Veeco Instruments and Picogiga International partner to advance gallium nitride (GaN)-on-silicon technology
WOODBURY, New York and LES ULIS, France — July 26, 2005 — Veeco Instruments Inc. (NASDAQ: VECO) and Picogiga International, a division of the Soitec Group (Euronext, Paris), today announced that they have entered into a joint development program (JDP) designed to advance gallium nitride (GaN)-on-silicon technology to meet emerging market needs. By leveraging Picogiga’s leadership in engineered substrates and compound semiconductors, along with Veeco’s expertise in molecular beam epitaxy (MBE), the joint effort is expected to speed the volume production of GaN-on-silicon substrates for commercialization into a wide range of high-end wireless applications.
Under the terms of the agreement, the two companies will team to create the first industrial MBE reactor optimized for use on Picogiga’s patented GaN-on-silicon process. To speed this endeavor, engineers from Picogiga International will share their expertise in GaN MBE technology with Veeco’s MBE system experts. The initial work will take place in Veeco’s Process Integration Center in Saint Paul, Minn. Upon completion, the new GEN200™ system will be delivered and installed at Picogiga’s production facility in Les Ulis, France—enabling the company to produce up to 6-inch GaN-on-silicon epi wafers.
According to Jean-Luc Ledys, chief operating officer of Soitec’s Picogiga division, the intent of this agreement is to pave the way for GaN-on-silicon substrates to become a competitive solution for wireless devices such as next-generation high-electron-mobility transistors (HEMTs). “By accelerating the production ramp of high-quality GaN-on-silicon substrates, we can ensure that customers have access to the volume quantities needed to enable their emerging devices for wireless-infrastructure and other high-speed applications.”
Dick Wissenbach, Senior Vice President of Veeco Compound Semiconductor, commented, “The opportunity to develop GaN-on-silicon illustrates the strength of Veeco’s MBE. Veeco’s vast production knowledge of GaN-based devices, the silicon-style production platform of the MBE equipment, and the development and capacity capabilities of the Process Integration Center make this a perfect match.” Wissenbach added, “Our Process Integration Center, with its installed base of GEN200 systems and in-house team of MBE experts was designed to afford manufacturers rapid hardware testing, process development and bridge capacity.”
In recent years, GaN-on-silicon has shown great promise for RF and microwave components aimed at the wireless industry, particularly for the HEMTs used in high-power RF applications. GaN increases the output power of such devices, while silicon offers better thermal conductivity, lower procurement costs and larger diameter wafers than traditional GaN substrates. By combining the performance benefits of GaN with the material and cost advantages of large-area silicon, Picogiga can help ensure the commercial availability of GaN-based substrates for a growing range of devices and applications.
About Veeco Instruments
Veeco Instruments Inc. is a leading supplier of combined MBE and MOCVD epitaxial equipment and provides solutions for nanoscale applications in the worldwide data storage, LED/wireless, semiconductor and scientific research markets. Our Metrology products are used to measure at the nanoscale and our Process Equipment tools help create nanoscale devices. Veeco’s manufacturing and engineering facilities are located in New York, New Jersey, California, Colorado, Arizona and Minnesota. Global sales and service offices are located throughout the United States, Europe, Japan and Asia Pacific. Additional information on Veeco can be found at www.veeco.com
About Picogiga International
Soitec’s Picogiga division concentrates on the development and manufacture of compound semiconductor substrates. Epitaxial technology plays a key role in Soitec’s strategy of leveraging its Smart Cut™ technology to provide advanced engineered substrate solutions to the compound material world. For more information, visit the company's website located at www.picogiga.com
About the Soitec Group
The Soitec Group is the world’s leading innovator and provider of the engineered substrates that serve as the foundation for today’s most advanced electronic products and nanotechnologies. Headquartered in Bernin, France, the company manufactures its comprehensive portfolio of engineered substrates, including SOI and strained SOI, using Soitec’s proprietary Smart Cut™ technology—the de facto industry standard. With its strong global presence, patented technology and industry-leading production capacity, Soitec is helping to drive the performance and power advantages that are key to the smaller, more power-efficient and increasingly mobile electronic products favored by consumers worldwide. Both shares and two convertible bonds are listed on the Nouveau Marché of Euronext Paris.
Veeco disclaimer :
To the extent that this news release discusses expectations about market condition, market acceptance and future sales of Veeco’s products, Veeco’s future financial performance or disclosures, or otherwise makes statements about the future, such statements are forward-looking and are subject to a number of risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially from the statements made. These factors include the challenges of continuing weakness in end market conditions and the cyclical nature of the compound semiconductor/wireless, data storage, semiconductor and research markets, risks associated with integrating acquired businesses and the acceptance of new products by individual customers and by the marketplace and other factors discussed in the Business Description and Management’s Discussion and Analysis sections of Veeco’s Annual Report on Form 10-K, subsequent Quarterly Reports on Form 10-Q and current reports on
Form 8-K.
Smart Cut is a trademark of SOITEC Silicon On Insulator Technologies.
GEN200 is a trademark of Veeco Instruments.
Picogiga/Soitec Corporate Contact:
Camille Darnaud-Dufour
Vice President, Communications
Mobile (France): +33-6-79-49-51-43
camille.darnaud-dufour@soitec.com
Picogiga/Soitec Agency Contact at MCA:
Brandy Lee
Account Director
Tel: +1-650-968-8900, ext. 129
blee@mcapr.com
Veeco Corporate Contact:
Debra Wasser
VP of Investor Relations & Corp. Communications
Tel: +1-516-677-0200, ext. 1472
dwasser@veeco.com
Veeco Trade Media Contact:
Fran Brennen
Senior Dir. of Marcom
Tel: +1-516-677-0200, ext. 1222
fbrennen@veeco.com