AXT to Provide 6-inch Gallium Arsenide Wafers to MBE

FREMONT, Calif., Sept. 7 -- AXT Inc. has signed a one-year multimillion-dollar contract to supply MBE Technology Ptd. Ltd. with 6-inch gallium arsenide wafers during 2001. MBE Technology is a Singapore-based manufacturer of epitaxy wafers via molecular beam epitaxy for wireless handset and device manufacturers in the US.
The substrate market continues to grow, driven by the demand in fiber optics, wired and wireless communications, and light-emitting devices, said Morris Young, president and CEO of AXT. Furthermore, many device manufacturers are moving from ion-implantation to epitaxy, and from 4-inch gallium arsenide wafers to 6-inch. As a result, shortages of high-quality substrates have become a concern for many epitaxy and device manufacturers.