Press Releases
November 2009
Diamond Microwave Devices (DMD), a spin out from the diamond electronics team in Element Six Technologies (E6), has closed a £1.3m equity investment from a consortium consisting of Oxford Technology Management, YFM via the Partnership Investment Fund, The ERA Foundation and two private investors.
During the course of 2009, DMD has made various performance breakthroughs in its diamond-based transistor technology and this investment round will be used to develop and build power amplifier modules for customer trialling during 2010. The DMD diamond transistor technology will enable the move to low cost, lightweight solid-state amplifiers in high power, high frequency applications such as radar, communications, SATCOMS, and electronic warfare.
“This new investment signals the next step for DMD. It will allow the company to progress with its plans to commercialise its ground-breaking technology,“ says Brendon Grunewald, head of E6 Ventures.
“DMD has gathered an experienced and fast-moving team both inside the company and outside with its choice of partners, to develop the product in close concert with its first customer. DMD’s customers will get a step change in performance per kg & per $ - both important to deliver a clear capability advantage. It has all the right ingredients of a high potential venture.” notes David Denny, partner at lead investor Oxford Technology ECF.
Element Six is the world’s leading supplier of industrial Diamond supermaterials. It is an international company with its head office registered in Luxembourg and processing and manufacturing facilities in Germany, Ireland, UK, Netherlands, Sweden, South Africa and China. Its business encompasses four divisions: Oil & Gas, Advanced Materials, Hard Materials and Technologies and the company manufactures Diamond using high pressure high temperature (HPHT) synthesis and chemical vapour deposition (CVD)
About the Consortium
Oxford Technology Management manages the £30m Oxford Technology Enterprise Capital Fund (OTECF), a specialist fund in early stage technology companies. Founded in 1983, Oxford Technology Management manages a series of early stage technology funds and has a portfolio of over 80 such start up and early stage companies in its portfolios.
YFM is the UK's most active investor in small to medium enterprises with a history that goes back to 1982. As a group YFM has over £300 million under management across a number of funds. These funds have been backed by The European Investment Fund, High Street Banks, large corporations, pension funds, private individuals, and public sector bodies and the European, UK Government and regional development agencies.
The ERA Foundation promotes innovation in electrotechnology to strengthen the economic vitality of the UK. To this end, as well as seeking to raise the profile of engineering and supporting young people at formative stages of their careers, ERAF provides grants to projects at the early stages of commercialisation and invests in young technology companies.
October 2009
Diamond Microwave Devices (DMD) is now certified to the ISO 9001:2008 Quality Assurance Standard following assessment by ACS Registrars Ltd. The scope of the registration covers the research, design, manufacture and supply of electronic, high-frequency, high power products (devices, circuits, modules and sub-systems), using internal and outsourced processes.
Richard Lang, DMD General Manager says, “Gaining this certification marks an important milestone in the company’s history. Our partners and future customers can now be assured that the work we carry out within DMD meets the highest quality standards recognised internationally.”
August 2009
Diamond Microwave Devices Ltd (DMD) and its partners have won funding worth £1.34M from the Technology Strategy Board, the government-funded body that supports technological innovation in the UK.
The investment will help to fund a £3 million project that will see the development of a new, innovative diamond-based high power, high-temperature, microwave transistor and build a demonstrator microwave pulsed power amplifier capable of >100W output power. Dr Richard Lang, general manager of DMD says, “We are delighted to receive this significant backing for our work on the next generation of microwave transistors based on innovative diamond material and device concepts. It marks the next phase in the company’s development and our ambitions to bring breakthrough technology into a key market area.”
The investment – through the Technology Strategy Board’s High Value Manufacturing funding competition – will support a project dubbed Microwave Power using Diamond (MPower-D) and also involves Element Six Ltd, MBDA UK Ltd, the University of Sheffield and INEX. Element Six, the world leader in diamond synthesis technology is developing the diamond material and INEX will continue sub-contracted work for DMD, further developing the diamond processing technology. MBDA, Europe’s leading missile systems company, brings its application knowledge and potential pull-through while the III-V Centre at the University of Sheffield is contributing to fundamental research related to materials growth and device processing.
Diamond transistors being developed in this project could be used in power amplifiers for microwave signals in communications, space and defence applications. The technology offers the opportunity to create a world-leading UK-based solid state microwave module development and manufacturing value chain.
Commenting on the Technology Strategy Board's support for the project, their Lead Technologist for High Value Manufacturing, Tonino Amorelli, said: "We are committed to stimulating the development of technologies which, as well as maintaining the UK's international competitiveness, also represent major business opportunities. We are therefore very pleased to support the MPower-D project, which brings together world-class expertise from around the UK to develop an innovative technology that could be exploited globally."
DMD and its partners bid successfully for the funding against stiff competition for the limited funds. When the successful projects were announced, Iain Gray, Chief Executive of the Technology Strategy Board, said, "This investment is intended to maintain and develop the international competitiveness of UK manufacturing companies against a backdrop where manufacturing often gravitates to countries with the lowest overall costs. Manufacturing in high wage economies, such as the UK, has to continue to innovate and change to remain competitive. It's also important to ensure that companies continue to innovate during the downturn to ensure a successful recovery for the UK economy. "
DMD was set up in 2006 and is currently an E6 Ventures portfolio company.
Notes to Editors]
The Technology Strategy Board is a business-led executive non-departmental public body, established by the government. Its role is to promote and support research into, and development and exploitation of, technology and innovation for the benefit of UK business, in order to increase economic growth and improve the quality of life. It is sponsored by the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills (BIS). For further information please visit www.innovateuk.org.
Element Six is the world’s leading supplier of diamond supermaterials used for a wide range of applications in industries such as oil & gas, automotive, construction, mining, telecommunications, technology, aerospace & defence and medical industries. With a history that goes back 60 years, the company has production and processing facilities in China, Germany, Ireland, the Netherlands, South Africa, Sweden and the UK, supported by a global distribution network.
The Centre of III -V Technologies at Sheffield University performs research in state-of-the-art semiconductor epitaxy and device fabrication using III-V semiconductors.
INEX was established in Newcastle upon Tyne in 2002 and is part of Newcastle University. It is an ISO9001:2000 certified Microsystems and specialist electronic device contract manufacturer, performing research, development, prototyping and manufacturing, generally in niche high-value markets
MBDA is a world leader in missiles and missile systems with more than 90 armed forces customers in the world. With industrial facilities in four European countries and within the USA, MBDA has an annual turnover of €2.7 billion and an order book of €11.9 billion.
March 2009
Diamond Microwave Devices in the News
Recent progress by Diamond Microwave Devices Ltd (DMD) into the characterisation of diamond electronic material has been published in a communication, "Multiple conduction paths in boron delta-doped diamond structures" online in Applied Physics Letters, dated 4 February,2009. This work is part of DMD's research and development work into the realisation of active electronic devices in synthetic CVD diamond.
This work was carred out through funding received from MBDA UK Ltd and the UK MoD (DTIC) and was part of a contract to University College London (UCL).
The UCL researchers report the use of impedance spectroscopy to investigate conductivity within boron-doped diamond in an "intrinsic/delta-doped/intrinsic" multilayer structure as grown by the materials synthesis team at Element Six Ltd. For a 5 nm thick delta layer, three conduction pathways are observed, which can be assigned to transport within the delta layer and to two differing conduction paths in the i-layers adjoining the delta layers. For transport in the i-layers, thermal trapping/detrapping processes can be observed, and only at the highest temperature investigated (673 K) can transport due to a single conduction process be seen.
The researchers say that impedance spectroscopy is an ideal non-destructive tool for investigating the electrical characteristics of complex diamond structures.
The published material is subject to Copyright (2009) American Institute of Physics. This article may be downloaded here for personal use.
Any other use requires prior permission of the author and the American Institute of Physics.
The following article appeared in Applied Physics Letters (Vol.94, Issue 5) and may be found at:-
http://link.aip.org/link?APL/94/052107
Applied Physics Letters (Vol 94,Issue 5)
February 2009
Diamond Microwave Devices Finds a New Home
Diamond Microwave Devices (DMD) has moved to new offices at Leeds Innovation Centre. The centre is located within the campus of the University of Leeds and is a hub for the support of start up companies such as DMD.
"Being close to one of the largest universities in the UK with the expertise and technology is a tremendous advantage for a company such as DMD," notes Dr Richard Lang, General Manager of DMD, "Plus, we are close to other innovative companies working in many different technical fields."
The location gives DMD access to flexible accommodation that will meet the company's expansion requirements during this crucial phase of its development.
You will now find DMD at
Leeds Innovation Centre
103 Clarendon Road
Leeds LS2 9DF
Tel: 0113 344 3914
Fax: 0113 384 5846
March 2008
Major article on synthetic diamond as an electronic material published
Materials Today, one of the leading journals for materials science, has published a major review article on the potential of synthetic diamond as an electronic material. Written by Chris Wort and Richard Balmer it explains the excitement around current developments in diamond synthesis for electronic applications.
Diamond is a wide-bandgap semiconductor and its potential as an electronic device material finds use in active devices such as high-frequency field-effect transistors and high-power switches, and passive devices, such as Schottky diodes. The properties of diamond offer the hope of developing electronic devices that could outperform current systems in terms of operating frequency, power handling, operating voltage and operating environment. Diamond Microwave Devices Ltd was set up in 2007 as a subsidiary of Element Six Ltd to develop field-effect transistors for high frequency applications.
“The invitation to write such a high profile, peer-reviewed article gives credence to the progress and high standing of our research and development team,” notes Christian Hultner, CEO of Element Six. “It also underlines our technical leadership in diamond synthesis and the fact that Element Six is at the forefront of developments in market redefining disruptive technologies.”
The article, which appears in the journal’s Jan-Feb 2008 issue, reviews the properties of diamond important to electronic applications, compares them with competing materials and discusses the business and economic drivers that are pushing current developments. In addition, some electronic device designs are explored. The article explains current developments in diamond synthesis involving chemical vapour deposition processes that are enabling specific materials properties to be precisely and reproducibly controlled. Such processes are key to the use of diamond in advanced applications such as in electronics.
To read the full review article, go to www.materialstoday.com
February 2008
Two Contracts Move Closer the Prospect of Single Crystal Diamond Transistors
Diamond Microwave Devices Ltd, DMD, has won a contract from MBDA, Europe's leading missile systems company, relating to the development of a transistor based on single crystal synthetic diamond material. At the same time, DMD has placed a contract with the London Centre for Nanotechnology, part of University College London, UCL, to help it with studies related to diamond's electronic properties.
August 2007
Best Paper at Key Technical Conference awarded to Element Six Researcher
Richard Balmer, senior scientist at Element Six in Ascot, has been awarded the accolade of "Best Paper" delivered at the 2007 Technical Conference run by The Electro-Magnetic Remote Sensing (EMRS) Defence Technology Centre (DTC) and the Systems Engineering for Autonomous Systems (SEAS) DTC. The conference was held in Edinburgh between 10th and 11th July.
April 2007
DMD sign up leading processing firm, INEX, to develop fabrication technology for its novel electroni
Diamond Microwave Devices, a subsidiary of Element Six Ltd, has signed a contract with INEX to provide the processing technology for its electronic development programme. DMD is working on the next generation of high-power, high temperature semiconductor devices for microwave power electronics.
December 2006
Element Six and Filtronic team up to develop high-frequency diamond electronic devices.
Diamond Microwave Devices (DMD) is a new subsidiary set up by Element Six, a world leader in the development of Chemical Vapour Deposition (CVD) diamond technology. This new company aims to develop novel diamond semiconductor materials and processing technology that will help create the next generation of high-power, high temperature semiconductor devices for use in microwave power amplifiers and transmitters.