Semiconductor-wafer maker IQE (Cardiff, Wales) says it has delivered the world’s first 150-mm (or, as people in the industry often say, "6-inch") vertical-cavity surface-emitting laser (VCSEL) epiwafer process for high-volume, low-cost applications.
Up-and-coming markets for low-cost VCSELs include:
--Gesture recognition for gaming and noncontact navigation (TV, smartphone, tablet)
--Depth imaging for 3D vision in next-generation smartphones
--Low-energy optical storage and fast switching in high-capacity data centers, servers, and ultrahigh-speed computing
--High speed datacom, including active optical cable (AOC)
--Ultrahigh-density magnetic Storage using heat-assisted magnetic recording (HAMR)
--IR camera illumination
--Industrial heating, including paint curing and commercial print shops
--Cosmetics and health care, including hair removal, antiwrinkle, and blemish reduction
A number of these applications require multielement VCSEL array configurations, which have greater surface areas and therefore use more epiwafer material. They also offer higher optical power output compared to discrete devices.
Many of these markets are price-elastic, and by moving to 150-mm wafer sizes compatible with existing well-established, state-of-the-art 150-mm RF gallium arsenide (GaAs) wafer-processing lines, high-performance VCSELs can be manufactured in large volume using fabrication and testing techniques similar to that of LEDs, says IQE.
Initial engineering-evaluation and product-qualification wafers have already been delivered and initial performances have replicated those of existing smaller wafer sizes. Production is expected to ramp up over the coming year, according to IQE.
For more info, see http://www.iqep.com/.