News: Suppliers
4 July 2024
European wafer developer pays BluGlass US$1.28m for transfer of IP developed under contract
BluGlass Ltd of Silverwater, Australia — which develops and manufactures gallium nitride (GaN) blue laser diodes based on its proprietary low-temperature, low-hydrogen remote-plasma chemical vapor deposition (RPCVD) technology — has secured a US$1.28m (AUS$1.93m) payment from a European wafer developer to acquire intellectual property (IP) rights relating to GaN growth techniques on the customer’s specialty wafers.
BluGlass developed the specialist IP for the European wafer developer under a paid contract development program that has been underway since January 2022. It will continue to provide contract foundry services for the customer, developing GaN applications on specialty wafers, with increased volumes expected. The technology has been designed for adoption into high-growth markets.
The exclusive IP transfer, effective on payment, is limited to metal-organic chemical vapor deposition (MOCVD) deposition of GaN on the customer’s unique wafer technology. The agreement does not transfer any of BluGlass’ RPCVD, device, or laser intellectual property.
“Solving complex customer challenges is a key tenet of BluGlass’ value proposition, enabling us to build long-term partnerships. The company’s foundry services leverage our more than a decade of GaN epitaxy expertise to assist in developing next-generation applications,” says BluGlass CEO Jim Haden. “We’re continuing to support this foundry customer under a paid development contract, with the IP acquisition enabling us to expand our collaboration into a commercial manufacturing contract as the customer’s opportunity matures. Importantly, the transfer of IP applies only to the use of MOCVD GaN growth on the customer’s specialty wafers. BluGlass has retained all other IP rights.”
BluGlass acquires contract manufacturer GaNWorks Foundry for US$800,000
