Technology
UVC Light
Our sun produces a wide spectrum of light, from the infrared (heat) through the visible wavelengths that we see, to the UVA and UVB wavelengths that can cause sunburns. UVC is the shortest and highest energy of these wavelengths and is mostly absorbed by the Earth’s atmosphere. UVC light is highly effective at killing bacteria, molds, and other pathogens. All viruses and bacteria are made up of DNA and RNA. DNA and RNA are constructed of nucleic acids, two of which (Thymine and Uracil) have an absorption spectrum that are especially sensitive to UVC wavelengths. These amino acids absorb the UVC light and break apart, destroying the pathogen’s ability to function and replicate.
UVC lamps have been used for disinfection for decades, and have been shown to effectively disinfect surfaces, air and water. However, these lamps are bulky, fragile, use high levels of electricity and contain mercury, an environmental hazard if the lamps are broken or disposed of improperly.
The market has been searching for an efficient solid-state device like an LED that could emit UVC light and solve the issues that lamps present. Unfortunately, UVC LEDs are very inefficient, converting only 2-4% of the electricity used into useful light. Even at this low level the UVC product market has exploded over the past two years, driven by the Covid pandemic. All UVC LEDs are based on aluminum nitride, and Nitride Global’s Poly and AlN template products have enabled LEDs with higher power and lower cost.
“Thermal management is a significant challenge due to the increasing heat generation rates in commercial electronics, energy (solar cells, fuel cells, etc.), space, and defense systems. In many of these applications, thermal management is the bottleneck towards achieving optimal performance “
- MIT Device Research Laboratory
Thermal Management Coatings
Heat generation from electronic devices is a large and rapidly growing problem for the microelectronics and optoelectronics industries. As device sizes shrink and performance increases the ability to dissipate heat is a roadblock to further product advancements.
Our patented AlON coatings provide a solution to these issues. With a unique combination of high electrical insulation and low thermal resistance in layers only tens of microns thick, heat can be removed from electronic devices up to 80x faster than competing materials, allowing the devices to use less power and last longer while having higher performance.
NGI’s coatings can be enabling for the next generation of RF, EV, laser diode and data center products.