Public Funding for Compound Semiconductor Centre Limited

SOCRATES will introduce silicon carbide (SiC) and GaN trench processing technologies to the UK, establishing a critical capability into the PEMD supply chain for power transistors. This 9-month project will define the critical semiconductor manufacturing processing steps required for introducing a disruptive SiC power MOSFET supply chain for automotive power electronics to the UK, aligned with the goals of the Driving the Electric Revolution (DER) initiative. We will establish a new UK SiC manufacturing capability - developing Trench MOSFET technology within the Materials and Components DER Centre and critically, pilot SiC trench etch processing, whilst also developing a backside SiC etch process module for future VGaN-on-SiC devices. Current SiC diodes and transistors are still based on planar devices commercialised in 2001 and 2011 respectively -- which are limited in terms of efficiency and reliability. The proposed trench technology will revolutionise the performance of SiC transistors, with lower on-state resistances, and enhanced energy efficiencies -- to be employed in automotive systems. VGaN-on-SiC devices will further drive performance and costs advantages. This project intervention will accelerate their development at little additional cost. This project addresses clear gaps in the PEMD UK supply chain; The lack of (1) a trench SiC power MOSFET process and (2) a high-volume supplier of SiC transistors for UK EV industry, with no current UK-based, high-volume 6"-8" SiC wafer fabs. In contrast, our international competitors are establishing key strategic PEMD links, in order to supply SiC devices to the future EV market; Infineon with Hyaundai, STMicroelectronics (already producing 4000 wafers per month) with Tesla and XFab with General Motors and Ford. Thus, the UK is in danger of losing its security of supply of this crucial technology to the UK automotive sector.

This is a industrial led project in which the partners assess the feasibility of exploiting the WBG manufacturing capability initiated under an existing DER Fast Start project (105891) to manufacture Nexperia's latest generation of D-mode 650V GaN devices in the UK. This 5 month project will deliver a 200mm process definition (epitaxy and fab), transfer specifications and any relevant technical de-risking. Mutual technical information exchange will be exchanged under NDA on: * The epitaxial structure of the 650V GaN on silicon HEMT. * Process flow requirements of Nexperia's proprietary process * Key performance specifications and qualification requirements This work is a vital first phase of a longer term ambition to establish a scalable UK capability in GaN materials and chip manufacturing that will also support the future growth ambitions of Nexperia's GaN business. Successful delivery would enable Nexperia's future demand (5000 wafers per month by 2027) to be reshored to the UK (epitaxy and chip fab) from overseas with the additional benefit of being transferred from 150mm to 200mm wafers. The additional phases needed to deliver the full capability are: * Phase 2: Proof of manufacturing concept including deployment of critical capital equipment * Phase 3: Capacity ramp to 1kwpm - including capital * Phase 4: Capacity ramp to 5kwpm -- including capital It will also significantly expand the scope of project (105891) by both accelerating and de-risking the next stages of delivering a full epitaxy and chip manufacturing capability for 200mm GaN on Si, 650V HEMTs.The complementary capabilities of the three industrial partners provide the UK's most credible route for a cost competitive, 200mm WBG solution that can scale to meet the growing demands of the UK automotive supply chain. Longer-term project benefits include: * Nexperia can evaluate it's GaN device performance on CSC's epitaxy offering (currently using overseas suppliers) and initiate the process transition from 150mm to 200mm. * NWF will run Nexperia's test vehicle through their fab and significantly de-risk the subsequent process transfer. * CSC will validate their 200mm epitaxial wafer products for Nexperia to position them for significant growth in line with Nexperia's forecasts. * The UK automotive supply chain gains a state of the art WBG front end capability i.e. a one-stop shop in Materials, Process and Packaging. It also secures a high volume business opportunity for UK partners which would otherwise go overseas. All partners agree this feasibility project is manageable within 5 months and are ready to start by 1st November 2020\.

At the heart of every EV engine is a MOSFET semiconductor device built in a specialist substrate Silicon Cardide The future net zero plan for the UK will rely on these devices. This feasibility project will study how the existing capabilities of the South Wales Compound Semiconductor cluster can be expanded to create a solution to feed the UK's Automotive supply line. The resultant study will demonstrate how a substantial supply line of innovative , next generation EV TRENCH MOSFET's on 200mm Epi substrates can be established. The final report will outline the key business plan, cleanroom expansion options, employment impact and investment requirements including the potential use of strategic UK RD&I funds. The project will access the RD&I expertise of Newport Wafer Fab (NWF), the UK Largest semiconductor centre and the epitaxy knowledge of Compound Semiconductor Centre CSC (IQE).The project will be supported by Swansea University's (SU) Centre for Intregrative Semiconductor Materials (CSIM). The UK automotive industry needs a clearly defined pathway to develop and supply PEMD devices that will drive the APC and DER's strategic ambitions. This feasibility study will define the fundamental requirements to establish a business plan report that can deliver a scaled, cost effective, technology pathway that will foster UK PEMD innovation, enabling the UK to achieve a leadership position in the net zero challenge

QFoundry brings together UK's most established supply chains for quantum semiconductor components to address critical challenges in manufacturing and deliver a National (and World's first) open-access Quantum device foundry. Utilising existing infrastructure and capital, QFoundry will deliver the foundations for robust, scalable component manufacture in the UK to enable future volume Quantum Technology applications. QFoundry will initially focus on developing manufacturing platforms and supply chains for single-mode Vertical Cavity Surface Emitting Lasers (VCSELs) and single-photon emitters/detectors to include Quantum Dot (QD) and Multiple Quantum Well (MQW) structures. QFoundry will leverage knowledge gained to-date across the UK QT programme to: * Upscale discrete component manufacture using standard semiconductor manufacturing techniques. * Consolidate links in existing UK supply chains for robust, open-access supply of VCSELs and Single Photon devices, from design to packaged components. * Develop the methodology to accelerate high-uniformity, reproducibly and reliability in the context of QT applications.

_It is anticipated that 50% of vehicle production will be wholly or partially electric by 2030\. This project aims to commercialise known quantum technology to address identified challenges in the manufacture of batteries and lithium cells. Quantum technology enables highly sensitive measurements of magnetic fields. This project will use these magnetic measurements to diagnose current flows in lithium cells and the consortium will develop a complete environmentally controlled ageing test production system deployed at the largest commercial powder to power lithium-ion and sodium-ion manufacturing plant in the UK (project lead: AGM). The system will be integrated into AGM's pouch cell assembly and test processes trialled on the range of High, Ultra High power, High Energy and Sodium-ion cells currently being scaled-up and commercialised for UK niche automotive market in particular._ _Having gained global acclaim for best-in-class ICE's, Cosworth are perfect examples of what's best about the UK's high-performance automotive developers. Now they are seeking to build equally successful electric drive trains and only power cells of the very highest quality will suffice. The project is fortunate to have Cosworth as an active partner taking advantage of the Quantum Sensor technology ability to select A-Grade cells for the best hybrid battery performance and good lifetime state-of-health. The technology adds strength to 2nd life use of cells viability due to better SoH confidence through 1st life._ _In the next few years, the UK-BIC (Battery Industrialisation Centre) will be opened. This will be closely followed by AGM's parent company's AMTE GigaFactory which will be capable of manufacturing millions of cells in the UK every year. Like all cell manufacturers, AGM will be burdened with the bottleneck of cell formation and ageing processes. This project aims to significantly reduce this impact and also improve quality yields providing the ability to grade cells effectively. This could prove massively beneficial to the fledgling industry providing a competitive edge enabling AGM to take market share earlier._

Quantum magnetometers optically monitor the interaction between alkali-metal-atoms and an external magnetic field and detect the change in electron spin due to the magnetic field being applied. This allows the detection of micro-defects in materials and objects that are not visible or hidden from view. The MagV project will deliver the World's first commercial miniaturised rf atomic magnetometer that can operate in unshielded environments allowing general use and wide deployment. Primary applications have been identified in consultation with an extensive Industry Advisory Board, who have defined industry challenges driving the need for miniaturised-RF-quantum-magnetometers as novel sensors within non-destructive testing. The project brings together substantial research on quantum magnetometers with route to commercialisation through established VCSEL supply chain partners and an end-user to maintain UK leadership in quantum technologies.

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Public description Most vehicles run on fossil fuels like petrol or diesel. Their exhaust gases are responsible for most of the carbon dioxide (associated with global warming) and particulate emissions (that can cause athsma) in the UK at present. Making these vehicles electrically driven moves all emissions away from the tailpipe of the vehicle, and if renewable energy is used to charge the vehicle, can completely eliminate the emissions associated with transportation and mobility as well as reducing the UK's dependency on imported fossil fuels. This applies to all modes of transport including automotive, off-highway, rail, marine and aviation. At its core, an electric drivetrain is very simple, with an electric motor providing the tractive power generated from energy stored in a battery. To convert the DC voltage of the battery to the AC voltage required for the motor, power electronics, in the form of an inverter, are required. Further power electronics are also required for use in high power DC/DC converters and rapid chargers. Until recently, the switching devices used for these applications have been based on standard silicon technology. Silicon Carbide is expected to replace the use of silicon in future applications, due to its superior switching speed and efficiency. This also includes in non-transport applications including electrical grid interfaces and renewable energy systems. At present, this technology cannot be made in the UK and is imported, rather than building in the UK and exporting. The aim of this project is to kick-start the manufacture of these high value components, and their resulting systems in the UK. This will protect skilled manufacturing jobs in the UK and provide significant export potential for the associated vehicles and components. The timing for this innovation is perfect, with massive demand expansion predicted over the coming decades as electric cars become mainstream. The opportunity is for the UK to be at the forefront of this revolution. The focus of ESCAPE is to bring together industrial leaders and pioneers from across the supply chain to work as a single coherent team to deliver this vision. We aim to break down many of the barriers that slow down the development cycle time and to capture the full value in the UK. ESCAPE will be supported by academics and engineers who are expert in the area building on over 25 years of research to date.

This project brings together the complementary capability of academic and industrial partners within the Compound Semiconductor (CS) supply chain to drive the development of a new Gallium Nitride (GaN) based process platform for Automotive Power Electronics in-line with the roadmap recently published by the Advanced Propulsion Centre on behalf of the Automotive Council UK "Towards 2040: A Guide to Automotive Propulsion Technologies". The semiconductor supply chain directly employs over 1200 people in the local region. This new platform technology would help accelerate the transition of the industry from mainly silicon device manufacture to higher margin, more innovative CS devices and provide the UK with a novel sovereign GaN capability. It also supports the development of new thick GaN epitaxial materials needed to manufacture the vertical GaN transistors designed by Swansea University's Electronic Systems Design Centre. The Centre is a world-leader in semiconductor device modelling and received the TechWorks University Research Group of the Year award in 2016. The CS Applications Catapult and Turbo Power Systems (TPS) will evaluate the new GaN power devices developed in an on-vehicle application. Our vision is that the developed platform technology will deliver performance improvements in line with the Power Electronics Roadmap which sets challenging cost and performance targets for future power devices that can't be met with existing silicon based technology. The 2035 power density targets of 50kW/kg for inverters and DC-DC converters are ambitious and will only be possible through the use of wide band gap (WBG) materials, such as GaN. This proposal outlines a clear route to delivering the required capability through a UK supply chain. The main areas of focus include the development of a UK source of thick GaN epi substrates required for the vertical device, which also requires damage free GaN etching to form a vertical channel and successful materials integration of the gate dielectrics and gate electrode. The project is highly innovative from a design perspective and Swansea University have filed a patent application for the device design. The epitaxy growth is also innovative in the use of multiple substrate platforms, the unique step grading layers and the in-situ doping of the p-body region. The new device will be proven in an on-vehicle application, and provide cost and performance data. An initial 200V application will be evaluated, but by parallel materials and process development, the platform will be demonstrated to be scaleable to 600V within the project timeframe.

This project will develop a pre-production prototype of a miniature atomic clock for providing precise timing to a variety of critical infrastructure services, such as reliable energy supply, safe transport links, mobile communications, data networks and electronic financial transactions. The precise measurement of time is fundamental to the effective functioning of these services, which currently rely on Global Navigation Satellite Systems (GNSS) for a timing signal. However, GNSS signals are easily disrupted either accidentally or maliciously, and in prolonged GNSS unavailability, these critical services stop functioning. The reliance on GNSS for precision timing, and the consequent vulnerability of our essential services prompted InnovateUK to commission a report published by London Economics in June 2017\. It estimated the impact on the UK economy of a five day GNSS outage at £5.2B. That message is becoming widely understood and is creating a demand for timing solutions that are not GNSS dependent. The next generation miniature atomic clock arising from this project fulfills this need and will find widespread application in precision timing for mobile base stations, network servers for financial services, data centres, national power distribution networks and air traffic control systems. Further applications arise in areas where an independent timing reference is needed on mobile platforms and especially in areas where no GNSS signal is available. A high performance compact clock would benefit a range of useful capabilities, addressing civil and military applications, bringing both technical and economic gains for the UK.

The UK has some of the world's leading designers of microwave systems and some of the leading test and characterising expertise for gallium nitride - based RF devices but it does not capitalise on this and has no sovereign or accessible industrial manufacturing capability. These devices are fundamental to many space systems, military communication and guidance systems and will be essential in the roll out of the upcoming "5G" communications revolution. To capitalise on the UK's expertise and to provide a world class strategic sovereign capability in advanced communications technology, the CSC Ltd is leading this feasibility project to develop a base-line RF gallium nitride (GaN) on silicon carbide (SiC) structure that can be incorporated into a high electron mobility transistors (HEMTs) for the so called Ka-band (26.5–40.0GHz) of communication frequencies and beyond. The outcomes from this feasibility project are ultimatelay targeted at enabling the collaborators to access the rapidly growing GaN - based RF markets worth $350M and forecast to grow to $750M by 2022.

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We propose a project to look at the feasibility of producing highly miniaturised magnetic sensors which have the advantage of integrated ancillary electronics on a Compound Semiconductor (CS) millimetre scale chip solution. One concept will aim to converge advances in CS electronics with a novel Quantum Well Hall Effect (QWHE) magnetic sensor, combined monolithically on a GaAs based material platform. The resulting Magnetic Integrated Circuit (MAG IC) has the potential to have a large dynamic operating range, high sensitivity and ultra-compact footprint. Another concept we will investigate is the feasibility of a radically new GaN magnetic sensor which has the potential for ultra-high temperature operation, monolithic integration with GaN based electronics and scalability on Silicon and Silicon Carbide large wafer formats. The project will aim to verify whether these concepts can be manufactured in a commercially viable manner in order to challenge traditional, bulky magnetic sensing solutions such as Giant Magneto Resistance (GMR) sensors and low spec-low cost solutions such as Silicon Hall sensors. Target applications include: current sensing, embedded cable detection, high resolution metrology and magneto-imaging for medical & Non-Destructive Testing (NDT).

The global datacentre equipment market is projected to be worth US$72B by 2020 with double digit growth fueled by exponential demand for services such as cloud computing, mobile internet usage and emerging IoT. Datacentre operators have to disrupt the supply chain as they seek more aggressive technology roadmaps to support a host of new services. They are building larger and larger datacentres that require more interconnection bandwidth. The cost and availability of the high capacity optical server interconnects has become a bottleneck to continue datacentre growth. As a result, this market has seen an unprecedented upgrade cycle with a transition from 10 Gbps to 40Gbps occurring in 2014, followed by another to transition from 40G to 100G in 2016. The industry is currently expecting 400G to ramp starting in 2018/2019—but it is struggling to find a satisfactory solution >100G. Our project aims to deliver a disruptive, scalable architecture which will deliver solutions > 100G based based on a technology which is proven in the 40G and 100G market. The consortium assembled can address the full component to transciever development supply chain in the UK, and service volume manufacturing from existing facilities in Scotland and Wales.

There is a growing demand for Curative, Cosmetic and Diagnostic technologies to transition from the clinical environment to the home. Photonic solutions are enabling high-end consumer products such as laser hair removal, anti-wrinkle treatments, acne and blemish reduction. LED solutions have enabled consumer self-diagnostics such as pulse oxymetry, and are now being used routinely in fitness and lifestyle monitors. Next generation photonic applications on the short term horizon include non-invasive glucose monitoring, hydration evaluation and breath analysis as wearable technology. There is one common enabler across this market: compact, portable, commoditised laser, LED sources and detectors that can offer adequate wavelength discrimination, consumer grade reliability and safety. Increasingly LED solutions are out-competing lamp based technologies due to reduced power consumption, and for laser grade specifications, compound semiconductor diode lasers are the only viable solution. C4ST brings together device specialists and clinical application scientists in the cosmetic, curative and diagnostic domain in order to address the huge opportunities for accelerating the use of compound semiconductors in the home healthcare, lifestyle and diagnostic markets.

Coherent population trapping (CPT) based miniature atomic clocks require low power, single mode laser diodes that can be directly modulated at a few gigahertz. Vertical Cavity Surface Emitting Lasers (VCSELs) are ideal for this application primarily due to their very low power consumption, wide wavelength tuning coefficient, reduced sensitivity to optical feedback, extended device lifetime, and small device footprint. Commercially available VCSELs have linewidths of ~50-100 MHz, and while this can be a problem for many other laser spectroscopy applications, it does not substantially compromise the quality of a CPT resonance. Conversely, due to the circular beam profile, VCSELs are particularly susceptible to polarisation instabilities; however, there are several novel design modifications that can be implemented to address this issue. Currently, there are no UK sources or any supply chain of reliable and robust VCSELs for miniature atomic clocks and a very limited number of commercial manufacturers globally developing VCSELs at the opimium wavelength for the application (CsD1 – 894nm). Our project will establish a UK strategic capability focussed on the development and volume production of VCSEL laser sources, tailored specifically to support the adoption of miniaturised atomic clock applications.

The Compound Semiconductor (CS) diode laser has revolutionised consumer electronics and telecommunications over the last 30 years, enabling mass market adoption of ICT technology such as fibre optical communications, CD and DVD storage. It is now at the heart of new advances in laser based manufacturing methods, medical diagnosis, surgery, cosmetics and sensing. It is the source of choice for commoditisation of laser based technologies, giving an excellent trade-off between specification, cost, energy consumption and footprint. The Vertical Cavity Surface Emitting Laser (VCSEL) is an embodiment which further reduces the footprint of the laser chip so driving additional miniaturisation and cost reduction opportunities. Our project will leverage an existing world leading UK capability in VCSEL materials technology to drive the next wave of commoditised applications such as gesture recognition, ubiquitous high resolution 3D imaging and projection displays. Our consortium brings together compound semiconductor materials, device fabrication and capital equipment specialists in order to faciliate the step change in manufacturing methods required to accelerate the adoption of VCSEL solutions in truly mass market products.

The inexorable growth in broadband communications has created an enormous market (>100M units pa) for low cost, single-mode semiconductor lasers emitting around 1.3-1.55um as sources in fibre optic communicationsto the Premises (FTTP). Current technologies deployed (such as Passive Optical Networking, PON) operate at line rates of 1.25-2.5 Gb/s. However, satisfying the massively expanding bandwidth demand will require implementation of new PON standards that require higher performance, lower cost laser sources. The UK industrial partners in this project are already significant materials and chip scale suppliers to this market. Our project addresses the replacement of a high cost nm-scale lithography step in the laser manufacturing process with a low cost, high throughput nano-imprint process to realise a cost saving of 20-30% in the Cost of Manufacture of the laser chip.However, to our knowledge, the nano-imprint lithography technique has not been implemented in volume semiconductor laser manufacturing, and so there is significant de-risking activity required to establish, qualify and yield engineer a new process to unlock the productivity gains.