RFMD US Air Force contract to make GaN-on-SiC mainstream

RFMD says 6-inch GaN-on-Silicon Carbide (SiC) monolithic microwave integrated circuit (MMIC) technology being developed as part of a $9.7m contract with the US Air Force Research Laboratory (AFRL) will have implications for commercial applications including cellular infrastructure.

RFMD is to transfer to the AFRL and produce a 0.14-micron gallium nitride (GaN) monolithic microwave integrated circuit (MMIC) 100GHz technology which will be scaled to 6-inch diameter wafers using the supplier’s GaN-on-Silicon Carbide (SiC) manufacturing line.

“Through this Air Force contract we have the opportunity to establish the industry’s first 6-inch millimeter wave GaN-on-SiC process technology, allowing RFMD to expand our technology capabilities beyond 100GHz,” said Gorden Cook, general manager of RFMD Power Broadband.

“We expect this new technology will not only enable a new class of affordable power MMICs for defense applications such as radar and military communications, but also commercial applications including cable TV networking, microwave backhaul and cellular infrastructure,” said Cook.

Cook said that with AFRL’s experience RFMD will offer 0.14-micron gate GaN power technology for mass production in its US-based, open foundry.

GaN technology supports broad frequency bandwidths and high breakdown voltages in a small area. RFMD’s 6-inch GaN wafer offers 2.5-times more useable area over competing 4-inch GaN wafer platforms currently available, resulting in 2.5 times more RF power devices per wafer. Millimeter wave GaN enables the best trade-off between key performance parameters such as power gain, bandwidth and efficiency for applications in the range of DC to over 100GHz.