The Department of Defense (DoD) announced on September 17, 2024 that it is directing $31.9 million in funding to the California Defense Ready Electronics and Microdevices Superhub (CA DREAMS), led by the University of Southern California (USC). The award aims to accelerate the development of advanced semiconductor technologies through two distinct projects. 

Northrop Grumman, a leading global and aerospace defense technology company, will drive both projects’ execution with the University of Southern California’s leadership of the CA DREAMS initiative. CA DREAMS is one of eight regional innovation hubs established under the DoD Microelectronics (ME) Commons Program.

The first project, with $16.2 million in funding, focuses on maturing advanced gallium nitride (GaN) technology to enable broad-spectrum, high power, and high-efficiency solutions for future DoD Electronic Warfare (EW) systems. 

The second project, allocated $15.7 million, will support the development of 5G/6G-relevant prototypes to accelerate availability of high-performance mmW phased-array front ends. 

“We are excited to hear of this announcement and look forward to advancing the state of the art in this important new technology area,”  said Yannis C. Yortsos, Dean of the USC Viterbi of Engineering.

California Dreams Director and Principal Investigator Steve Crago speaks during the Microelectronics Commons Announcement Event at ASU’s Macro Technology Works in Tempe on Sept. 17, 2024. (Photo by Samantha Chow/ASU)

$16.2 Million to develop advanced gallium nitride (GaN) semiconductor technologies

Northrop Grumman and the CA DREAMS team will develop GaN amplifier chipsets from the microwave to the sub-millimeter wave frequency spectrum making advancements at the semiconductor-device, the integrated circuit, and the package level. Pivotal to the project is demonstrating the benefit of the Microelectronics Commons ecosystem, where technology can be more rapidly accelerated by connecting traditional competitors as well as universities, and encouraging collaboration to reach a desired end-goal for the DoD.

The project team consists of USC, Northrop Grumman, Teledyne Technologies, HRL Laboratories, PseudolithIC, Monde Wireless Inc., Transphorm, UCLA and UC Santa Barbara.

“We are thrilled to have Northrop Grumman leading the technical execution of this critical project,” CA DREAMS Director Steve Crago said. “They are a leader in developing advanced GaN technologies, and their involvement in this hub and leadership on this project ensure that we can rapidly translate cutting-edge research from our university labs into deployable solutions for the Department of Defense. CA DREAMS and the MOSIS 2.0 team look forward to working with Northrop Grumman and its partners on this project.”

Traditional DoD prototyping cycles have taken years to demonstrate concept feasibility. In addition to meeting its technical goals, the project also expects to dramatically accelerate prototyping time and demonstrate capabilities in the X, V, and W wave bands in the first year, with subsequent years tackling submillimeter wave bands. This would demonstrate an acceleration of the cycle from concept to delivery by 2-to-3x. 

“This project is resolving a DoD-needed application and undertaking the challenges by working through various levels – from university, to research and system architecture – all in a 12-month time span,” said Alex Zamora, project lead and RF/mixed signal department manager, Northrop Grumman. “Our team is a technology leader of gallium nitride development, and we look forward to the opportunity to demonstrate these new tech capabilities to the DoD in very shortened time spans.”

$15.7 Million in Funding for 5G/6G mmW Phased-Array Prototypes

Northrop Grumman and the hub team also aim to accelerate high-frequency wireless communications solutions for defense and commercial applications.

The award will support the development of 5G/6G-relevant prototypes to accelerate availability of high-performance front ends, including phased array antennas, beamforming integrated circuits (ICs), and broadband amplifiers integrated using state-of-the-art (SOTA) advanced (2.5D and 3D heterogeneous integration [HI]) packaging for leading-edge size, weight, power, and cost (SWAP-C) systems.

Northrop Grumman will collaborate with USC and other industry and academic partners to dramatically accelerate the development of high-frequency communications solutions, leveraging advanced microelectronic technologies and critical lab-to-fab technology transitions, for dual-use applications. 

“This award demonstrates the power of collaboration between academia and industry in addressing critical national security and communication needs,” said Steve Crago, CA DREAMS Director at USC and associate director of the USC Viterbi Information Sciences Institute. “By leveraging the collective expertise of CA DREAMS and MOSIS 2.0, we’re poised to make significant advancements in high-frequency communications that will benefit both defense and commercial sectors.”

The project team consists of USC, Northrop Grumman, HRL Laboratories, Teledyne, Caltech, UCLA, UC Santa Barbara, UC San Diego, Vorago, Global Foundries. Its leaders are aiming to develop prototypes 12 or more months sooner than traditional timelines.

“The project team, enabled by ME Commons and CA DREAMS, has expertise spanning microelectronic fabrication process modules to commercial foundry production and university design to DoD systems. This collaboration will connect new levels of the microelectronics ecosystem and apply them toward diverse 5G/6G needs across future DoD and commercial systems,” said Monte Watanabe, RF/mixed-signal assistant department manager, Northrop Grumman.

The work of this project will enable arrays of antennas to operate at higher frequencies for wideband communication applications, providing improved connectivity for DoD and commercial applications.

“The Northrop Grumman Microelectronics Center is poised to apply its unique capabilities in RF microelectronics and advanced packaging to develop mmW phased-array prototypes with our team partners,” Watanabe said. “We’ll all be moving the needle to realize fieldable component and prototype capability that captures and transitions the latest microelectronics technology.”

“Los Angeles is home to dreamers, changemakers, and innovators of all kinds, including scientists and researchers,” said Congresswoman Kamlager-Dove. “As a member of the House Foreign Affairs Committee, I understand that the research this agreement will fund is crucial to enhancing the United States’ national security and keeping American companies competitive. The future of microelectronics is right here in America–and in Los Angeles.”

ABOUT CA DREAMS

Led by USC Viterbi’s Information Sciences Institute (ISI), CA DREAMS is one of eight regional innovation hubs established under the DoD Microelectronics (ME) Commons Program, which is funded by the CHIPS and Science Act of 2022 to develop onshore microelectronics hardware prototyping, lab-to-fab transition of semiconductor technologies and extended semiconductor workforce training. It comprises 16 founding partners in higher education and the semiconductor industry. USC’s MOSIS 2.0 service, established as part of CA DREAMS, is accelerating prototyping in labs and fabs and streamlining transition of processes from lab to fab.

Published on September 18th, 2024

Last updated on September 19th, 2024