Nov 22 2005
AIXTRON AG, a leading provider of deposition equipment to the semiconductor industry, is pleased to announce the receipt of a purchase order for a Thomas Swan 3x2" Close Coupled Showerhead (CCS) gallium nitride (GaN) epitaxy reactor at National Central University (NCU), Optical Science Center, Taoyuan County, Taiwan R.O.C.
The system will be used to provide high quality GaN-based epitaxial materials for research on a wide range of LED structures. The addition of the new 3x2” MOCVD research complements NCU’s other research tools, such as an existing AIX 200/4 RF-S MOCVD system which was acquired in 1999 for the Compound Semiconductors Laboratory.
Professor Jenq-Yang Chang, Director of NCU's Optical Sciences Center, comments: "One of the most important applications for GaN materials are LEDs for next-generation solid state lighting. NCU chose Thomas Swan’s CCS technology because of success with the existing AIXTRON system and good relations with the company. The results that we have achieved with the AIX 200/4 RF horizontal flow reactor were groundbreaking. This is thanks to the MOCVD process being exceptionally stable; a key requirement for sophisticated optoelectronic devices. Our fruitful co-operations with AIXTRON over the last three years, combined with AIXTRON’s excellent service and support have been essential for continuing our story of success. Adding now the Close-Coupled Showerhead technology to our MOCVD portfolio will allow us to cover a broadest range of research topics. We are convinced that this reactor has significant advantages compared to other vertical reactors, especially in terms of stability and uniformity. These properties will allow us to perform our research on an unsurpassed quality level".
Dr. Bernd Schulte, Executive Vice President and COO of AIXTRON adds: "We are very pleased that NCU has selected the Thomas Swan CCS reactor and look forward to their reporting further impressive results. This is another demonstration of the superior capability of our vertical reactor CCS concept in areas such as advanced optoelectronic structures in GaN-based solid state lighting."
The NCU's Optical Science Center is actively involved in research into GaN LEDs, lasers and other devices. NCU is one of the most renowned research universities in Taiwan. It was founded in 1915 in Nanjing, China, and became one of the top universities in Asia. Re-established in Taiwan in 1962, the NCU has an established reputation for the development of cutting edge science and technology having won recognition for academic excellence in many fields including microelectronics and optoelectronics. For example, early in 2003 the NCU reported the successful operation of electrically pumped violet laser diodes which were developed on their AIX 200/4 RF system. The university also has a cooperation agreement with AIXTRON under which, the NCU began operating as a Demonstration Laboratory for AIXTRON. This has enabled AIXTRON customers to see for themselves the quality of the GaN wafers grown on AIXTRON equipment.