APA Optics looks to commercialize GaN devices
The Veeco system (following Veeco’s recent acquisition of Emcore’s MOCVD product line - see related story) is capable of handling six 2-inch diameter wafers at a time.
Anil Jain, APA s CEO, said: “MOCVD material growth capability is at the heart of the company s activities in GaN, and the acquisition represents APA’s commitment to move from the R&D mode to commercialization of GaN-based products. This makes us a fully viable, competitive supplier in this market.”
APA currently has four home-built MOCVD reactors that produce 1.25-inch diameter wafers for detector production. According to APA, the new system will enable the company to take a major step forward in terms of production capacity and capability.
APA’s R&D manager Gordon Munns said: “Two and three inch diameter wafers are the industry standard, so this gives us a greatly improved ability to select suppliers, supply our leading-edge material to others, and team on projects.”
The system also has the potential to grow on wafers as large as 4-inch or 6-inch in diameter as the industry moves to larger substrates. The current home-built MOCVD reactors grow material on one wafer at a time, so a single growth run on the new reactor will exceed the output of all four home-built reactors operating together.
The new system will increase production capacity for wafers used in APA’s SunUV ultraviolet light monitor as well as the company’s HFET power transistor wafers.
According to APA, wafers grown to the company’s specifications had very good performance regarding mobility, which was as high as 1,900 cm2/Vs, and a carrier concentration of 1.14x1013 cm-2. These results, prior to any on-site optimization, approach the best results achieved with the current reactors making one wafer at a time, says APA.
