profile BeRex
The pHEMTs that BeRex Inc.has been producing,which can be used in military and commercial microwave applications, operate at up to 40 GHz and have a gate width of 0.2 mm to 2.4 mm,enabling output powers of 0.25 W to 3 W. Transistors with a smaller gate deliver less power, but produce more gain
“We can operate as a subsidiary, as long as we have that firewall – but we can’t have that firewall and be the same company.”
This west-coast outfit focuses on supplying the military and commercial markets with pHEMTs, which are designed in the US and built in native fabs. In addition, it acts as a distributor for products made by BeRex Corporation, such as GaAs HBTs, SiGe gain blocks, switches, dividers and amplifiers.
The pHEMTs that BeRex Inc. has been producing, which can be used in military and commercial microwave applications, operate at up to 40 GHz and have a gate width of 0.2 mm to 2.4 mm, enabling output powers of 0.25 W to 3 W. Transistors with a smaller gate deliver less power, but produce more gain, so they are often used in the first stages of amplifiers employing up to five stages.
BeRex Inc. started business in 2008, the nadir of the current economic storm. However, it has not struggled in this climate, due to significant sales to the military. “The military never disappoints,” says Snook, “and seems to fill the void in those years.” Although the last few months he has seen a slight ‘softening’ of this market, commercial markets are on the way up, particularly in the US. “We’ve not seen the same level of expansion in Europe, but I expect it to be there.”
The US outfit has several products in the pipeline, including some GaN devices and a line of GaAs
MESFET chips. The latter products have been developed for microwave customers in search of a level of linearity that is not possible with a pHEMT process.
“Some people need the better OIP3 that the MESFET provides over the pHEMT process,” says Snook. “We can select the process. We can go out and pick the best. Not many people are doing MESFETs anymore, but this niche market still needs it.”
Launching MESFETs forms part of the strategy for BeRex Inc.: To be a ‘one-stop-shop’ for high-quality pHEMT, MESFET and HBT bare-die for military and commercial applications. If it executes on this front – while it’s parent company continues to enjoy success in the infrastructure markets in Korea, and more recently China – it will provide further proof that it is possible for start-ups carve out a profitable niche in the GaAs chip industry.
© 2012 Angel Business Communications. Permission required.
BeRex,
Inc.is headquartered in San Jose,CA,at the heart of the Silicon Valley
Nahm-Wook Lee the founder and president of BeRex,
Inc.and BeRex Corporation,understands the power of the fabless semiconductor business model
BeRex GaAs HBT parts,such as the BG18C, target wireless infrastructure like base stations and repeaters
April / May 2012
www.compoundsemiconductor.net 25
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