Northrop wins GaN contract worth up to $53 million
US defense contractor Northrop Grumman has won a contract to develop GaN components that could be worth up to $53.4 million.
The aim of the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) initiative is to develop GaN components for military communications, radar and intelligence capacity (see related story).
Dwight Streit, VP of foundation technologies at Northrop's Space Technology division, said: "This contract will enable us to transition GaN technology from development to production "“ just as we have [with] GaAs and InP technologies."
Worth an initial $16.5 million, the value of the three-year "wide bandgap semiconductors for RF applications" project will swell to $53.4 million if all program options are exercised.
Northrop Grumman began developing GaN technology back in 2002 under a $5.1 million phase 1 contract.
Work on the new program take place at Northrop's Manhattan Beach, CA, and Baltimore, MD, locations.
