Crystal IS Announces World’s First Low Defect Density 2-inch Aluminum Nitride Substrates
Crystal IS Press Release
FlashlightNews.org - 05/12/2006
GREEN ISLAND, N.Y.. - World leading supplier of bulk aluminum nitride (AlN), Crystal IS, announces the release of the world’s first low defect density 2-inch AlN substrates for use in high power RF electronics and UV optoelectronics.
With a low thermal mismatch and no lattice mismatch to the AlN/AlGaN device layers, aluminum nitride substrates do not suffer from stress issues associated with other materials, making aluminum nitride the substrate material of choice for high power RF devices and for high reliability deep UV LEDs and laser diodes. Compared to other substrate technologies such as sapphire and SiC, AlN also benefits from a high thermal conductivity, making it ideal for high power applications.
Crystal IS uses the patented technique of sublimation-recondensation for bulk AlN crystal growth, making it possible to manufacture 2-inch native substrates (sliced from the bulk crystal) with ultra-low defect densities, typically in the range of 1,000 per sq. cm. (1E3cm-2). Until recently, low-defect native AlN substrates have only been available in small pieces (1-inch or less) and typically of irregular shapes making them unsuitable for high volume wafer fabrication. Alternative techniques do exist to produce “quasi-bulk” AlN substrates, but these all involve growing on non-native substrates such as the technique of Hydride Vapor Phase Epitaxy (HVPE) and result in a high level of defect densities, typically a million times greater than the Crystal IS standard (~1E8cm-2).
Two-inch low-defect native AlN substrates are now commercially available from Crystal IS with up to 50 percent single crystal usable area. Further development is underway through 2006 to increase the usable area on the 2-inch substrate towards 100 percent.
The introduction of 2-inch AlN substrates will commercialize the deep UV LED and high power RF markets and with a recent expansion of its manufacturing facility, Crystal IS is poised for dramatic growth. According to Ding Day, Crystal IS CEO, “This development is significant as it opens up a number of market opportunities including bio-agent sensors, phototherapy, water, and air purification.”
To learn more about Crystal IS, visit them on the web at www.crystal-is.com or contact Tim Bettles, vice president of business development, sales and marketing, on (518) 271-7375.