News

Cree and Microsemi Join to Develop SiC Schottky Diodes

June 06, 2001 by Jeff Shepard

Cree Inc. (Durham, NC) and Microsemi Corp. (Irvine, CA) announced that they have completed a deal to jointly develop silicon carbide-based (SiC) Schottky diodes. Under the terms of the agreement, Microsemi will provide packaging, application and market channel expertise while Cree provides the SiC die for use as high-power and high-voltage Schottkys.

Microsemi reports that, prior to this agreement, it relied on university research and development groups to try to develop SiC products for commercialization. Microsemi believes that the agreement will accelerate its SiC program by relying on Cree's SiC manufacturing expertise and bypassing university laboratories.

The current agreement focuses on development, and the parties anticipate negotiating further agreements for volume sales following a successful completion of their development work.

In commenting on the alliance, Manuel Lynch, vice president of marketing and business development for Microsemi stated, “We have been very successful in identifying potential commercial applications for SiC Schottkys, which range from energy-conscious cardioverter defibrillators to base station power supplies. We wanted to move from laboratory-scale development to full-scale production as we continue our strategy of commercializing SiC. Cree provides us with SiC Schottky expertise and is a formidable partner to help launch these products for high-volume applications. Cree is the undisputed technology leader and has demonstrated unmatched power results using SiC. We believe the attributes of SiC can provide significant improvements over silicon-based devices in the areas of high power and voltage that could reduce power consumption.”