LED giants of the Warring States hegemony era has begun

Because of Nakamura Shuji's invention, LED entered the white era, may make the LED enter the field of general lighting has become. Because of Nakamura Shuji's defection, intellectual property disputes between the giant LED has more dramatic composition. With Nichia and Nakamura Shuji litigation settlement, LED giant began gezonglianheng Warring States hegemony era. Cree news

October 20, 2005, the world's leading manufacturer of Cree LED released its first quarter results of fiscal year 2006, its profit in the first quarter of $21 million 700 thousand per share of 28 cents, more than the expected $23. Sales revenue increased from $103 million 900 thousand to $95 million 900 thousand, more than the expected $102 million 800 thousand.

Cree CEO Chuck Swoboda, said: we are more than expected earnings per share of the company is very happy. In the fierce competition in the LED market, this achievement has proved the company's leadership in the industry, but also the company's strategy to develop mobile phone white backlight market success. At the same time we are optimistic about the company's future growth in the lighting and communications market."

Compared to the same period last year, earnings per share of 32 cents, Cree company's first quarter earnings per share fell slightly in the first quarter of fiscal year 2006. This is also a reaction to the fierce competition in the LED market. In the main market of LED, the backlight of mobile devices, the market growth is not high, and the decline in prices has become an inevitable trend.

Even so, standard & Poor's in July this year to Cree company to a strong buy rating. And Cree also was named to buy and Internet star Google and iPOD because of very influential Apple Corp.

In August this year, PHILPS announced a $950 million price achieved Agilent holds Lumileds 47% stake in the company, plus the original stake, PHILPS achieved absolute control Lumileds 96.5%. As one of the world's 3 largest supplier of lighting equipment, PHILPS holdings of Lumileds shares, but also expressed confidence in the prospects of Led lighting into the field. In the September 28th, after the completion of the transaction, there is news that PHILPS Lumileds joint development of automotive lighting modules in order to promote the use of solid state automotive lighting solutions process. Another important area of application in the LED, LCD backlight part, PHILPS also made a $1 billion 500 million share of the LG LCD shares. In this way, PHILPS's fastest growing in the two areas of LED - automotive lighting and LCD backlight part, can form a good integration.

In fact, Lumileds's 2004 results are very gratifying, sales revenue grew 43% to $280 million, net profit of $62 million, an increase of 2 times. Expected future net profit will remain between 20 - 25%.

In contrast, Nichia results with an annual output of 6 billion white LED is more prominent, its capacity is almost 2 times of Cree, LED in 2004 sales of nearly $2 billion, pre tax profit of more than 50%.

After the 2000 compound semiconductor investment peak in Wall Street, disappeared the compound semiconductor industry analyst, once again found useless in the field of white LED. White LED industry can be used to describe gold.

Nichia aggressive

Because of Nakamura Shuji's invention of the world leading Nichia LED industry was founded in 1956. Prior to 1993, the company's main products are fluorescent lamps, fluorescent tubes for fluorescent tubes, sales are only 20 billion yen.

Nichia first in 1988 by Nakamura Shuji to the Florida State University of organic metal (MOCVD), meteorological law in 1989 from Japan acid manufacturing bought a MOCVD equipment for the study of Nakamura Shuji. At that time the entire industry of blue and green LED as LED today at a loss what to do, the main material of Gan, it was difficult to find the substrate with the lattice constant matching, so that the growth of epitaxial wafer atomic arrangement will not rule, cannot enhance the luminous efficiency. At the same time, as an indispensable part of the light-emitting diode P type GaN is not easy to grow. So in 1990 before and after the nitride semiconductor research twists and turns, even when Nichia was suspended in the village of two.

The breakthrough began with Akasaki Yong, a professor at Nagoya University, known as the father of nitrides, who used MOCVD to grow the AlN buffer layer at low temperatures, and then to grow gallium at high temperatures. Subsequently, Nakamura Shuji in 1991, the use of low-temperature growth of non crystalline Dan Huajia buffer layer, and then grow at high temperature of the crystallization of the. In 1989, Professor Akasaki Yong made use of electron beam irradiation to obtain P type Gan, the direct use of thermal annealing P to complete the production of gallium nitride. In this way, the two major problems plagued nitride semiconductors have been captured in the red and the village, since the creation of today's nitride semiconductor in the core position of white LED.

But also because Nichia Nakamura Shuji "Nobel prize level" of the invention has laid a leading position in the world in 1993 to develop the first blue LED, 1997 developed UV LED, 1999 blue purple LED samples start shipping in 2001 to provide white LED.

With the maturity of blue and white LED products, LED new applications continue to emerge. Under the guidance of Professor Akasaki Yong, TOYOTA first began with Nichia competition. At the same time has become the object of Nichia revolt. In August 1996, Nichia chemical industries in violation of the company has the patent on the grounds, to the Tokyo District Court sued TOYOTA synthesis. In August 1997, TOYOTA synthesis in turn to violations of the company's patents on the grounds that the prosecution of Nichia chemical industries. The two companies, including patent infringement litigation and revocation of the Patent Office of a total of 40