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AXT was founded in 1986 to develop a proprietary vertical gradient freeze (VGF) technique to produce high-performance compound semiconductor substrates for use in a variety of electronic and opto-electronic applications. The Company believes that its proprietary VGF technique produces high-quality crystals from which the Company produces high-performance, semi-insulating and semi-conducting gallium arsenide (GaAs) and indium phosphide substrates. The Company also focuses on product quality and customer service. A recent achievement is the Company's ISO 9002 certification by SGS International Certification Service, Inc. in December 1995. Since 1989, AXT's revenues have grown more than 60 percent, compounded annually.
The Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) sought a more reliable, cost-effective method for producing GaAs substrates, a critical component of integrated circuits used in the communications, satellite, radar, and defense weapons industries. This SBIR project, followed by further investment from private sector partners and the DoD's Title III program, enabled the Company to develop a commercially-viable technique for producing GaAs substrates. AXT's substrates are included in a wide variety of commercial products used in daily life, such as cellular phones, TV remote controls, and LED displays. The Company also uses its proprietary VGF technique to produce the single element substrate germanium, an element substrate which is used in satellite solar cells.
From the beginning, SBIR has played an important role in the development and commercialization of AXT's proprietary VGF technique. In 1990, the Company received its first Phase I SBIR award of $50,000 to support its R&D efforts in "Large Diameter Crystal Growth of GaAs Using the VGF Method." The Company received a Phase II SBIR award in 1991 to help further develop its VGF technique. Over the past five years, the Company has sold over $35 million of GaAs substrates. AXT has become a leading developer and supplier of high-performance GaAs substrates for use in a variety of electronic and opto-electronic applications. Approximately 70 percent of AXT's substrates are sold in commercial markets.
Ted Young
Tel. 510-683-5900 x103
Fax. 510-683-5901
Email: sales@axt-vgf.com
