News Article
Rubicon Makes First Sapphire Boule at New Illinois Facility
The new facility based in Batavia responds to increasing demand for high quality, high yield large diameter sapphire wafers worldwide.
Rubicon Technology, a leading provider of sapphire substrates and products to the LED, RFIC, semiconductor, and optical industries, has produced its first sapphire boule in its newest facility in Batavia, Illinois.
The new 135,000 square foot sapphire crystal manufacturing facility was established to increase capacity to support the growing demand for LEDs (light emitting diodes) in the consumer electronics and general lighting industries.
"Demand for high quality sapphire substrates is high as industries ranging from consumer electronics to general and architectural lighting have tapped LEDs as a light source for their next generation products," said Raja Parvez, Rubicon President and CEO. "Rubicon's industry-leading capacity to deliver high quality, high yield, large diameter sapphire wafers will help satisfy the great volumes of sapphire needed to satisfy growing demand for LEDs. This is especially important as the demand for LED-based light bulbs grows with worldwide consumer adoption."
Market research firm iSuppli expects the global LED market to nearly double to nearly $14.3bn by 2013 driven by the penetration of LEDs into the general illumination market including light bulbs. Government regulators worldwide looking to save energy are driving the move to LED light bulbs. LEDs have emerged as a preferred replacement for incandescent bulbs for their durability, energy efficiency, enhanced aesthetics, and low-voltage operation versus less clean options like compact fluorescent bulbs that contain mercury.
As the global leader in the manufacture of exceptional quality sapphire, Rubicon's ability to cost-effectively produce low-defect, large diameter sapphire wafers is critical to making the production of high quality, affordable LED-based products. The transition to large diameter wafers already has begun. For example earlier in 2010, Rubicon announced that the company entered into a $71 million agreement with a major LED chip manufacturer for which Rubicon will provide six inch polished substrates.
Rubicon's expansion in the US demonstrates the company's leadership in the sapphire industry worldwide. Once produced in the US, the sapphire substrate is sold to manufacturers in Asia for the use in LED-based electronics and lighting products. The new Rubicon facility is located in Batavia, Illinois in the Chicago Metropolitan area near Rubicon's Franklin Park and Bensonville facilities. The company held a celebration of the first boule off the production line in the Batavia facility on Friday, November 5, 2010
Rubicon Technologyis an advanced electronic materials provider that is engaged in developing, manufacturing and selling monocrystalline sapphire and other crystalline products for light-emitting diodes (LEDs), radio frequency integrated circuits (RFICs), blue laser diodes, optoelectronics and other optical applications.
