Mar 14 2007
Nanoident Technologies AG has announced it has opened the world's first manufacturing facility for the delivery of printed Semiconductor-based optoelectronics. The Nanoident Organic Fab (OFAB) GmbH, located in Linz, Austria, supports high-volume production and will use the company's Semiconductor 2.0 Platform to deliver printed Semiconductor-based products for the Nanoident Group of companies, which includes Nanoident Technologies AG, Nanoident Biometrics GmbH, Nanoident Biometrics SAS and Bioident Technologies, Inc. With its environmentally friendly production process, the OFAB can produce printed electronic devices quickly and at a fraction of the cost of a traditional silicon-based Semiconductor fab.
"Just as we can't imagine our lives today without electronic devices that rely on silicon-based Semiconductors, in the near future the same will apply to printed electronics-based applications," said Craig Cruickshank, principal analyst at cintelliq. "Nanoident's OFAB opening is a significant step forward to making the vision of printed electronics a reality with the first of what will be a growing number of printed electronics facilities worldwide."
With the company's Semiconductor 2.0 Platform technology and OFAB production facility, Nanoident is enabling new, innovative solutions in a wide range of markets, including consumer, industrial, life sciences and security, that were previously cost-prohibitive or simply not able to be created due to the physical constraints of silicon. Moreover, expensive masks, wasted material and dangerous acids used for etching are not needed with printed electronics. Toxic materials are not used in the OFAB, making it a green production process.
"The OFAB opening marks a major industry achievement by bringing a new class of printed electronics from the lab to the fab," said Klaus G. Schroeter, CEO, Nanoident. "Printed Semiconductor-based optoelectronic devices created by the OFAB will usher in an era of new application types - traditionally not well-suited for silicon - which will improve healthcare, enhance personal and homeland security, as well as drive new industrial applications. These applications are just the beginning, as we look forward to driving continued advancements for printed devices that will enhance peoples' lives."
Nanoident's OFAB is fitted with a class 100 cleanroom (less than 100 half-micrometer particles per cubic foot). To produce printed electronics at the OFAB, nanomaterials are deposited onto a substrate using advanced printing methods. The process is extremely fast. For example, traditional chip manufacturing takes approximately two to three months. In the OFAB, the entire process can be completed in hours or days, depending on the application. Prototypes and volume production can be run on the same equipment, which allows for highly customized devices. Production capacity can easily be scaled as needed by adding more equipment.
14th March 2007