extraction efficiency are enhanced.

Injection efficiency is improved through the use of a polarization-induced doping scheme for both the negative (electron) and positive (hole) carrier regions, a technique the group explored in previous work.

Now that the group has proven its concept of enhanced deep-UV LED efficiency, its next task is packaging it in a device that could one day go on the market. Deep-UV LEDs are used in food preservation and counterfeit currency detection, among other things.

Further study will include packaging both the new technology and existing technologies in otherwise similar devices, for the purpose of comparison.

“In terms of quantifying the efficiency, we do want to package it within the next few months and test it as if it was a product, and try to benchmark it against a product with one of the available technologies,” Jena said.

Seoul Semiconductor Europe, a subsidiary of Seoul Semiconductor Co. Ltd. today announced the availability of reference modules based on its package-free Wicop LEDs.

“We found that offering module solutions, based on our highly innovative technologies, will allow our customers to evaluate the technology and its benefits easily, enabling them to realize their solutions faster than by just using LED components”, Mr. Andreas Weisl, CEO Seoul Semiconductor Europe and Vice President Sales, explained. “Resources at our customers are often limited, so they need powerful, reliable and easy to handle solutions to meet their requirements. As a solution provider, we help them to be ahead of competition and to achieve a fast time-to-market, also by creating customized modules in our Munich-based lab, we are able to offer,” he added.

This first release includes reference modules for the Wicop Y19, Y22 and Y22P LEDs. The Y19 module consists of four clusters of 2 x 2 LEDs with a combined typical flux of 4,650 lumens, while the Y22 and Y22P modules achieve 1,268 lumens with four single LEDs each. They all feature a Color Rendering Index (CRI) of 70 and a Correlated Color Temperature (CCT) of 4,000 K.

All modules announced today are tailored to common customer needs and follow the outlines given in book 15 of the Zhaga specification, which defines the location and pitch of the LEDs and the position and size of the alignment holes for optical lenses. The boards feature standard power connectors and are easy to assemble and easy to use together with commercially available lenses, like the new Wilma lens-array from LEDiL.

Wicop LEDs with their luminous efficiency of up to 210 lm/W at 350 mA are well suited as light-source for applications for example such as wall washers or floodlights in the architectural space and lighting in warehouses or production sites in the industrial area. Outdoor they can be used for example for street lighting, in tunnels or for the illumination of stadiums, harbors, airports or railway stations, as well as for security applications.

Their compact footprint makes these LEDs several times smaller and much brighter than conventional LEDs, enabling cost savings at the system level. This is achieved through its state of the art chip design with the phosphor film directly attached to the chip surface, making the previously needed packaging with frames and gold wires obsolete. This way, Wicop LEDs are also suitable for applications, where a small form factor is needed.

The three reference modules introduced today are available from Seoul Semiconductor Europe. Production quantities can be provided on request. If necessary, they can also be customized by Seoul Semiconductor’s regional labs for special requirements.

Dow Corning further expanded the design flexibilities for LED packaging manufacturers today with the addition of five new optical encapsulants (OEs) to its portfolio of advanced LED solutions. Offering extra high thermal and optical stability with optimized refractive indexes, hardness and gas barrier properties, these five new products broaden design latitudes for very high power LED packages, such as ceramic substrate-based surface mount device (SMD), chip on-board (COB) and plastic leaded chip carrier (PLCC) packaging.

All introduced under the Dow Corning label, the five new products include OE-7840, OE-7841, OE-7843, OE-7810 and OE-7820 Optical Encapsulants. They fall into two separate categories of targeted performance properties, but all deliver superior photothermal stability and reliability at sustained temperatures of 150°C.

“As today’s LED manufacturers continue to design brighter, smaller and more cost-effective LED packages, Dow Corning is working closely with them to evolve advanced new silicone solutions to meet their most demanding challenges,” said Takuhiro Tsuchiya, global marketing manager at Dow Corning. “These five cutting-edge optical encapsulants build on the success of our industry-leading OE product family, and enable customers to continue pushing the design boundaries for their high-power LED packages.”

Three of the products – Dow Corning OE-7840, Dow Corning® OE-7841 and Dow Corning® OE-7843 Optical Encapsulants – provide OEMs optimized refractive indexes and other features to improve both efficiency and reliability of high-power PLCC LED packages. The OE-7840 and OE-7841 products respectively offer RIs of 1.5 and 1.48 to allow designers to optimize light output while ensuring their LED packages have good gas barrier properties. OE-7843 Encapsulant rounds this category out by combining an RI of 1.5 with good anti-silver corrosion properties to enable high-power PLCC LED packages to withstand severe environmental conditions.

The two remaining new products – Dow Corning OE-7810 and Dow Corning OE-7820 Optical Encapsulants – target high-power COB and ceramic substrate-based SMD LED packages, where very high thermal resistance is the priority and corrosive silver is not used. They offer a choice of durometer tailored to improve durability depending on design parameters. OE-7810 Encapsulant provides a hardness of Shore A55 for packaging applications that require higher elongation for improved durability under thermal cycling. OE-7820 Encapsulant, with a durometer of Shore A70, delivers higher hardness that can contribute to better handling and minimal dust pick up.

LG Innotek today announced that the company has developed the world’s first 70mw UV-C LED for sterilization applications. As its sterilization performance is 1.5 times higher than the competitor’s 45mW module.

UV-C LED produces the short wavelength ultraviolet rays in the range of 200 — 280nm, allowing it to be used for sterilization purpose. It prevents the proliferation of bacteria by destroying their DNA. LG Innotek’s product emits UV in the range of 280nm.

Until now, UV-C LED has been mainly applied in small sanitary products because its low optical power led to low sterilization performance. The power of LEDs for toothbrush sterilizers is 1mW and that for sterilizing the water tank of humidifier is 2mW.

LG Innotek improved UV-C LED’s optical power to 70mW by utilizing its proprietary LED vertical chip technology. While the product measures only 6mm in both its length and width, its sterilization performance is the world’s best.

The company overcomes the UV output limit with specialized LED chip technology. The epitaxial structure design and vertical chip technology to maximize light extraction have increased the output and ensured quality reliability by effectively exhausting heat.

As the company’s product is compact and boasts high sterilization performance, it can be applied to various fields such as water purifiers and air purifiers as it allows you to sterilize flowing water and air.

It is also good for use in hardening equipment in the manufacturing industry. The UV output is strong, the performance of the curing device can be enhanced.

Manufacturers of water purification, cleaning and curing device can benefit from stable supply of UV-C LEDs optimized for respective purposes from LG Innotek. Because LG Innotek is equipped with a consistent production system that produces Epi-wafers, chips, packages, and modules, and offers its products to its customers after rigorous quality management.

Along with its 280nm UV-C LED, LG Innotek has a lineup of LEDs from 365nm, 385nm, 395nm, and 405nm UV-A LEDs for general industrial purposes to 305nm UV-B LEDs for bio and medical purposes.

According to Yole Development, a market research firm, the UV LED market is forecast to grow from 130 million USD in 2015 to 270 million USD in 2017.

innotek

Seoul Semiconductor announced the immediate start of the mass production of its LED chip-on-board package for use in LED filament bulbs, a market currently estimated to be $1.3 billion globally.

Mr. Ki-bum Nam, CTO of Seoul Semiconductor, said, “Based on its strong patents, Seoul Semiconductor will continue to increase its market share in the filament LED bulb market, which is a blue ocean market estimated at $1.3 billion.” He added: “We will widely promote the superiority of Seoul Semiconductor’s LED technology with its filament LEDs.”

Seoul Semiconductor’s filament LEDs can realize high-quality light close to natural light through differentiated chip-on-board (COB) packaging technology and can produce stunning emotional lighting with omnidirectional emission technology, combining a small footprint with a wide beam angle. The Color Rendering Index (CRI) is 80 or better and different LEDs having a flux between 105 and 210 lumens are available. All of them feature a Correlated Color Temperature (CCT) of 2,700 K. Therefore, they are used to create a classical atmosphere through high-quality light in many spaces, like cafes and hotels or even bed- and living rooms, making them an alternative to incandescent light bulbs that have been phased out in 2014.

Development of this technology at Seoul Semiconductor started already in the early 2000s, even before there was a market for filament-LEDs, but production was held until the market was now ready for them. This decision demonstrates the company’s clear long-term strategy and vision. Seoul Semiconductor now holds hundreds of patents for filament LEDs, covering chip manufacturing, COB-packaging, module and bulb manufacturing processes. These are all core technologies for manufacturing filament LED products and this portfolio leads to a strong IP protection of customers using Seoul Semiconductor’s filament LEDs.

An official at Seoul Semiconductor stated: “We are readying legal actions, as many of the LED bulbs released in the market have infringed our proprietary technologies.”

The global light bulb market is estimated at 7 billion pieces annually, of which 2.5 billion units are light bulbs for various decoration purposes, a market being addressed by the filament LEDs. The application of them in this market has started and they can not only be applied to globe bulbs in their various forms, but also to candle lamps in special shapes. These diverse applications are supported by two different lengths of the LEDs: 38 mm and 50 mm.

Picosun Oy, a provider of high quality Atomic Layer Deposition (ALD) technology, announced a collaboration with Osram Opto Semiconductors and other partners to create a new generation of advanced LED lighting solutions.

In order to keep spearheading the global LED market, it is vital for the manufacturers to constantly improve the performance and lifetime of their products. Picosun’s ALD technology is already in production use at various LED manufacturing sites, yet there are still various novel applications where its full potential is just waiting to be taken to industrial use.

In the project FLINGO, Picosun joins forces with Osram Opto Semiconductors, who is also the coordinator of the project, and several European top universities and R&D organizations to realize the next generation high-brightness and high-durability LEDs. The ability of Picosun’s ALD technology to create superb quality thin films inside ultra-high aspect ratio structures, over high steps, and on other topologically challenging surface details is in key role in this development. The leading film quality and purity, and the fast, cost-efficient mass manufacturing in fully automated batch ALD tools are other key assets where Picosun’s ALD solutions will accelerate the market entrance of the new LED products.

“We are very pleased to have Picosun as our project partner in FLINGO. We have full trust in their excellent ALD know-how, and that combining this with the specific expertise of our other project partners will result in exciting new technologies and make this a successful project,” states Dr. David O’Brien, project coordinator of Osram Opto Semiconductors.

“LED industry is definitely one of our key market segments. This is why we are very happy to collaborate with Osram, one of the global LED leaders, and our other project partners to enable disruptive, high performance LED technology to strengthens Europe’s position in the front row of worldwide LED business,” continues Juhana Kostamo, Managing Director of Picosun.

Intel Corporation yesterday announced plans to invest more than $7 billion to complete Fab 42, a project Intel had previously started and then left vacant. The high-volume factory is in Chandler, Ariz., and is targeted to use the 7 nanometer (nm) manufacturing process. The announcement was made by U.S. President Donald Trump and Intel CEO Brian Krzanich at the White House.

Intel Corporation on Tuesday, Feb. 8, 2017, announced plans to invest more than $7 billion to complete Fab 42. On completion, Fab 42 in Chandler, Ariz., is expected to be the most advanced semiconductor factory in the world. (Credit: Intel Corporation)

Intel Corporation on Tuesday, Feb. 8, 2017, announced plans to invest more than $7 billion to complete Fab 42. On completion, Fab 42 in Chandler, Ariz., is expected to be the most advanced semiconductor factory in the world. (Credit: Intel Corporation)

According to Intel’s official press release, the completion of Fab 42 in 3 to 4 years will directly create approximately 3,000 high-tech, high-wage Intel jobs for process engineers, equipment technicians, and facilities-support engineers and technicians who will work at the site. Combined with the indirect impact on businesses that will help support the factory’s operations, Fab 42 is expected to create more than 10,000 total long-term jobs in Arizona.

Mr. Trump said of the announcement: “The people of Arizona will be very happy. It’s a lot of jobs.”

There will be no incentives from the federal government for the Intel project, the White House said.

Context for the investment was outlined in an e-mail from Intel’s CEO to employees.

“Intel’s business continues to grow and investment in manufacturing capacity and R&D ensures that the pace of Moore’s law continues to march on, fueling technology innovations the world loves and depends on,” said Krzanich. “This factory will help the U.S. maintain its position as the global leader in the semiconductor industry.”

“Intel is a global manufacturing and technology company, yet we think of ourselves as a leading American innovation enterprise,” Krzanich added. “America has a unique combination of talent, a vibrant business environment and access to global markets, which has enabled U.S. companies like Intel to foster economic growth and innovation. Our factories support jobs — high-wage, high-tech manufacturing jobs that are the economic engines of the states where they are located.”

Intel is America’s largest high-technology capital expenditure investor ($5.1 billion in the U.S. 2015) and its third largest investor in global R&D ($12.1 billion in 20151). The majority of Intel’s manufacturing and R&D is in the United States. As a result, Intel employs more than 50,000 people in the United States, while directly supporting almost half a million other U.S. jobs across a range of industries, including semiconductor tooling, software, logistics, channels, OEMs and other manufacturers that incorporate our products into theirs.

The 7nm semiconductor manufacturing process targeted for Fab 42 will be the most advanced semiconductor process technology used in the world and represents the future of Moore’s Law. In 1968, Intel co-founder Gordon Moore predicted that computing power will become significantly more capable and yet cost less year after year.

The chips made on the 7nm process will power the most sophisticated computers, data centers, sensors and other high-tech devices, and enable things like artificial intelligence, more advanced cars and transportation services, breakthroughs in medical research and treatment, and more. These are areas that depend upon having the highest amount of computing power, access to the fastest networks, the most data storage, the smallest chip sizes, and other benefits that come from advancing Moore’s Law.

After the announcement, President Trump tweeted his thanks to Krzanich, calling the factory a great investment in jobs and innovation. In his email to employees, Krzanich said that he had chosen to announce the expansion at the White House to “level the global playing field and make U.S. manufacturing competitive worldwide through new regulatory standards and investment policies.”

“When we disagree, we don’t walk away,” he wrote. “We believe that we must be part of the conversation to voice our views on key issues such as immigration, H1B visas and other policies that are essential to innovation.”

During Mr. Trump’s presidential campaign, Krzanich had reportedly planned a Trump fundraiser event and then cancelled following numerous controversial statements from Trump regarding his proposed immigration policies. Intel has continued to be critical of the Trump administration’s immigration policies, joining over 100 other companies to file a legal brief challenging President Trump’s January 27 executive order which blocked entry of all refugees and immigrants from seven predominantly Muslim countries. Recently, Krzanich took to Twitter to criticize the order, voicing the company’s support of lawful immigration.

In 2012, Paul Otellini, then Intel’s CEO, made a similar promise about Fab 42 in the company of Obama, during a visit to Hillsboro, Oregon.

Entegris, Inc. (NASDAQ: ENTG), a developer in specialty chemicals and advanced materials handling solutions for the microelectronics industry, announced today it has introduced a new platform for advanced gas purification that improves wafer yields for semiconductor and LED applications. The new family of GateKeeper Gas Purification Systems (GPS) applies new purification media to provide best-in-class gas purity at a wide range of flow rates with a reduced equipment footprint. With expanded capacity in South Korea, Entegris now manufactures GateKeeper GPS systems in both North America and Asia.

“Our customers face unprecedented contamination control challenges to efficiently manufacture today’s increasingly complex leading-edge-devices. The new Gatekeeper GPS family of systems provide the advanced solutions required to maximize yield in these environments,” said Entegris Senior Vice President of Microcontamination Control, Clint Haris. “In conjunction with these new technology introductions, we continue our investments in our North America and Asia facilities to expand our global service and manufacturing capabilities.”

Semiconductor processes for advanced nodes, as well as LED manufacturing requirements, call for increased purity to remove defect-causing contaminants found in process gases. The GateKeeper GPS family of systems removes a variety of contaminants from gas streams down to the parts-per-trillion level and can be configured to a wide range of flow rates. Gases purified include CDA, N2, H2, H2 for EUV, Ar and NH3. Additionally, manufacturers are looking for tools that require significantly less sub-fab floor space. The reduced footprint allows customers to devote valuable sub-fab floor space to other tool needs or increase purification capacity with additional systems.

“We collaborated closely with our customers to identify purity requirements to meet their need to remove new contaminants and increased sensitivity to known contaminants,” said Director of Gas Purification Product Management, Jordan Ruple. “As a result, we are proud to be the first to offer this level of purity – in a variety of gases and flow rates – for systems of this size.”

The latest GateKeeper system will be on display during the SEMICON Korea trade show in Seoul, February 8-10, 2017.