news digest ♦ Power Electronics
these multilayered structures, respectively. The technology detailed in the patents is ideally suited for mounting large semiconductor chips such as high-power transistors and laser diodes where CTE matching is required.
The proliferation of diamond use in technology has seen a dramatic increase in recent years. Formed in 1993, sp3 Diamond Technologies has been a driving force in that commercialisation.
“We experienced our best year ever in 2011 due in large part to two markets,” continues Aidala. “We saw our diamond heat spreaders adopted in multiple applications, most notably in wireless base stations where the thermal properties of diamond are paying huge dividends. In CMP pad conditioning we sold five times more CVD diamond deposition tools than the previous year. “
“Diamond is being adopted. While our CVD diamond equipment and our heat spreaders remain our primary focus, we see tremendous opportunity for diamond applications in the future. The potential for diamond layers in the SOI-based process alone creates fantastic growth opportunities,” adds Aidala.
Semiconductor devices require packaging with high thermal conductivity to prevent overheating and to maintain useful operation of the device. Existing materials generally deliver good thermal characteristics but poor CTE matching, or are well- matched to most semiconductor materials, but do not offer high enough thermal conductivity for today’s devices.
sp3 Daiamond says its DiaMatch technology bridges this gap by offering variable CTE-matching, copper-level thermal conductivity and a choice of conductive or insulating die attach surfaces. What’s more, it delivers precise edges and no compositional variability from point to point in the material.
The new patents detail a multilayered structure of thin diamond layers and high thermal conductivity metal layers and the methods of making the structure. The multilayered structure has a variable CTE, which depends on the various layer thicknesses and can be different on each side. This allows the structure to safely bond to compound semiconductor materials such as SiC, GaAs, and GaN while providing the thermal management
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www.compoundsemiconductor.net October 2012 benefits of diamond.
LED demand triggers AkzoNobel’s multimillion dollar expansion
The firm is expanding its Tri-Methyl-Aluminium and Tri-Methyl-Gallium production facilities in Texas
AkzoNobel is to boost capacity at one of its US sites in order to meet increasing demand from the semiconductor industry, particularly for the production of LEDs. Financial details were not disclosed.
The investment, at the company’s Battleground facility in Texas, involves extending the Tri-Methyl- Aluminium (TMAL) unit and building a new Tri- Methyl-Gallium (TMG) plant, consolidating the plant’s status as the largest of its kind in the world. TMAL is a feedstock for TMG, a high purity metal organic (HPMO) used in products such as LED wafer manufacturing.
“The LED industry has been experiencing strong growth, well in excess of 20 percent per annum,” explains Werner Fuhrmann, AkzoNobel’s Executive Committee Member responsible for Specialty Chemicals. “This investment will make production more cost-efficient and ensure that we continue supplying our customers with a highly specialised product which is playing an increasingly important role in 21st century technology.”
The global LED industry is projected to grow significantly over the next decade, driven by applications in displays such as PCs, laptops and tablet screens. The massive increase in the use of LEDs for general lighting is also expected to contribute strongly as they become the preferred source of light over incandescent bulbs and compact fluorescent lamps, due to their low energy consumption and extended lifetime.
The expanded TMAL unit is expected to be completed in the third quarter of 2013, while the new TMG plant will be ready in August 2014.
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