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October 13, 2011 – BUSINESS WIRE — X-FAB Silicon Foundries Group and Senodia Technologies (Shanghai) Co., Ltd will ramp production of micro electro mechanical system (MEMS) gyroscopes for high-volume consumer applications, following a successful development phase.

Senodia is a commercial MEMS supplier designing and packaging gyroscopes in China. It recently raised its production capacity to more than 2.5 million MEMS gyroscope chips per month.

Pure-play MEMS foundry X-FAB is the front-end manufacturing partner, leveraging its open-platform inertial sensor process. Senodia will then use sensor devices manufactured by X-FAB to produce single-axis and 3-axis gyroscopes. Target products include smartphones, tablets, camcorders, gaming controllers, TV remotes, toys, vehicles, and medical instruments.

Bo Zou, Chairman and CEO of Senodia said, "We chose to work with X-FAB because of its high-performance process technology that enables us to develop products very rapidly and cost-effectively for the market place. X-FAB’s open platform inertial sensor process was immediately available and ready to use for realizing our designs. With X-FAB’s experience as a high-volume MEMS foundry, and our expertise and commitment to help customers develop their MEMS gyroscope applications, we believe Senodia is at the forefront of serving the world’s ever-increasing market demand for MEMS gyroscopes in consumer electronics."

Senodia Technologies (Shanghai) Co. Ltd is a commercial MEMS Gyroscope sensor supplier in China, founded in August 2008.

X-FAB is an analog/mixed-signal foundry group manufacturing silicon wafers for analog-digital integrated circuits (mixed-signal ICs). X-FAB maintains wafer production facilities in Erfurt and Dresden (Germany); Lubbock, Texas (US); and Kuching, Sarawak (Malaysia); and employs approximately 2,400 people worldwide. For more information, please visit www.xfab.com.

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October 13, 2011 — Researchers from the Samsung Advanced Institute of Technology (SAIT) and the University of Cambridge created a full-color high-resolution 4" quantum dot light emitting diode (QD-LED) display using transfer printing (Nature Photonics, 2011).

Figure. Transfer printing for patterning quantum dots (QDs). (i) Modification of the donor surface with SAM, and spin-coating of QDs. (ii) Application of an elastomer stamp to the QD film with appropriate pressure. (iii) Peeling of the stamp, quickly, from the donor substrate. (iv) Contacting the inked stamp to the device stack, and slowly peeling back the stamp. (v)–(vii) Sequential transfer printing of green and blue QDs. b, Fluorescence micrograph of the transfer-printed RGB QD stripes onto the glass substrate, excited by 365 nm UV radiation.

The team began by modifying the donor substrate surface with a chemically bound self-assembled monolayer (SAM). Red-, green-, and blue-emissive quantum dots are printed via the same precise process at room temperature. Various substrates could be used, including flexible ITO/PEN. Future work will focus on scaling the printing process to industrial production without degrading resolution. Aligning the different color QD stripes over large-area may pose a challenge, notes Khashayar Ghaffarzadeh, technology analyst, IDTechEx.
 
QD-LEDs are electroluminescent colloidal quantum dots that can be printed in thin films to combine inorganic LEDs’ customizable, saturated, stable color and low-voltage performance with polymers’ solution processability, said Ghaffarzadeh.

Also read: Quantum dot OLEDs fabbed via spin coating

For QD-LEDs to work, the thin film transistors (TFTs) in the active-matrix backplane must supply a very stable current. New backplane technologies like metal oxides could replace amorphous silicon for this function. Researchers from the University of Cambridge have also demonstrated solution-processed high-performance metal-oxide TFTs (Nature Materials, 2011) with a <250°C annealing temperature.

The University of Cambridge will present at IDTechEx’s Printed Electronics USA. Printed Electronics USA 2011 will take place November 29-December 2 in Santa Clara, CA, with tours to local centers of excellence. Learn more at www.IDTechEx.com/peUSA.

References:
Full-colour quantum dot displays fabricated by transfer printing, Nature Photonics 5, 176-182, (2011). Low-temperature, high-performance solution-processed metal oxide thin-film transistors formed by a ‘sol-gel on chip’ process, Nature Materials 10, 45-50(2011).

IDTechEx provides custom consulting, research and advisory services in Printed Electronics, RFID, Photovoltaics, Energy Harvesting and Electric Vehicles. Learn more at www.IDTechEx.com/nano.

October 12, 2011 – BUSINESS WIRE — CTS Electronic Components, of CTS Corporation (NYSE:CTS), received 2 production orders for piezoceramic products from a major US sonar manufacturer. Revenues should total about $5 million.

First deliveries will begin in early 2012.  

The new programs will increase in CTS’ global piezo market share. CTS uses specialized technology and processing for its piezoceramics. Applications include sonar arrays as well as hard disk drive actuation, medical instruments, flight components, hydrophones for energy exploration, and industrial products.

CTS Electronic Components provides engineered electronic components used in communications, medical, defense and aerospace, industrial and computer applications for OEMs and Contract Manufacturers worldwide. Visit the CTS Piezoelectric Materials website at www.ctscorp.com/components/PZT/.

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October 12, 2011 — ITRI, Industrial Technology Research Institute of Taiwan, introduced i2R e-Paper, a re-writeable, re-usable, LCD-based electronic paper medium that can be manufactured in a variety of sizes.

The e-paper is a flexible cholesteric liquid crystal display (LCD) that uses heat to store and transit images. It avoids use of electronic inks. The product is very bendable. Because cholesteric liquid crystal is a reflective display technology, it uses ambient light rather than backlighting. No power is consumed to maintain a display. Colors are produced by adding different pitch spherical composite ion-exchangers.

i2R e-Paper delivers 300dpi resolution. The paper targets initial applications in advertising banners, corporate visitor ID badges, transit passes, etc. Follow-on applications include digital books and pictorials, wall banners, large-size electronic bulletin boards, etc.

Water-solvent marker pens can be used on the paper and easily washed off. To print and change content, users need a thermal printer fitted with a thermal head. Re-use erases the old image and prints a new one with no inks or toner. Production costs are low, ITRI says, and single units can be re-written up to 260 times. More development work is underway to increase this re-use factor.

ITRI is licensing and transferring i2R e-Paper technology to manufacturers producing consumer e-paper and thermal writer machines. Recently, ITRI completed an industry science and technology program with four material manufacturers and five equipment operators, and the technology has also been transferred to one of Taiwan’s top chemical engineering manufacturers for trial mass production.

ITRI has applied for 17 patents for i2R e-Paper, 8 of which have been granted. ITRI is in the process of licensing the technology in Taiwan and is currently in talks with US companies as well.

Watch a video on how e-paper differs from paper here: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nur36P3fDYU

Also read: ITRI LCD polarizer film avoids toxic solvents, saves production costs

Industrial Technology Research Institute (ITRI) is a nonprofit R&D organization performing applied research and technical services in 6 core laboratories, 3 focus centers, 5 linkage centers, and many labs and business development units. ITRI concentrates on Information and Communication; Electronics and Optoelectronics; Material, Chemical and Nanotechnologies; Biomedical Technologies and Device; Advanced Manufacturing and Systems; and Green Energy and Environment. Learn more at www.itri.org.tw/eng.

October 12, 2011 — The University of Houston College of Optometry is using MEMS-based deformable mirrors, Multi-DM, from Boston Micromachines Corporation (BMC) in glaucoma research.

The mirror package, with 140 actuators and low inter-actuator coupling, will be used with wavefront sensorless adaptive optics to image living human eyes. The University of Houston College of Optometry built an Adaptive Optics Scanning Laser Ophthalmoscope (AOSLO) that uses an iterative stochastic parallel gradient descent (SPGD) algorithm to directly control the 140 actuators, maximizing the mean intensity in the acquired retinal images. The DMs are capable of up to 5.5µm stroke and 100kHz frame rate, boasting sub-nm step size and zero hysteresis.

The research goal is to determine earlier structural markers for glaucoma at the site of initial damage in the optic nerve head, explained Jason Porter, assistant professor at the University of Houston College of Optometry.  The high actuator count in BMC’s MEMS mirror enables higher-order aberration correction for the researchers. The researchers have used BMC mirrors in previous retinal imaging projects.

Sensorless imaging will provide higher-contrast images of dilated pupils than sensor-based adaptive optics. The lower light requirement of sensorless imaging is beneficial to light-sensitive patients, such as those with rhodopsin disorders in retinitis pigmentosa. Sensorless control also allows direct optimization of the fluorescence signal in autofluorescence imaging.

Boston Micromachines Corporation (BMC) provides advanced microelectromechanical systems (MEMS) mirror products for use in commercial adaptive optics systems, and custom-designed manufacturing services. For more information, visit www.bostonmicromachines.com.

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October 11, 2011 — With navigation features becoming standard in smartphones, tablets, and gaming devices, the market for electronic compasses is set to grow 73% this year to $419.1 million, according to a new IHS iSuppli MEMS & Sensors special report on magnetic sensors.

The 73% growth in 2011 is on top of an "explosive" 186% rise last year. By 2015, revenue will reach $842.2 million, IHS reports, growing more than 3x over 2010 numbers.

Electronic compasses are a "natural" complement to GPS navigation, adding intuitive features for the user, like map rotation and camera-based point-of-interest information, said Jérémie Bouchaud, principal analyst, MEMS & Sensors for IHS. Advanced applications use 9-axis sensor fusion, connecting the compass with a device’s accelerometer and gyroscope to reduce inaccuracies in each sensor. Bouchard notes that electronic compasses have become a "standard feature" in smartphones thanks to Apple’s electronic compass integration in the iPhone 3GS.

Electronic compasses also benefit from gaming device integration, such as the Sony Move controller for the PlayStation 3. The next-generation Nintendo Wii controller will feature 3 sensors.

Military applications include single-axis discrete compasses for high-performance navigation. This is a small — <100,000 units — but lucrative — each unit sells for several hundred dollars — market. The total market is worth about $24 million.

The top electronic compass producer is Japan’s AKM Semiconductor Inc., followed by Aichi Steel, Yamaha Corp. and Alps Electric Co. Ltd., all Japanese. (Click here for info on electronic compass producers following the March 11 Japan earthquake.) European STMicroelectronics is also in the top 5. In the US, Memsic Inc., Honeywell International Inc. and Freescale Semiconductor Inc., are top players. Also watch South Korea’s Amotech and Spanish startup Baolab Microsystems.

Access the IHS iSuppli report, Digital Compasses Pick Up Reins of Magnetic Sensor Market, at http://www.isuppli.com/MEMS-and-Sensors/Pages/Digital-Compasses-Pick-up-Reins-of-Magnetic-Sensors-Market.aspx?PRX

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October 11, 2011 – PRNewswire — MEMS supplier STMicroelectronics (NYSE:STM) has implemented through-silicon vias (TSV) in high-volume micro electro mechanical system (MEMS) devices. ST is using TSV in its smart sensors and multi-axis inertial modules.

The leading-edge packaging technology creates short vertical interconnects instead of wire bonds in ST’s multi-chip MEMS devices.

ST’s Benedetto Vigna, corporate VP and GM of ST’s Analog, MEMS and Sensor Group, reports that its high-volume MEMS packages using TSV are smaller, suiting the needs of consumer products integrating MEMS, such as smartphones.

STMicroelectronics has been producing high-volume MEMS devices for the consumer electronics sector for 5 years. More than 1.6 billion ST MEMS chips has been sold to date.

Also read: MEMS motion sensors’ continuing evolution in commercial markets by Jalinous (Jay) Esfandyari, STMicroelectronics, in association with MEMS Industry Group (MIG)

STMicroelectronics supplies semiconductors for multimedia convergence and power applications. Further information on ST can be found at www.st.com.

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October 11, 2011 — EQT III today announced that it has alongside with management agreed to sell VTI Technologies (“VTI”), the world’s largest independent designer and manufacturer of high-performance MEMS sensors, to the publicly listed Japanese electronic components company Murata Manufacturing (“Murata”).

EQT III acquired VTI from Breed Technologies Inc. in June 2002 and VTI has since then increased sales by more than 75%. Substantial investments in research and development during EQT III’s ownership have enabled VTI to further strengthen its position in acceleration sensors for automotive safety systems and selected medical applications as well as expand into new segments, such as consumer electronics. The recently launched new products, including the new generation sensor for the transportation segment and three-axis gyroscope for consumer electronics applications, will be key growth drivers for VTI going forward.

Murata Manufacturing is a worldwide leader in the design, manufacture and sale of ceramic-based passive electronic components and power supply modules. With annual revenues of ¥618 billion (approx. EUR 6 billion), Murata is committed to the development of advanced electronic materials and leading edge, multi-functional, high-density modules. Murata has employees and manufacturing facilities throughout the world. The combination of VTI and Murata is industrially very strong and complementary both with regards to product portfolios and exposure to different end markets.

“Great results have been achieved together with VTI management and we believe that VTI is now ready for its next growth phase with a new owner. We are confident that Murata, with its advanced technological profile, will be a good platform for VTI ‘s future development”, comments Johan Hähnel, EQT III press spokesperson.

“EQT III has been a supportive owner and provided VTI with valuable resources and expertise throughout its ownership. We believe VTI and Murata have a strong strategic fit and are excited about the opportunity of combining VTI’s product development and manufacturing competence with Murata’s well-built customer base and technological know-how”, says Markku Hirvonen, President and CEO of VTI.

Closing of the transaction is subject to approvals from competition authorities and is expected to take place in less than six months from now. 
 
EQT is the leading private equity group in Northern Europe with close to EUR 18 billion in raised capital and multiple investment strategies. Together with a superior network of Industrial Advisors, EQT implements its business concept by acquiring or financing good medium-sized to large companies in Northern and Eastern Europe, Asia and the United States, developing them into leading companies. Development is achieved by applying an industrial strategy with focus on growth. Since inception, EQT has invested more than EUR 10.5 billion in around 100 companies and exited close to 50. EQT-owned companies have more than 550,000 employees.

EQT Partners, acting as investment advisor to the managers of each EQT fund, has around 120 investment professionals with an extensive industrial and financial competence. EQT Partners has offices in Copenhagen, Frankfurt, Helsinki, Hong Kong, Oslo, London, Munich, New York, Shanghai, Singapore, Stockholm, Warsaw and Zurich.

More information can be found on www.eqt.se (http://www.eqt.se/)

VTI Technologies Oy is a leading supplier of acceleration, inclination and angular motion sensor solutions for transportation, medical, instrument and consumer electronics applications. In their end-use applications, VTI’s products improve safety and quality of life. The silicon-based capacitive sensors are based on the company’s proprietary 3D MEMS (Micro Electro-Mechanical System) technology. The company had net sales of EUR 75.8 million in 2010.

Murata Manufacturing Co., Ltd. is a worldwide leader in the design, manufacture and sale of ceramic-based passive electronic components and power supply modules. With annual revenues of ¥618 billion, Murata is committed to the development of advanced electronic materials and leading edge, multi-functional, high-density modules. The company has employees and manufacturing facilities throughout the world.
 
EQT III is part of the leading private equity group known as EQT which consists those funds and managers who are advised directly or indirectly by EQT Partners and/or its subsidiaries.

October 11, 2011 – StockMarketWire.com — IQE released a customizable range of silicon on insulator (SOI) products that IQE reports afford improved thickness and doping control.

The SOI wafers can be used in micro electro mechanical systems (MEMS), microprocessors, high-voltage devices, and other microelectronics. SOI can offer better parasitic device capacitance and resistance to latch-up than bulk silicon. Its mechanical properties can improve etch-stop in MEMS manufacturing, particularly for complex designs.

IQE Silicon Ltd is debuting the product range allowing customers to tune the SOI parameters to their own specifications in terms of doping type and device layer thickness. The customized SOI orders can be fabricated as small as 50 wafers for prototyping and niche operations.

IQE supplies advanced epi-wafers, supported by an outsourced foundry services portfolio, to major semiconductor manufacturing companies. Learn more at http://www.iqep.com/.

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October 10, 2011 – Imec says it has developed a fT/fMAX 245GHz/450GHz SiGe:C heterojunction bipolar transistor (HBT) device, useful for future high-volume millimeter-wave low-power circuits in auto applications as well as silicon-based millimeter-wave circuits used in imaging systems for security, medical, and scientific apps.

Working within a EU joint research project dubbed "DOTFIVE" seeking to keep Europe ahead of the ITRS in RF applications beyond compound semiconductors, these new SiGe:C HBT devices have a fully self-aligned architecture by self-alignment of the emitter, base and collector region, and implement an optimized collector doping profile, imec says. Their high density and low-cost integration vs. III-V HBT alternatives makes them suitable in consumer applications as well. Other potential areas of use include applications requiring very high frequencies with low power dissipation, or requiring better circuit reliability through lessened process/voltage/temperature variations.

Electrical parameters for a 0.15×1.0μm2 HBT device. (Source: IMEC)

To scale up new SiGe:C HBTs, thin sub-collector doping profiles are generally believed to be mandatory, usually introduced early in device processing and thus exposed to high thermal budgets, which complicates accurate positioning of the buried collector, imec explains. In-situ arsenic doping during the simultaneous growth of the sub-collector pedestal and the SiGe:C base creates a thin, well-controlled, lowly-doped collector region close to the base, as well as a sharp transition to the highly doped collector without further complicating the process. The result is "a considerable increase of the overall HBT device performance," imec says: peak fMAX values >450GHz (on devices with high early voltage), a 1.7V BVCEO, and "sharp transition from the saturation to the active region in the IC-VCE output curve." Even with the aggressively-scaled subcollector doping profile, collector-base capacitance "did not increase much," the group says, and current gain averaged around 400 with limited emitter-base tunnel current (visible at low VBE values).

Cross-section of bipolar HBT device in a B-E-B-C configuration after end-of-line processing. (Source: IMEC)