Hong Kong gets foothold in global semiconductor industry with next-gen GaN wafer line

MassPhoton is setting up Hong Kong’s first gallium nitride wafer line in a tie-up with Science Park, with plans to turn out 10,000 units annually by 2027

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A general view of Hong Kong Science Park in Sha Tin on June 29, 2022. Photo: Yik Yeung-man

Published: 8:00pm, 30 Jul 2024

Hong Kong is setting up its first production line for gallium nitride (GaN) wafers, a next-generation semiconductor material, as the city aims to gain a foothold in the global chip industry amid an intensified US-China technology rivalry.

MassPhoton, established in Hong Kong in January this year, is working with the government-funded Hong Kong Science and Technology Parks (HKSTP) to establish an 8-inch GaN epitaxial wafer pilot production line, with the aim of achieving an annual production capacity of 10,000 units by 2027, MassPhoton founder and CEO Eason Liao said at a media briefing on Tuesday.

The company, which specialises in manufacturing ultraviolet-C disinfection products, will invest HK$200 million (US$25.6 million) in the new wafer production line in Hong Kong, and also establish a research and development centre for GaN technology at Science Park, the incubator run by HKSTP said in a statement on Tuesday.

Secretary for Innovation, Technology and Industry Sun Dong speaks at the launch ceremony for the third-generation semiconductor GaN epitaxial wafer pilot line on July 30. Photo: Handout

GaN and silicon carbide (SiC) are third-generation semiconductors materials that, compared with traditional silicon-based semiconductors, have advantages such as higher energy efficiency and reduced size.

The planned GaN line comes as Hong Kong eyes a stake in the global semiconductor supply chain, as part of the city’s efforts to become an innovation and technology hub amid heightened geopolitical tensions.

In October last year, the HKSTP also signed a memorandum of understanding with mainland Chinese chip firm J2 Semiconductor, with the goal of setting up Hong Kong’s first SiC 8-inch wafer fab and a new third-generation semiconductor R&D centre.

The Shanghai-based chip maker pledged to invest HK$6.9 billion in the project, and plans to reach an annual production capacity of 240,000 wafers by 2028, the company said last October.