For over two years, China has dominated the global semiconductor chip supply, producing about 80% of it, with the US making just about 12%. Covid-induced supply chain crises and production halts—resulting in massive price hikes for citizens—compelled the US to focus on boosting domestic supply. 

So, in August 2022, it enforced the Creating Helpful Incentives to Produce Semiconductors (CHIPS) and Science Act of 2022, with $442.3 billion set aside in funding for the upcoming decade.

 For 2023, the US Department of Defense has earmarked $375.9 million in funding for the CHIPS and Science Act to establish eight regional innovation hubs for microelectronics as part of the $3.16 billion allocated to the Microelectronics (ME) Commons Program from FY23-27.

What’s more, Australian semiconductor tech developer BluGlass Limited (ASX: BLG) has been named a member of the Commercial Leap Ahead for Wide-bandgap Semiconductors (CLAWS) Hub, one of eight ME Commons regional innovation hubs announced by the US Department of Defense.

BluGlass CEO Jim Haden said, “We are thrilled to be part of the Commercial Leap Ahead for Wide Bandgap Semiconductors (CLAWS) Hub to develop next-generation photonic devices that will have significant commercial and strategic defence applications in the decades ahead. The work we will be contributing to the hub perfectly aligns with BluGlass’ wide-bandgap and extended-wavelength roadmaps and will leverage the benefits of our proprietary RPCVD technology.” 

BluGlass specialises in making a specific type of laser diode crafted using GaN (Gallium Nitride). Laser diodes are semiconductor-based devices that emit coherent and focused beams of light. Its proprietary manufacturing technology, low-temperature, low hydrogen remote plasma chemical vapour deposition (RPCVD), and designs produce lasers that perform better in harsh situations. BluGlass builds custom laser and LED products for the global industrial, defence, bio-medical, and scientific markets. 

The ME Commons aims to expedite the shift from laboratory innovations to large-scale production while addressing supply chain vulnerabilities. It will enhance America’s capacity to create, test, manufacture and mass-produce advanced microelectronics.

CLAWS’s broad bandgap semiconductors, like indium gallium nitride, provide increased voltage and temperature capabilities compared to conventional silicon chips. These semiconductors can be used in power electronics, radio frequency devices, wireless technologies, and photonics equipment, such as visible lasers in next-gen sensing, communications, artificial intelligence, and even quantum technology.

MC Dean Distinguished Professor of Electrical and Computer Engineering, Fred Kish, added, “We are delighted to be partnering with BluGlass in the NCSU-led CLAWS Hub, working together to innovate next-generation III-N photonic and optoelectronic solutions with BluGlass further adding a path to commercialisation.”

Kish highlights that photonic technology plays a crucial role in enhancing national security. It offers significant advantages in terms of energy efficiency, compactness, reduced weight, power efficiency, and superior performance. These benefits are particularly valuable in critical areas like weaponry, equipping soldiers, and fulfilling other defence requirements.

The CLAWS Hub includes seven members: Adroit Materials, Coherent, General Electric, Kyma, North Carolina A&T State University, Wolfspeed and BluGlass. It will be led by the North Carolina State University (NCSU), which has already received $62.24 million in funding to get started.

Though concepts like semiconductors and quantum tech—and the hubbub around them—may seem mystifying right now, it is evident that they are set to define our future.

We recently released a special report on the semiconductor industry and the ASX listed semiconductor stocks. Click here to read it.