Professor Shuji Nakamura Acquires EMCORE SpectraBlue GaN Production Platform

The blue laser and LED breakthrough scientist Shuji Nakamura and UCSB colleague Steven DenBaars intend to use the industry s leading nitride production tool to develop next generation GaN materials for the growth of optoelectronic and electronic devices.

Somerset, NJ. EMCORE Corp. (Nasdaq: EMKR) proudly announces that University of California Santa Barbara (UCSB) Professors Shuji Nakamura and Steven DenBaars have ordered an EMCORE SpectraBlue gallium nitride (GaN) production platform for their pioneering development of GaN-based laser diodes and electronic materials and devices.

Professor Nakamura, noted for his outstanding contributions to the semiconductor industry in blue lasers and blue spectrum High Brightness Light Emitting Diodes (HB-LEDs) based on GaN epitaxy, recently moved from Nichia Chemical in Japan to become a professor at UCSB. Professor Nakamura began work at the UCSB Materials Department on Feb. 22, 2000.

A formal research collaboration has been established between EMCORE and Professors Nakamura and DenBaars. This collaboration will provide a feedback loop for UCSB to communicate tool performance data to EMCORE that will enable EMCORE to integrate design and performance improvements into their MOCVD tool designs.

"EMCORE s SpectraBlue tool is rapidly becoming the industry standard for GaN production. With this tool UCSB will be better equipped to continue its strong tradition of leading research in materials science. Our new EMCORE platform will be used for the development of even more efficient GaN-based optoelectronic and electronic materials," said Professor Nakamura.

"EMCORE is extremely pleased that Professors Nakamura and DenBaars have elected to base their next-generation GaN work on our SpectraBlue production platform. We have justifiably high expectations for our tool in the hands of these famed professors, and look forward to a long, productive partnership between them and EMCORE. Their contributions to the continuous improvement of our GaN reactors are expected to further optimize the performance and processes of our popular SpectraBlue platforms," said Reuben Richards, President and CEO of EMCORE.

"UCSB is very proud to have Shuji Nakamura join our faculty as a full professor, and we are both pleased to be ordering the SpectraBlue tool. EMCORE is known for its strength in GaN technology and its production tools that are in use worldwide. Its continuing leadership in developing in-situ monitoring techniques greatly increases our ability to develop new optoelectronic and electronic technology," said Professor Steven DenBaars.

EMCORE s SpectraBlue tools are the most popular GaN material production tools worldwide and are renowned for their exceptional capability to produce high quality blue-spectrum HB-LED materials. Professors Nakamura and DenBaars have ordered a standard tool, of which more than 70 are currently in operation throughout the world. The SpectraBlue tool is currently employed by EMCORE s E2M division to provide the GaN epitaxial material capability in support of GELcore, its joint venture effort with GE Lighting. GELcore develops HB-LED-based lighting systems for GE Lighting.

Moving rapidly into the commercial marketplace, HB-LED s are used in a variety of applications, including:

· exceptionally energy-efficient lighting in full color large screen and flat panel displays
· traffic and warning signals
· a variety of automotive applications, such as brake lights and interior lighting
· new sources of energy-efficient white lamps

Blue, green and violet lasers, based on GaN epitaxy, hold the promise of a significant increase in next-generation DVD and optical disk drive capacity. Blue lasers are expected to revolutionize the optical storage industry, potentially increasing information storage capacity fourfold. Strategies Unlimited, a market research firm, forecasts that the market for blue DVD lasers will overtake and eventually surpass current red laser technology by a factor of four in 2006. Additional applications in high resolution printing and displays also hold great potential. Professor Nakamura is the world s leading developer of GaN-based lasers. In addition, Professors DenBaars and Umesh Mishra (an expert in electronics at UCSB) have reported in technical symposia that GaN is also becoming attractive as a power-efficient material for next-generation electronic devices.

More information on the appointment of Shuji Nakamura to the UCSB engineering staff can be obtained via: http://www.engineering.ucsb.edu/Announce/nakamura.html..

More information on EMCORE s SpectraBlue GaN tool can be obtained via EMCORE s website at http://www.emcore.com.

EMCORE designs, develops and manufactures compound semiconductor wafers and devices and is a leading developer and manufacturer of the tools and manufacturing processes used to fabricate compound semiconductor wafers and devices. Its products and technology enable customers, both in the United States and internationally, to manufacture commercial volumes of high-performance electronic devices using compound semiconductors. EMCORE s products are used in a wide variety of applications in the communications (satellite, data, telecommunications and wireless), consumer and automotive electronics, computers and peripherals, and lighting markets. EMCORE is incorporated in the State of New Jersey and its principal executive offices are located in Somerset, New Jersey.

The information provided herein may contain forward-looking statements relating to future events that involve risks and uncertainties. Among the important factors which could cause actual results to differ materially from those in the forward-looking statements are cancellations, rescheduling or delays in product shipments; delays in obtaining export licenses for product shipments; manufacturing capacity constraints; lengthy sales and qualification cycles; difficulties in the production process; the future financial performance of the Company and its Joint Ventures; delays in developing and commercializing new products; increased competition; labor actions against the Company s customers or vendors; changes in the compound semiconductor industry, including overall growth of the industry and the continued acceptance of the Company s MOCVD technologies; and other factors detailed in the Company s filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission, including those contained in the First Amendment to the Company s Registration Statement on Form S-3, which was filed on January 19, 2000.

For More Information:

Corporate Contact Press Contact
Tom Miehe Debra Norman
E MCORE Corporation Richartz Fliss Clark & Pope
394 Elizabeth Avenue 400 Morris Ave., Ste. 222
Somerset, NJ 08873 Denville, NJ 07834
USA USA

Tel: +1 732 271 9090 Tel: +1 973 627 8180
Fax: +1 732 271 9686 Tel: +1 973 627 8410

E-mail: info@emcore.com
E-mail: norman@rfcp.com