STARKVILLE, MS (USA). – July 28, 2003 – SemiSouth Laboratories, Inc., a leading developer of SiC transistors, diodes, and merchant epitaxy, announced today a new $2.67 M Small Business Innovative Research (SBIR) Phase III contract from the Office of Naval Research awarded to a SemiSouth led team, with primary subcontractors being General Electric Global Research Center and Mississippi State University.

The contract is aimed at developing key fabrication processes for SiC RF transistors which can be used in new, high-power, radar systems.  J.B. Casady, President and CTO of SemiSouth, remarked that “We have assembled a very formidable team to accelerate technology development and operational capability in SiC RF transistors for specific Navy and Marine Corps high-power radar systems.  Combining the SiC expertise of SemiSouth, GE, and Mississippi State University gives us access to an exceptionally powerful and large group of eminent SiC researchers, in addition to a strong industrial focus on specific DoD products to direct the development.”

One of the most significant unit fabrication processes to be optimized will be precisely controlled, robust processes for growth of thin films of SiC material, known as epitaxy, which will be used as the basis for fabricating the transistor.  Dr. J. Zhang, a SemiSouth co-principal investigator on the program, formerly of Epigress AB, also commented that “… developing a high-quality merchant SiC epitaxy capability to serve multiple DoD and commercial interests for high-power RF SiC products will be a key focus of this program, and we feel that our well-balanced industrial led and university supported team has strong credentials to accomplish this goal.”

Dr. Casady also stated that “… this contract award underscores the importance of our team’s capabilities to the Navy and Marine Corps, and the dedicated support that members of our Congressional delegation have provided.”