HexaTech's company logo. (HexaTech/LEDinside)

HexaTech Inc. announced today that it has received a continuation of funding under the U.S. Department of Energy's Advanced Research Projects Agency (ARPA-E) development program. The cost-share extension is valued at $1.2 million over 1 year, and follows $2.8 million over 2 years when the contract was initiated in 2012.

ARPA-E is an innovative and collaborative government agency that catalyzes transformational energy technologies through funding, technical assistance, and market readiness to accelerate the pace of energy innovation.

The HexaTech contract focuses on the development of high power semiconductor switching devices based on Aluminum Nitride (AlN) to more efficiently control the flow of electricity across high-voltage electrical lines.  AlN-based devices should exceed the capabilities of currently used materials, enabling smaller, more reliable components. The further implementation of these components could decrease the cost of electricity transmission while increasing overall grid security and reliability.

HexaTech CEO John Goehrke noted, "This contract extension will allow us to further expand our market leadership in high power AlN device development. Combined with ARPA-E's unique Tech-To-Market concept, we anticipate not only raising the bar in device performance, but also raising awareness for AlN in general, which will in turn be a significant growth opportunity for our core substrate business."

"This continued support from ARPA-E will allow us to demonstrate the potential of AlN for high voltage devices by optimizing MOCVD growth parameters, as well as fabricating and testing commercially-oriented components", commented Dr. Baxter Moody, Principal Investigator for the program at HexaTech. He added "HexaTech's world-leading, high quality bulk AlN substrates are the ideal foundation for supporting these designs, and will be essential to maximize high power semiconductor device performance in the future."