Trumpf delivers billionth VCSEL to STMicroelectronics
More than 150 smartphone models feature Trumpf VCSEL technology
The partnership between Trumpf and STMicroelectronics reached a new high in autumn 2019 when Trumpf delivered the one billionth VCSEL to its European partner. Trumpf develops and produces its VCSELs at Photonic Components, a business located at the company’s Ulm site in Germany.
VCSELs are used in smartphones to improves the camera autofocus, enable face recognition to unlock the device’s display and switch off the display when the user raises the smartphone to their ear when taking a call. Trumpf’s VCSEL technology is now installed in more than 150 smartphones from a wide range of leading OEMs.
“We have been working successfully with STMicroelectronics since 2012 and intend to deepen this relationship to unlock the great potential for growth in many consumer electronics segments,” says Joseph Pankert, the managing director in charge of the VCSEL line of business. “We also see strong growth potential for our VCSELs in other markets including higher resolution time-of-flight cameras. These cameras flood an object or a room with infrared light, measure the round-trip travel time or the phase shift of the emitted light, and calculate three-dimensional models based on this data,” says Pankert.
“Our long-standing technology partnership with Trumpf has reached a hugely significant milestone – the shipment of 1 Billion VCSELs for use in our Time-of-Flight product families,” says Eric Aussedat, STMicroelectronics executive VP and general manager of the Imaging sub-group. “ST‘s Time-of-Flight product families have been widely adopted by leading smartphone OEMs with more than 150 phone models already using our technology. Building on this success, we look forward to further co-work with Trumpf to address the exciting and rapidly growing 3D and depth sensing markets.”
