10 February 2012

GT to provide 6-inch cores for Silian’s sapphire substrate production

GT Advanced Technologies Inc of Merrimack, NH, USA (a provider of polysilicon production technology as well as sapphire and silicon crystalline growth systems and materials for the solar, LED and other specialty markets) says that its subsidiary GT Crystal Systems has entered into a purchase agreement with Chongqing Silian Optoelectronics Science & Technology Co Ltd (Silian) to supply 500,000 TIE (2-inch equivalent) of 6-inch diameter C-plane sapphire cores, which Silian will use to produce sapphire substrates for the high-brightness LED industry.

“We are pleased to announce this important agreement for large diameter sapphire cores and to continue our long and successful relationship with Silian,” says Cheryl Diuguid, GT’s VP & general manager of its Sapphire Equipment and Materials Group. “Silian has an outstanding reputation for providing high-quality substrates to some of the most advanced LED producers in the industry. This contract further validates that sapphire material produced in our ASF [Advanced Sapphire Furnace] is well suited for use in the LED supply chain,” she adds.

“ASF-grown sapphire has helped Silian and our customers to achieve the high yields necessary for the maturing LED industry,” says Silian’s chief operating officer & general manager David Reid. “The consistency and quality of ASF-grown sapphire has served our business well and we look forward to continued collaboration with GT Crystal Systems.”

GT says that its ability to produce LED-grade sapphire at diameters of 6-inches and larger is helping to accelerate the transition to next-generation metal-organic chemical vapour deposition (MOCVD) production tools capable of handling the larger-diameter wafers. Larger substrates allow more efficient MOCVD production processes than current-generation MOCVD tools processing 2- and 4-inch wafers. The large-diameter cores will be produced from boules grown in GT’s ASF sapphire growth furnaces installed in its newly expanded sapphire manufacturing facility in Salem, MA. This is the same technology that has been sold commercially to GT’s ASF equipment customers.

Tags: GT Advanced Technologies Silian Sapphire substrates MOCVD

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