Space semiconductor research hub opens in south Wales

A NEW research facility has opened in south Wales to support the development and scale-up of semiconductor materials manufactured in space.

Space Forge has launched the National Microgravity Research Centre (NMRC), the terrestrial arm of its low-Earth-orbit manufacturing programme. The Cardiff-based company is developing technologies to produce advanced materials in microgravity before returning them to Earth for further processing.

At the end of last year, the company launched its micro-sized ForgeStar-1 satellite, equipped with a furnace that can reach 1,000°C, as part of its effort to manufacture a materials in orbit.

According to Space Forge, microgravity offers manufacturing conditions that differ significantly from those on Earth. The environment can reduce contamination and enable more uniform crystal growth, which is critical for semiconductor production.

Materials initially produced in orbit will be brought back for scaleup at the Centre for Integrative Semiconductor Materials at Swansea University, where NMRC is based.

Microgravity manufacturing

Under Space Forge’s proposed model, semiconductor seed wafers will first be grown in microgravity before being returned to Earth for further development and manufacturing.

Semiconductors rely on highly ordered atomic structures, making them particularly sensitive to impurities and defects during production.

Space Forge says the microgravity environment reduces the exposure to contaminants such as moisture, dust and gases, potentially resulting in up to 100 times fewer defects in semiconductor materials.

South Wales semiconductor cluster

The Centre for Integrative Semiconductor Materials is backed by a £55m (US$73m) investment from the UK and Welsh governments and forms part of the south Wales CSconnected semiconductor cluster.

The centre works with industry partners across the semiconductor supply chain, with research focused on developing technologies for electronics, clean energy and sensing. It also recently launched a study into next-generation perovskite solar cells.