Kopin® Corporation (Nasdaq: KOPN), the world’s leading producer of heterojunction bipolar transistor (HBT) wafers for smart phones and other mobile devices, announced today that it has received a two-year, Phase II Small Business Innovative Research (SBIR) contract for the development of Aluminum Indium Nitride-based high electron mobility transistors (AlInN HEMTs).
The $750,000 award through the Missile Defense Agency (MDA) will leverage Kopin’s established capability in Group III-Nitrides to enhance the performance and manufacturability of AlInN materials.
“This SBIR program by MDA validates the potential of the AlInN material system for high-performance electronic devices,” stated Dr. John C.C. Fan, Kopin’s President and CEO. “Our long-term objective is to commercialize AlInN-based electronic materials, which parallels our highly successful GaAs HBT wafer business. It is part of Kopin’s strategy to leverage our expertise in III-V materials and nanoengineering to offer technology-differentiated solutions to our customers.”
Dr. Wayne Johnson, Kopin’s Vice President of Technology said, “The AlInN material system has shown great promise to extend the power and frequency capability of GaN-based HEMTs, but it is a challenging material to produce. During the Phase I effort, we demonstrated encouraging results in AlInN/GaN heterostructures including record-low sheet resistance. The goals of Phase II will involve optimization of the AlInN HEMT structures and fabrication of HEMT devices for X-band electronics applications in collaboration with leading-edge GaN foundries.”