SweGaN AB, manufacturer of GaN-on-SiC epitaxial wafers based on unique epitaxial growth technologies for telecom, satellite, defense and power applications, announced they have relocated their headquarters to a new facility in Linköping, Sweden, which combines a lab housing several production tools and an administration and office area. Concurrently, SweGaN announced the introduction of 150mm (6 inch) QuanFINE® GaN-on-SiC epiwafers to its product portfolio for RF and high-power switching devices.
The new headquarters are located 200 meters from Linköping University and 10 km from Linköping’s international airport, making easy access for customer and partner visits. The new SweGaN facility – constructed with meter-thick concrete walls and formerly used by the Swedish Défense Research Agency (FOI) – opened in Q1 2020.
– “The facility is a huge contrast from our previous cramped quarters” states Olof Kordina, CEO of SweGaN. The lab area has incredibly robust 1-meter thick walls and is hence, lovingly called the bunker”, continues Olof Kordina. The bunker houses SweGaN’s main operational offices and a lab for production and R&D. “
In addition, responding to significant customer demand for larger QuanFINE® products, SweGaN has swiftly developed the growth process for 150mm epiwafers and successfully delivered the new 150mm QuanFINE® epiwafers to customers, starting already in Q1 2020. The 150mm epiwafers will boost the manufacturing capacity of GaN-on-SiC RF devices for various applications.
-”The new QuanFINE®150mm epiwafers are mass-produced in our new high-capacity reactor,” continues Olof Kordina.
-”Our new product signals that SweGaN is aligning its production capacity and capability closely with our customers’ needs for the rapidly expanding 5G networks, defense radars and satellite communication, states Jr-Tai Chen, CTO at SweGaN AB. The 150mm QuanFINE® product will also facilitate the development of high-end GaN power devices, where price–performance ratio and reliability are critical elements for our customers. ”
Highlighting that device manufacturers typically execute over 100 steps during the fabrication of a device, a larger epiwafer – in simple terms – means manufacturers can produce more devices in the same cycle time, creating clear benefits for return-on-investment.