I-Corps: Flexible and Bendable Electronic and Photonic Device Platform

University Of Houston, Houston TX

Investigators

Abstract

The broader impact/commercial potential of this I-Corps project is to significantly reduce the manufacturing cost of semiconductor devices for electronic, photonic, and energy applications. For example, the proposed innovation will bring 40% total cost reduction in light-emitting diodes (LED) chip/die manufacturing, which will provide a faster route for the energy-efficient LEDs to become a dominant lighting source. The innovation will also offer a new device platform for electric power conversion and switching in electric vehicles and smart-grid systems, which means significant benefits in energy saving and greenhouse-gas emission reduction. Hence, the proposed innovation will facilitate the rapid development of next-generation green device technology that can readily be applied to the real-world systems. Furthermore, the flexible material platforms will enable not only mechanically flexible devices for the applications of portable, wearable, and implantable systems, but also new devices with additional functionality for more versatile applications beyond just flexible devices. The new transformative technologies stemming from this project will help U.S. semiconductor manufacturers cope with global challenges and win in the competitive international markets. Therefore, the new platform will contribute to consolidating the U.S. position as a technology and market leader by strategically strengthening the innovation ecosystem of the semiconductor technology. This I-Corps project proposes a promising replacement for single-crystalline wafer substrates of semiconductor devices by offering a new mechanically-flexible low-cost substrate. The objective of the project is to deliver commercially available low-cost, high-crystalline-quality, and flexible tape substrates to be employed as a new platform of photonic and electronic semiconductor devices. To accomplish the objective, the team will develop a new substrate consisting of flexible metal tape and a single-crystalline gallium nitride (GaN) semiconductor thin film by an invented direct deposition technique. This method also enables the roll-to-roll and large-scale continuous production of high-quality semiconductor materials. The developed GaN/metal tape will to serve as the substrate for the fabrication of LEDs, as an initial target of the innovative technology, and other semiconductor devices. The result will be flexible inorganic LEDs with high efficiency and application versatility at a fraction of the cost of current solid-state lighting sources. The new product, while it is a potentially disruptive technology, has not been deployed in the device market with various products and applications. Therefore, understanding of business development will be critical. The team will perform customer survey and business model development via investigation of value proposition and customer discovery. This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.