AZZURRO Semiconductors AG., a leading supplier of epitaxial wafers for LED and power semiconductor applications, has placed an order with Veeco Instruments Inc., a global leader in process equipment solutions, for TurboDisc® K465i™ gallium nitride (GaN) Metal Organic Chemical Vapor Deposition (MOCVD) System.
 
The MOCVD system is used to make gallium nitride on silicon (GaN-on-Si) wafers for power semiconductors, LED wafers and LED template wafers that enable customers to leverage the technology advantage of the GaN-on-Si technology themselves.
 
Dr. Markus Sickmöller, Vice President Operations of AZZURRO, commented, “Our technology provides high-quality, crack-free GaN layers on 150mm standard silicon wafers with very good crystal quality and extremely low bow values. We chose Veeco’s K465i to produce these high efficiency GaN-on-Si stacks because of its performance, process stability, and high throughput. We believe our GaN-on-Si technology will trigger a new wave of highly efficient and cost-optimized components for the LED and power semiconductor industry.”
 
Jeff Hawthorne, Veeco’s Senior Vice President, MOCVD, commented, “The power electronics device market is forecasted by Yole Développement to be $25B by 2015, and GaN has the ability to make devices with higher efficiency and switching speed than traditional Si devices. Further, LEDs made with GaN-on-Si technology will enable lower LED costs. We anticipate that the demand for MOCVD tools for these GaN-on-Si applications will grow as technology moves from R&D into production. Veeco’s K465i systems offer key advantages for GaN-on-Si production, including low particle count and excellent yields, and we’re looking forward to continuing to support AZZURRO’s growing GaN-on-Si business.”