16 December 2010

Lumileds enters mass production of GaN LEDs on 150mm wafers

Philips Lumileds of San Jose, CA, USA claims to be the first power LED maker in mass production on 150mm-diameter wafers, and is now producing millions of gallium nitride-based LEDs weekly on the larger substrates.

“The addition of 150mm manufacturing capacity to our existing capability leverages our epitaxy and wafer fabrication technology excellence and gives Lumileds the capacity to produce billions of LUXEON LEDs annually,” says Matthijs Glastra, executive VP of worldwide operations. “We expect that the pace of LED adoption will require all other manufacturers to follow our lead and adopt similar strategies,” he adds. “Their challenge will be to achieve the high yields and quality levels that we have already demonstrated.”

Each 150mm wafer produces four times the number of LEDs as the current 3-inch wafers. The transition to a larger wafer size is broadly viewed as a critical path to providing the increasing number of LEDs required by the lighting industry and ensuring a supportable and secure supply chain, says Lumileds.

Lumileds will continue its existing 3-inch wafer production while ramping production of its 150mm capacity to meet increasing demand for high-quality, high-performance LEDs from the lighting, automotive, and consumer electronics segments.

Capacity expansion is a key driver in the adoption of LED technology, says the firm. The ability to add additional high-capacity epitaxial reactors with enhanced productivity and yield means that it has a lower need for capital expenditures and can drive cost down as volume increases, it adds. “Some of the newer entrants to LED manufacturing require many more reactors to match our volume capacity,” says Glastra.

Lumileds says that its engineers, scientists and system operators in San Jose and Singapore have installed, customized, and optimized equipment to meet its production standards and ensure that its processes deliver the light output, efficacy, reliability, and quality of light expected.

Tags: Lumileds GaN LEDs

Visit: www.philipslumileds.com