Lattice Power may not be a household name now in the LED chip industry, but the China based startup is already creating cheaper LED technology that could give large international manufacturers a run for their money. The company has ambitious development plans, recently securing US $80 million in financing to advance production and establish a U.S. based R&D center.   

Lattice Power grew from humble beginnings through physics professor Jiang Fengyi’s Nanchang University lab in China. In 2000, the company’s current Executive Chairman and lead investor Sonny Wu became aware of the innovative technology research being created by Jiang in his laboratory and began to invest in the company by 2005. Today the company has grown into strong industry competitor, with over 200 global patents and financial backing from well-known leading venture capital investors and organizations.

The company’s competitive edge comes from its use of silicon to produce wafers for LEDs. By using silicon, the company is able to produce LED chips at a much lower price than competitors using sapphire or silicon carbide, such as Philips Lighting and Cree. Silicon is abundant, unlike sapphire, as it is one of the most common elements. In addition, the cost is relatively low since silicon is created by heating sand and carbon at high temperatures, according to Gigaom Research. 

Last year, Lattice Power’s revenue was around US $33 million and could double this year and again in 2015, said Wu in an interview with the Wall Street Journal’s Venture Capital Dispatch site. Lattice Power tooted that its products sell at prices 30 percent below that of well-known LED manufacturers such as Cree, and that the company is still able to maintain 40 percent gross margins. 

Lattice Power is not the only company producing silicon wafers for LEDs however. Large international manufacturers including Osram Opto Semiconductors, Bridgelux, Toshiba, Epistar, and Samsung have also delved into silicon substrate technology development. However, none have yet to produce products with silicon related technology. 

The advantage of silicon over other materials is that it is more abundant which lowers cost. However, the cost saved is then negated by growing additional material layers in order to produce the silicon wafers. Lattice Power claims that it has overcome these difficulties where other manufacturers have failed. 

Moreover, despite claims that silicon-based LEDs produce a lower quality of light compared with that from sapphire, Lattice Power said its LEDs have 150l/W, making their products highly competitive. 

The LED lighting market potential is huge as penetration continues to increase. The LED market is projected to grow from US $10.9 billion in 2012 up to US $100 billion by 2022.