BluGlass’ BLG-300 upgrade installation and commissioning completed; industry evaluations to recommence within weeks

BluGlass Ltd of Silverwater, Australia – which was spun off from the III-nitride department of Macquarie University in 2005 to develop a proprietary low-temperature process using remote-plasma chemical vapor deposition (RPCVD) to grow materials including gallium nitride (GaN) and indium gallium nitride (InGaN) on glass substrates – says that its upgraded, larger BLG-300 remote-plasma chemical vapor deposition (RPCVD) platform has been successfully installed and commissioned.

The upgraded platform is already demonstrating good progress towards the uniformity and electrical properties required for BluGlass’ industry evaluations. The technology team will continue to test and adjust the new installation over the coming weeks to optimize its performance. The BLG-300 is expected to return to industry evaluation work in the coming weeks.

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The upgrade has produced good results from the first run, says chief technology & operations manager Dr Ian Mann, with early results showing good progress on uniformity. “This demonstration of the scalability using the new modular RPCVD design will be replicable in the future and help enable even larger-deposition RPCVD platforms,” he believes.

While the BLG-300 installation has slowed some of the industry evaluation progression, BluGlass and LED maker Lumileds of San Jose, CA, USA agree that the Phase II collaboration is making steady progress. This and the IQE collaboration will again be expedited with the upgraded BLG-300 starting industry work in September.

“The opportunity for RPCVD that we are exploring with Lumileds is very compelling, as demonstrated by the high level of commitment from both parties,” comments managing director Giles Bourne. “Both Lumileds and BluGlass are encouraged with the strong progress being made on the Phase II collaboration.”