Supported by the German Ministry for Education and Research (BMBF) as part of the 'Photonic Process Chains' initiative, the project 'Integrated High-Volume Production along the LED Value-Added Chain for Large Wafers and Panels' (InteGreat) is being coordinated by LED maker Osram Opto Semiconductors GmbH of Regensburg, Germany together with five partners from industry and research: Osram GmbH, Fraunhofer-Gesellschaft, LayTec AG, Würth Elektronik GmbH & Co KG and Mühlbauer GmbH & Co KG.
Running from 1 December 2014 to end-November 2017, the project's objective is to research new approaches to the production of high-efficiency LEDs along the entire production process, in order to remove the boundaries between the individual value-added stages and hence to create new functionality and high flexibility. A holistic view of the manufacturing process – from epitaxy (crystal growth) to the light source itself – should enable synergies to be exploited to maximum effect and new approaches and procedures to be developed. It is reckoned that fully optimized production for LED components and light modules in which all process steps are coordinated with each other could lead to completely new types of LEDs, as well as reducing their manufacturing costs.
"For the duration of the project we will be researching completely new concepts for LED production and allow ourselves to question the traditional paradigms of the manufacturing process," says Dr Jürgen Moosburger, project coordinator at Osram Opto. Established technologies and processes from the classic microelectronics industry will be used and adapted to the specific requirements of LED production. Steps that until now have been isolated will be networked, allowing cost-intensive sorting and testing processes to be replaced by comprehensive routines. This could enable production of modern high-power LEDs to be a unified process for the first time, it is reckoned. "With the new production concepts, we want to be in a position to develop both low-cost miniaturized LEDs and highly integrated modules," adds Moosburger.
As coordinator of the project, Osram Opto brings its experience in LED technologies, and is responsible for integration and evaluation of the new processes. As a specialist in lighting solutions, Osram GmbH will integrate the newly developed LED components in low-cost luminaires and also adds its expertise in process technologies.
As a technology partner for the smart-card, ePässe, RFID and solar back-end sectors, Mühlbauer is contributing its engineering know-how to the high-precision processing of electrical components on flexible and fixed substrates, including the development of new processes. Würth Elektronik is contributing its experience in individual solutions for printed-circuit board production. Specifically, it will be researching ways in which the LED chip can be connected to the PCB. Berlin-based in-situ metrology equipment LayTec GmbH is analyzing innovative process-control systems for LED manufacturing.
In addition, the Fraunhofer Institute for Reliability and Microintegration (IZM) and the Fraunhofer Institute for Integrated Systems and Device Technology (IISB) are researching the basic technical principles of process control and mounting technology. IZM will contribute its expertise in connection technology, and IISB will work on the intelligent control of production processes.
