PERFORMANCE
OF
COMPLETED
PROJECTS
STATUS REPORT
NUMBER 1
NIST SPECIAL PUBLICATION
950-1
Economic Assessment
Office
Advanced Technology Program
Gaithersburg, Maryland 20899
William F. Long
Business Performance Research Associates, Inc.
Bethesda, Maryland 20814
March 1999
CONTENTS
Acknowledgements
Executive Summary
Introduction
CHAPTER 1 - Overview of Completed Projects
Characteristics of the Projects
Timeline of Expected ATP Project
Activities and Impacts
Gains in Technical Knowledge
Dissemination of New Knowledge
Commercialization of the New Technology
Broad-Based Economic Benefits
CHAPTER 2 - Biotechnology
Aastrom Biosciences,
Inc.
Aphios Corporation
Molecular Simulations, Inc.
Thermo Trilogy Corporation
Tissue Engineering, Inc.
CHAPTER 3 - Chemicals and Chemical Processing
BioTraces, Inc.
CHAPTER 4 - Discrete Manufacturing
Auto Body Consortium (Joint
Venture)
HelpMate Robotics, Inc.
PreAmp Consortium (Joint Venture)
Saginaw Machine Systems, Inc.
CHAPTER 5 - Electronics
Accuwave Corporation
AstroPower, Inc.
Cree Research, Inc.
Cynosure, Inc.
Diamond Semiconductor Group, LLC
FSI International, Inc.
Galileo Corporation
Hampshire Instruments, Inc. (Joint Venture)
Illinois Superconductor Corporation
Light Age, Inc.
Lucent Technologies, Inc.
Multi-Film Venture (Joint Venture)
Nonvolatile Electronics, Inc.
Spire Corporation
Thomas Electronics, Inc.
CHAPTER 6 - Energy and Environment
American Superconductor Corporation
Armstrong World Industries, Inc.
E.I. duPont de Nemours & Company
Michigan Molecular Institute
CHAPTER 7 - Information, Computers, and Communications
Communication Intelligence Corporation #1
Communication Intelligence Corporation #2
Engineering Animation, Inc.
ETOM Technologies, Inc.
Mathematical Technologies, Inc.
Torrent Systems, Inc.
CHAPTER 8 - Materials
AlliedSignal, Inc.
Geltech Incorporated
IBM Corporation
APPENDICES
Appendix A: Development of New
Knowledge and Early Commercial Products and Processes
Appendix B: Terminated Projects
END NOTES
End Notes
Click here for PDF version of report.
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Spire Corporation
A Feedback-Controlled, Metallo-Organic Chemical Vapor Deposition
Reactor
| Laser
diodes are the tiny workhorses in many industrial and consumer
products. Every CD-ROM player has at least one, and many printers
and photocopiers have a large array of them. More than 20 million
laser diodes are needed each year for this market alone, and
the number is growing. |
Advanced Fabrication Control for Improved Electronic Devices
This ATP project with Spire Corporation developed a new way to
make laser diodes and other optoelectronic devices. Founded in 1969,
Spire is a specialty manufacturer of semiconductor wafers and metallo-organic
chemical vapor deposition (MOCVD) equipment. The company's new method
makes possible the manufacture of individual lasers and laser arrays
at lower cost and with higher performance characteristics.
The advanced metallo-organic chemical vapor deposition reactor
constructed with funding from the ATP.
Spire built and demonstrated an advanced MOCVD reactor designed
for the fabrication of laser diodes. Laser diodes are intricate
multilayer structures generally grown by MOCVD on compound semiconductor
wafers. Researchers developed in-process sensors to monitor the
development of layers on the substrate, as well as control systems
to automatically adjust the many process parameters. They demonstrated
that the new technology can control the growth rate of the layers.
They also showed that the new reactor performed better than conventional
reactors in terms of epitaxial layer uniformity over the entire
wafer, as well as run-to-run consistency. These two factors can
contribute significantly to reducing the cost of making laser diodes.
Potential for Commercial Products
The project did well technically, and limited commercialization
is under way. Spire is pursuing its original plan to produce and
sell reactors and license the technology to other manufacturers,
and it is in discussions with several potential customers. The company
also planned to produce low-cost laser diode arrays in competition
with foreign producers, but that market did not develop.
Spire has successfully used the prototype reactor to perform customer-specific
research and development and to produce epitaxial laser wafers of
a demanding structure. One customer has invested more that $250,000
with Spire to develop vertical cavity surface emitting laser (VCSEL)
wafers and plans to invest another $450,000 in the effort in the
near future. A VCSEL emits light in a cylindrical beam vertically
from its surface and may offer significant advantages over edge-emitting
lasers in some applications. This customer may also buy an MOCVD
reactor from Spire in the next two years, following completion of
the initial development project.
A wafer populated with arrays of vertical cavity surface emitting
lasers.
Spire is focusing on use of the new feedback-controlled reactor
for growing laser wafers for VCSELs and edge-emitting lasers. VCSELs
would be used in high-speed laser printers and in optical interconnects
for computer links, and edge-emitting lasers would be used in solid-state
laser pumps and in measurement and material processing applications.
The company contracted with another large manufacturer in late 1997
to develop VCSEL arrays for advanced optical computer interconnects.
Spire has already been paid $106,000 for the project and could potentially
receive another $300,000. If the development work succeeds, Spire
believes it will enable the company to enter the huge market for
optical interconnect components.
ATP Project Opens Doors
If the ATP funds had not been available, Spire would not have done
the project, company officials say. The ATP award enabled Spire
to overcome technical barriers to volume production of VCSEL wafers,
some of which contain more than 650 epitaxial layers. These complex
structures had been previously grown only in a few laboratories
and in small lots and sometimes virtually by hand. Spire's new capability,
in turn, has attracted an entire new line of customers.
The potential for alliances with research and development partners
is now high, and Spire is already working on advanced device development
projects with several companies. The benefits to users of new devices
made from these complex wafers can be significant. The ATP-funded
reactor enables production of many kinds of wafers at lower costs.
It also enables the production of some devices, made from VCSEL
wafers, that could not be fabricated any other way. The benefits,
however, can occur only if the company's limited commercialization
expands into full-scale success, and it is still too early to tell
whether that will happen.
PROJECT:
To develop an advanced feedback-controlled, high-throughput,
metallo-organic chemical vapor deposition (MOCVD) reactor for
fabricating low-cost, high-quality laser diode arrays.
Duration: 6/15/1992 - 3/31/1995
ATP number:91-01-0263
FUNDING (in thousands)::
| ATP |
$1,223 |
56% |
| Company |
973 |
44% |
| Total |
$2,196 |
|
ACCOMPLISHMENTS:
Spire achieved the project's research goal and afterward conducted
additional, company-funded development to commercialize the
technology. A prototype reactor is being used for commercial
wafer production and customer-specific development work. Signs
of the project's success include the fact that the company:
- published four papers and presented several others at
professional conferences during the award period;
- demonstrated the ability to grow epitaxial wafers with
high-quality uniformity of composition and thickness over
an entire wafer 2.25 inches in diameter;
- demonstrated the ability to fabricate vertical cavity
surface emitting lasers (VCSELs) with state-of-the-art performance
characteristics;
- published a 1997 update on use of the ATP-funded reactor,
"In Situ Monitoring and Control for MOCVD Growth of AlGaAs
and InGaAs," in the Journal of Electronic Materials;
- received $356,000 from two large manufacturers for development
of advanced VCSEL epitaxial wafers and wafer production
processes, with an additional $450,000 to $750,000 expected
in the near future; and
- expanded sales of commercial epitaxial wafers (mostly
for lasers and light-emitting diodes), with sales revenue
of about $200,000 in 1998.
COMMERCIALIZATION STATUS:
Limited commercialization has been under way since 1996. The
ATP-funded technology has been incorporated into an MOCVD
reactor being used for commercial production of optoelectronic
epitaxial wafers. These include VCSEL epitaxial wafers that
are being developed for high-speed laser printing. Spire is
also using the reactor for two development projects funded
by other companies.
OUTLOOK:
Spire expects to produce substantial numbers of VCSEL devices
in the future. Because the market is growing rapidly, the company
is positioned to exploit its superior in-house epitaxial wafer
growth capability, based on the ATP-funded technology, to produce
large quantities of whole epitaxial wafers, as well as wafers
processed into optoelectronic devices ready for packaging.
COMPANY:
Spire Corporation
1 Patriots Park
Bedford, MA 01730-2396
Contact:
Harvey B. Serreze or Kurt J. Linden
Phone: (781) 275-6000
Number of employees:
180 at project start, 150 at the end of 1997
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Date created:
March 1999
Last updated:
April 12, 2005
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