IQE joins major micro-sensor consortium

19th Apr 2016 11:55

(ShareCast News) - IQE was celebrating a major development on Tuesday, having joined the new MIRPHAB consortium to establish a pilot line serving the growing demand for European analytical micro-sensors.MIRPHAB stands for Mid Infrared Photonics Devices Fabrication for chemical sensing and spectroscopic applications.The AIM-traded supplier of advanced semiconductor wafer products and services said the goal of the MIRPHAB was to establish a Europe-based production capability for mid infrared photonics devices.It said that, by bringing together high volume epitaxial wafer production facilities at IQE with key end-users, the consortium can deliver an end-to-end production supply chain for a range of mid-IR devices for a wide range of infrared sensing applications.IQE's board said the initiative will also provide open access to the European photonics industry with a focus on small to medium enterprises, catering for their requirements to prototype a wide range of mid-IR devices for multiple end use applications.The €15m pilot line for mid-IR devices will receive funding from both the European Commission's photonics public-private partnership under the Horizon 2020 programme to the tune of €13m, and €2m from the Swiss government."IQE has established a strong track record in the manufacture of compound semiconductor wafers for laser applications, so we are very pleased to participate in MIRPHAB and provide the consortium with a commercial source of mid infrared epitaxial wafers," said vice president of IQE's infrared business unit Dr Mark Furlong."With demand for mid infrared devices growing rapidly, supporting the pilot line with a high production volume capability for wafers will be essential"