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Quantum Materials Corporation today announced the purchase of five diverse sets of patent families from Bayer Technology Services GmbH, the global technological backbone and major innovation driver for Bayer AG of Leverkusen, Germany.

The patents acquired provide broad intellectual property protection for advances Quantum Materials has achieved in economical high-volume quantum dot (QD) manufacturing. In addition, the Bayer patents cover volume production technology for heavy metal-free (HMF) quantum dots and nano-particles; increasing quantum yields for HMF quantum dots; and hybrid organic quantum dot solar cell (QDSC) production as well as a surface modification process for increased efficiency of high performance solar cells and printed electronics. The patent families were acquired through a cash purchase agreement and financial details will remain private.

“We acquired these patents to not only expand our technology portfolio in heavy metal-free and QDSC production, but also to protect the advances we have made to date in the volume manufacturing of nanoparticles, including quantum dots,” said Stephen Squires, Quantum Materials CEO and president.  “Bayer is a research pioneer in the nanotech and QD fields and these early filings were awarded with broad claims. It will be very difficult for competitors to produce materials in volume similar to ours without breaching our patents.”

“Bayer Technology Services has been successfully working in the field of nanotechnology for more than 30 years. We are very happy that Quantum Materials is also using our patents to invest into new markets Bayer is not focusing on,” adds Dr. Guenter Bachlechner, Head of Technology Development and Senior Vice President of Bayer Technology Services GmbH.

The quantum dot-related patents extend Quantum Materials’ ability to synthesize numerous heavy metal-free organic periodic table groups in addition to its own inorganic Group II-VI composites. The company intends to incorporate each patent into its advanced production processes, including high yield InP/ZnS nanocrystals, a heavily researched QD in high demand in optoelectronics.

The solar-related patents describe the fundamental design of quantum dot solar cells and processes for optimizing quantum dots for solar and other printed electronics applications. The solar patents enhance Quantum Material’s licensed patent on printing OLED and QD solar cells and other printed electronic devices by gravure or high-speed roll-to-roll.

David Doderer, Quantum Materials VP of Research and Development, added, “The heavy metal-free organic nanomaterials expand our high performance product offerings, and the automated processes will bring down their cost so manufacturers can begin planning adoption into real products at price points that expand market penetration of quantum dot  technologies significantly. Combining the solar patents with our automated volume QD production process opens the door for us to establish joint ventures for Quantum Dot Solar Cell (QDSC) pilot plants worldwide.”

USHIO INC. announced that its wholly owned subsidiary USHIO OPTO SEMICONDUCTORS, INC., headquartered in Tokyo, has signed a demerger agreement with Oclaro Japan, Inc. Through this agreement, USHIO OPTO SEMICONDUCTORS will acquire the LED, red, violet and part of the infrared laser diode business from Oclaro Japan. The acquired activity is primarily located in Komoro, Japan and includes approximately 80 employees.

Since it was founded five decades ago, USHIO has developed, manufactured, and marketed a variety of successful and highly popular lamps and solid-state light sources. USHIO has long been one of the world’s leading manufacturers of industrial light sources. By this transfer, USHIO is aiming at further expansion of its solid-state light sources business. USHIO will receive transfer of the business related to the development, manufacture, and sales of semiconductor lasers and LEDs (other than Oclaro Japan’s optical communication business) from Oclaro Japan.

“Today, optical processes and applications have become more and more diversified and important in the industry. We at USHIO will provide a variety of light sources, including high-brightness and high-quality LEDs and LDs, as well as our existing lamp products to meet the diversified needs of our customers,” commented Shiro Sugata, President and CEO, USHIO INC.

“We are pleased to sign this agreement with Ushio, it was critical for Oclaro Japan to find a respected partner that would provide new opportunities to our Komoro employees and continued support and innovation to our customers.” commented Tadayuki Kanno, President of Oclaro Japan.

The closing of the transaction is expected to occur during the fourth calendar quarter of 2014.

The LIGHTFAIR International (LFI) 2015 Call for Speakers opens in a global invitation seeking responses from top lighting and design practitioners looking to participate in the world’s largest annual architectural and commercial lighting trade show and conference in New York May 3-7, 2015.

The 2015 LIGHTFAIR Conference champions Integrated Design as the central theme linking all courses, workshops and seminars.  Sessions highlight how experienced project contributors collaborate to optimize environments.  Speakers are invited to share how elements such as: technology, tools, research, problem solving and inspiration contribute to the overall integrated design process.

With integrated design as its platform, LIGHTFAIR International 2015 offers a vibrant atmosphere where diverse disciplines come together to present, discuss, debate, exchange and explore best practices and emerging concepts to enable the creation of socially responsible, effective, pleasing environments.

Experts from various industries such as architecture, design, engineering, exterior and roadway, facility management, government, healthcare, hospitality, alternative energy including solar power, transportation and more are encouraged to pursue presentation opportunities at LFI 2015.

The LIGHTFAIR 2015 Conference provides knowledge and perspectives on how a collaborative, multidisciplinary approach can improve design outcomes for the betterment of the human experience through four Focus Areas:

Inspiration – Rule-breakers, trailblazers and visionaries dramatically influence our industry. Sessions should provide a synthesis of factors from inside and outside of the established lighting community, including artists, industrial designers, scientists and medical professionals.

Applications Research – Scientific analysis related to how we interact with the environment around us informs design. Example topics might include human factors studies, the physiological impact of light and case studies.

Technology and Tools – Innovative lighting equipment, software, studies and legislation are introduced every year. Using these elements to shape the design, or enhance and challenge the collaborative process, builds a stronger solution. Example topics might include sources, luminaires, components, controls, alternative energy sources, daylighting, technology, codes and standards.

Methodology – Processes using collaborative, interdisciplinary approaches can result in more effective project solutions. Working together and exploring diverse methods can streamline these processes. Example topics might include integrated design and coordination strategies, the role of mock-ups, procurement and how technology can improve and enhance the communication process and solve problems. Case studies may be helpful in showcasing strategies.

Courses range in level (general, foundational, intermediate and advanced) and length (60-minute seminars, 90-minute seminars, 3-hour workshops, 1-day courses and 2-day courses).

Quantum Materials Corp today announced achieving a calculated 95% Quantum Yield (QY) for Green Tetrapod Quantum Dots (TQD) manufactured by QMC’s proprietary automated mass-production system. The Full-Width Half-Maximum achieved was a narrow 36 nanometers with tunable emission from 530 to 550nm. Potential clients are currently evaluating these high-performance TQD.

QMC is pleased to offer high quantum yield quantum dots with reproducible FWHM uniformity, reliable system redundancy, and the ability to scale production to any quantity necessary for industrial purposes with modest capital expense (CAPEX) and low ongoing manufacturing costs. QMC’s ability to achieve economies of scale with automated production is unmatched and offers supply security and dependable cost forecasting in joint ventures planning very large quantum dot product rollouts.  QMC is planning additional capacity on the order of multi-kilograms per day to meet project needs that are being defined. QMC previously stated that capacity could be expanded sufficient to support the entire display industry converted to quantum dot 4K and 8K displays.

According to market researcher IHS, demand for QD-LCD displays is projected to jump to 87.3 million units by 2020 (a CAGR of 109% between 2013 and 2020) as QD prices decrease and a reliable and uniform quantum dot supply is assured for large production runs.

In solar photovoltaics, Solterra Renewable Technologies, a QMC wholly owned subsidiary, calculates just one Solterra Quantum Dot Solar Cells (QDSC) Plant can be scaled up to produce 1000 Megawatts per year of printed solar cells using its own dedicated production of QMC quantum dots.  A Solterra QDSC facility would rely on low CAPEX for both the QD production as well as low startup costs for the solar cell equipment.  Combined automated production of QD and QDSC allow a cost goal of under 12¢ per kWh, the present estimated residential electricity rate in the U.S. In comparison, the four largest solar projects in 2012 in the U.S. are planning to produce 1788Mw at a CAPEX of $11.5B ($6.5MM/MW) with Federal Subsidies of $5.7B and U.S. taxpayer liability in loan guarantees. Typically, due to the need to pay down the loan, a purchase agreement by a Public Utility or local government must require a higher rate to be paid than 12¢ per kWH, which is passed on to the public in the form of higher bills. Solterra’s goal is to establish regional or national QDSC plants at a fraction of the above CAPEX entirely by the private sector, without federal subsidies, and a cost goal of under 12¢ per kWh.

In 2013, Apple completely saved the sapphire industry. This year, in 2014, Apple could transform this industry. Will the revolution happen?

All these results are part of Yole’s report: analysts provide an updated analysis of new consumer electronic applications (smart watches, camera lens and fingerprint …). They also highlight the GTAT/Apple partnership: display cover, manufacturing cost modeling, supply chain capacity analysis, yield impacts and paths to cost reduction.

This new report also provides an analysis of Apple sapphire related patents as well as recent sapphire substrates price trends and forecast and updated supply and demand analysis.

Screen Shot 2014-08-05 at 5.19.50 PM

The sapphire industry recently ended a long period of depressed pricing and achieved US$936 million in revenue for wafer products in 2013. Recovery was helped by an increase in LED demand due to accelerating adoption in general lighting and a resilient LCD backlight market. But the saving grace was new consumer electronic (CE) applications: camera lens and fingerprint reader covers, mostly driven by Apple in 2013. Adoption at other vendors is progressing at a slower pace than anticipated in 2014. LG even reversed the trend with its

flagship cellphone: its G2 model featured a sapphire lens cover but the G3 uses glass. However, Yole’s analysts are optimistic for the mid-term with adoption increasing in Taiwan and China. In addition, new applications such as LED fi laments could further increase sapphire consumption.

After almost 2 years of losses, the price of sapphire cores increased more than 50% in 2013. In Q2-2014, tier-1 sapphire vendors were finally selling at breakeven prices. However, Yole expects that prices will decrease again in Q4.

In November 2013, GTAT and Apple announced partnership to set up a large sapphire manufacturing plant in Mesa, Arizona. Yole’s thorough analysis concluded that the objective of the investment is to produce sapphire display covers for cell phones.

“Apple plans to introduce both a 4.7” and a 5.5” model this year”, announces Dr Eric Virey, Senior Analyst at Yole. “We believe that prices for the sapphire cover have been agreed upon and locked by contract, based on yield assumptions reflecting reasonable expectations from all partners. We used yield assumptions derived from other Tier-1 sapphire makers in the LED industry to model the cost for both sizes. For the finished 4.7” display, we estimate a cost of $16, including $6.7 at the slab (material) level. On the longer term, we see a path for <$13”, he adds. Under those assumptions, Yole also estimates that the supply chain could deliver more than 5 million display covers per month.

But the challenges in term of ramp up execution are unprecedented in the industry. Recent checks point to bottlenecks at various levels of the process with lower than anticipated crystal growth and finishing yields. As of August 2nd 2014, Yole estimates that the supply chain capacity is currently ~2.1 million units per month. If yields don’t improve rapidly, Apple walking away from sapphire is still a possible scenario. The company believes that moderate quantities of supplemental material is currently being sourced from GTAT equipment customers in China. But even if all partners manage to improve yields rapidly, Yole’s analysis still excludes the possibility that sapphire can be used on all models of the new 2014 iPhone. However, Yole still expects that at least one model (SKU) will be offered in 2014 with a sapphire cover. This would allow Apple to plant a stick on the ground and make a statement. Scarcity could even be a good marketing tool providing it doesn’t last too long and that the supply chain catches up quickly. Releasing at least one SKU with sapphire would allow Apple to gage customer response and decide if it should adopt sapphire on more models, plan for more investment in the supply chain or simply walk away.

For the procurements of wafers for camera lens and fingerprint reader covers, Apple is now taking a back seat and letting their Chinese finishing contractors handle the sourcing. This resulted in accelerated commoditization (strong price pressure) and shifted large volumes toward Chinese sapphire vendors. Combined with current high levels of inventories, this has significantly impacted established vendors since the beginning of the year.

Procurement has started for the iWatch and is so far mostly benefiting Chinese vendors as well. Various designs have surfaced including one with a curved display (“2.5D design”) which would be more expensive to produce.”In any case, we expect that Apple will keep tapping into the existing supply chain and let GTAT focus on display covers”, says Eric Virey.

Yole’s report, August 2014 update, includes a thorough analysis of the GTAT/Apple deal. It explains key hypothesis of our cost model and provides thorough yield sensitivity analysis for cost and capacity. Cost, capacity and revenue models are presented for both 4.7” and 5.5” displays.

The Semiconductor Industry Association (SIA) today announced that worldwide sales of semiconductors reached $82.7 billion during the second quarter of 2014, an increase of 5.4 percent over the previous quarter and a jump of 10.8 percent compared to the second quarter of 2013. Global sales for the month of June 2014 reached $27.57 billion, marking the industry’s highest monthly sales ever. June’s sales were 10.8 percent higher than the June 2013 total of $24.88 billion and 2.6 percent more than last month’s total of $26.86 billion. Year-to-date sales during the first half of 2014 were 11.1 percent higher than they were at the same point in 2013, which was a record year for semiconductor revenues. All monthly sales numbers are compiled by the World Semiconductor Trade Statistics (WSTS) organization and represent a three-month moving average.

“Through the first half of 2014, the global semiconductor market has demonstrated consistent, across-the-board growth, with the Americas region continuing to show particular strength,” said Brian Toohey, president and CEO, Semiconductor Industry Association. “The industry posted its highest-ever second quarter sales and outperformed the latest World Semiconductor Trade Statistics (WSTS) sales forecast. Looking forward, macroeconomic indicators – including solid U.S. GDP growth announced last week – bode well for continued growth in the second half of 2014 and beyond.”

Regionally, sales were up compared to last month in the Americas (4.9 percent), Asia Pacific (2.1 percent), Japan (2.1 percent), and Europe (1.9 percent). Compared to June 2013, sales increased in the Americas (12.1 percent), Europe (12.1 percent), Asia Pacific (10.5 percent), and Japan (8.5 percent). All four regional markets have posted better year-to-date sales through the first half of 2014 than they did through the same point last year.

June 2014
Billions
Month-to-Month Sales
Market Last Month Current Month % Change
Americas 5.09 5.34 4.9%
Europe 3.13 3.19 1.9%
Japan 2.89 2.95 2.1%
Asia Pacific 15.76 16.09 2.1%
Total 26.86 27.57 2.6%
Year-to-Year Sales
Market Last Year Current Month % Change
Americas 4.76 5.34 12.1%
Europe 2.84 3.19 12.1%
Japan 2.72 2.95 8.5%
Asia Pacific 14.56 16.09 10.5%
Total 24.88 27.57 10.8%
Three-Month-Moving Average Sales
Market Jan/Feb/Mar Apr/May/June % Change
Americas 5.08 5.34 5.1%
Europe 3.08 3.19 3.5%
Japan 2.81 2.95 4.9%
Asia Pacific 15.18 16.09 6.0%
Total 26.15 27.57 5.4%

The number of smart cities worldwide will quadruple within a 12-year period that started last year, proliferating as local governments work with the private sector to cope with a multitude of challenges confronting urban centers, according to a new report from IHS Technology.

There will be at least 88 smart cities all over the world by 2025, up from 21 in 2013, based on the IHS definition of a smart city. While the combined Europe-Middle East-Africa (EMEA) region represented the largest number of smart cities last year, Asia-Pacific will take over the lead in 2025. In all, Asia-Pacific will account for 32 smart cities of the total in nine years’ time, Europe will have 31, and the Americas will contribute 25, as shown in the figure below.

Smart_City_JPEG

“Smart cities encompass a broad range of different aspects, but IHS has narrowed the definition of the term to describe cities that have deployed—or are currently piloting—the integration of information, communications and technology (ICT) solutions across three or more different functional areas of a city,” said Lisa Arrowsmith, associate director for connectivity, smart homes and smart cities at IHS. “These functional areas include mobile and transport, energy and sustainability, physical infrastructure, governance, and safety and security.”

These findings are available in the report entitled, “Smart Cities: Business Models, Technologies and Existing Projects,” from the Information Technology service of IHS Technology.

City projects in the Americas are typically somewhat narrower in scope than those found in Europe. Unlike broad projects underway in cities like Vienna or Amsterdam, U.S. projects will often focus on a single functional area, such as mobility and transport.

Meanwhile, many of the budget issues facing government expenditures in the well-developed economies of Europe are not found to the same extent in the Asia-Pacific region. In effect, this has the potential to create more scope for investment in smart city projects in Asia-Pacific, where projects are sometimes based around creating new infrastructure, rather than replacing legacy systems.

Under the smart city definition of IHS, annual investment on smart city projects reached slightly over $1 billion in 2013, but will go on to surpass $12 billion in 2025.

Why smart cities? 

Smart cities are emerging in response to an increasingly urbanized world dealing with scarce resources, along with the desire to improve energy efficiency. By providing appropriate technologies and solutions, smart cities can deal with issues such as congestion and energy waste, while also allocating stressed resources more efficiently and helping to improve quality of life.

For instance, as an increasing proportion of the world’s populations live in cities—3.42 billion in urban areas vs. 3.451 billion in rural areas as of mid-2009, according to the United Nations—services such as public transportation, energy provision or the urban road network are inevitably strained. Smarter solutions can be deployed to lessen the negative effects of growing urbanization, including the use of sensors to monitor traffic, or the implementation of smarter ticketing solutions to improve the use of public transport.

Smart cities can also help achieve energy-efficient targets. London, for example, is retrofitting both residential and commercial buildings to lessen carbon dioxide emissions. The city is also adopting charging infrastructure to support the introduction of 100,000 electric vehicles.

For areas of the world where water is a scarce resource, smart cities can allocate this precious resource, using sensors to manage water use or provide critical information on water-storage levels. In Santander, Spain, soil-humidity sensors detect when land requires irrigating for more sustainable water use.

Smart cities also can provide other benefits. They can generate new employment opportunities through the creation of projects, prevent citizens from moving away by improving quality of life within their jurisdictions, and reduce costs. In the case of cost reduction, cities are discovering the benefits of light-emitting diodes (LED) in street lighting, an area that can take as much as 40 percent of a city’s energy budget.

Figuring out investment returns

When considering the long-term viability of smart city initiatives, it is important to assess not just direct revenue-generating opportunity but also the broader return on investment, Arrowsmith said. This has implications for both the public and private sectors collaborating on smart city projects.

Because cities continue to face budget constraints, quantifying the level of cost reduction that can come about must be a top priority. Here the obvious effects of cost savings and other benefits can be measured.

Just as significant, however, are the intangible benefits to be derived. If city denizens feel that smart cities improve their way of life, the likelihood of them leaving is reduced, helping the city maintain revenue through the taxes that are collected. Meanwhile, territories can attract new talent or businesses dazzled by the prospect of living in a smartly functioning city. Ultimately, the intentions of smart city projects—and the associated return on investment—will depend on the smart city technologies being put to use, IHS believes.

Various business models offer opportunities

Smart city projects are typically deployed via partnerships between the public and private sectors. The main business models include build-operate-transfer (BOT), build-operate-comply (BOC) and municipal-owned-deployment (MOD).

The most common model is BOT, where city planners work closely with an external private partner that, in turn, develops the services and deploys the necessary infrastructure. The third party is also responsible for the operation and continued management of the infrastructure, until such time when it is transferred back to the city.

The BOC and MOD models, in comparison, assign varying levels of responsibility in the building, operation or maintenance of smart city projects for the public and private sectors that are involved in those works.

Cambridge Nanotherm, a producer of semiconductor heatsink technology, today announced that it has appointed semiconductor industry veteran Ralph Weir as its CEO. This follows just a few months on from news of the initiation of its first production line, allowing the company to roll out its advanced nano-ceramic heat dissipation technology at high volumes to meet the growing needs of LED makers. Cambridge Nanotherm today also announces the appointment of a new Business Development Director, Andrew Duncan, as well as ISO 9000 accreditation of its production line.

Ralph Weir has been appointed to ensure a smooth transition to mass production and to drive the next phase of Cambridge Nanotherm’s global growth. Ralph brings with him unrivalled experience and relationships within the relevant markets, and a strong track record in leading advanced technology teams in a variety of companies, including Polar OLED, Actiri, Phase Vision, Mirics and Elixent. Dr. Pavel Shashkov, who has held the CEO role since the company was founded, is taking the role of Chief Technology Officer.

Cambridge Nanotherm’s products are based on a its patented dielectric nano-ceramic coating with extraordinarily high thermal conductivity. Cambridge Nanotherm’s embeds its game-changing technology in Aluminium-backed PCBs using standard processes, or places it over or around semiconductors. The material currently wicks away heat at two to three times the rate of competing solutions, while still being four to ten times thinner. This allows producers of various semiconductor devices to produce radically cooler and more efficient devices, or increase the density of their products, allowing e.g. brighter LEDs or more computational power within a given space.

“With our announcement that we’ve been accredited to the ISO 9000 quality standard, and the ramping up of our line producing custom metal-backed PCBs, Cambridge Nanotherm is a company currently going from strength-to-strength,” commented Ralph Weir, new CEO. “We’re posing a solution to one of the biggest problems facing the semiconductor world today; heat dissipation, and doing so with a technology that is far more advanced than that of the competition. Given these facts, and the strong financial backing from Venture Capital firm Enso ventures, I’m joining this ambitious company at a hugely exciting time. I look forward to helping Cambridge Nanotherm undertake this critically important next step.”

Joining alongside Weir as Business Development Director is Andrew Duncan. Duncan has a successful history with a variety of specialised Ceramics companies, including Morgan Advanced Ceramics, (as technical manager for Metallised Products), and CeramTec, (as Technical Sales Manager). Andrew is tasked with expanding Cambridge Nanotherm’s already-considerable customer base and capitalising on the company’s early momentum.

TriQuint Semiconductor, Inc., a RF solutions supplier and technology innovator, announced that it is the first gallium nitride (GaN) RF chip manufacturer to achieve Manufacturing Readiness Level (MRL) 9. This achievement means TriQuint’s GaN manufacturing processes have met full performance, cost and capacity goals, and that the company has the capability in place to support full rate production.

To benchmark MRL 9, TriQuint applied the U.S. Air Force Research Laboratory’s rigorous manufacturing readiness assessment tool and criteria to its high frequency, high power GaN production line. TriQuint’s ongoing development of GaN-based devices is leading to smaller, more efficient power amplifiers, typically used for military radar and electronic warfare programs as well as commercial wireless communications and infrastructure.

“TriQuint recently completed its Defense Production Act Title III GaN on silicon carbide (SiC) program and now we’ve proven that we provide the GaN maturity needed to support full-rate production programs,” said Vice President and General Manager James Klein, Infrastructure and Defense Products. “This has been a great team effort utilizing our partnerships across the industry including US DoD, domestic and international customers, and a great supply base.”

Key to the company’s assessment, TriQuint has shipped more than 170,000 0.25 um GaN power amplifier devices in support of an ongoing international radar production program. During phased array radar field testing, approximately 15,000 devices have accumulated more than 3.67 million device hours, with no reported device failures. TriQuint continues to demonstrate industry-leading reliability with a mean time to failure (MTTF) of greater than 70 million hours at 200 degrees Celsius, substantially greater than the industry standard of 1 million hours MTTF.

As an established GaN provider for domestic and international defense programs, TriQuint explored the potential of GaN beginning in 1999, and released its first GaN on silicon carbide (SiC) production process in 2008. Since that point, the company has continued to make significant investments towards maturing the technology. Today, GaN wafers are manufactured with yields that match our conventional GaAs technologies. TriQuint continues to provide record-setting GaN circuit reliability and compact, high efficiency products, paving the way for more robust performance, lower maintenance and longer operational lifetimes. TriQuint is also accredited by the Department of Defense as a Microelectronics Trusted Source (Category 1A) for its foundry; post-processing; packaging and assembly; and RF test services.

The Department of Defense’s Manufacturing Readiness Assessment (MRA) ensures that manufacturing, production and quality assurance can meet operational mission needs. This MRA tool assesses science and technology companies on criteria that provide guidance about the maturity and risk of a given technology – reviewing the industrial base readiness; technology development; and quality and manufacturing management. This process ensures that the product or system transitions successfully from the factory to the field, providing the best value for the customer. TriQuint demonstrated that its manufacturing processes met full performance, cost and capacity goals, with the capability in place to support full rate production.

BY BYRON EXARCOS, President, CLASSONE TECHNOLOGY

Historically, the major semiconductor capital equipment manufacturers have focused on supporting the bigger semiconductor companies at the expense of the smaller ones. The last decade’s round of consolidations in the manufacturing and equipment sectors has only exacerbated this trend. This approach may make good business sense for the large equipment companies, but it’s created a serious challenge for smaller IC manufacturers. Even worse, it now threatens to stifle the continuing innovation on which the high tech industry depends.

It’s hard to fault the big equipment players for their business model. It’s much more cost-effective and profitable to dedicate the bulk of your resources to those customers who want to buy multiple process tools featuring “bleeding edge” technology on highly automated, volume production platforms. In many cases, it’s simply not as profitable to engage with smaller customers.

So what choice do the manufacturers have for populating their fabs if they’re running 200mm or smaller wafers? One alternative is to buy refurbished tools, assuming they can find a tool that meets their needs, which is not always easy. Another is to buy a bigger tool with more performance capabilities than they need, which busts their equipment budget. There aren’t many other options.

Now, one could dismiss this issue by simply saying, that’s the way this market works. Continued growth in our industry has always depended on a certain path of continual innovation. “Smaller, faster, cheaper” — producing smaller, more powerful chips in ever greater volume on larger wafers was a highly successful means of turning computers and subsequent mobile computing and communication devices into household items. It’s hard to fault a business/technology model that has been successful for so many years.

On the other hand, every emerging market eventually matures. We’ve all experi- enced the boom-and-bust cycles that roil our industry and what happens when the “last big thing” plateaus or dries up. Today, the capital equipment market is at a cusp. We need to examine whether the traditional smaller-design-rules/bigger-wafers/faster-throughput approach is helping or hindering the introduction of new technologies.

Today’s emerging technologies include devices such as smart sensors, power and RF wireless devices. The fact is, many of these chips can be made quite well and quite profitably using larger design rules on 200mm or even smaller substrates. However, many of the companies developing these devices are not huge enterprises, and they’re hampered by the unavailability of tools delivering the appropriate levels of process technology, automation and throughput — at a price they can afford. Ironically, our industry is in a phase where the equipment companies that once drove significant innovations, such as the introduction of copper deposition and low-k dielectrics, have become so large and narrowly focused that they’re impeding the development of many other emerging technologies.

I have some understanding of the needs of smaller device manufacturers because one of our companies, ClassOne Equipment, has been selling refurbished equipment to them for over a decade. That is why we’ve now created a whole new company, ClassOne Technology, to provide new equipment at substantially lower prices specifically for 200mm and smaller substrates. We are introducing new electroplating systems, spin rinse dryers and spray solvent tools; and some of them are literally half the cost of high-end competitive units. We’re particularly interested in serving all those small- to mid-sized companies who are making MEMS, power devices, RF, LEDs, photonics, sensors, microfluidics and other emerging-technology devices.

However, no single company can solve the entire problem. There is a glaring need for equipment manufacturers to bring the price/performance ratio of their tools back in line with the needs of more of the equipment users, not just those at the bleeding edge. If the tool manufacturers persist in trying to only sell the equivalent of sports cars to customers who just need pickup trucks, America’s high tech industry may soon find itself trailing, rather than leading the innovation curve.