Akoustis Ships XBAW RF Filter Product Samples to First 5G CBRS Customer
– 3.6 GHz Filter Supports High-Speed Wireless Access Networks –
– Solution Supports Lower Cost and Faster Deployment of 5G –
– Shipment against CBRS Infrastructure Purchase Order –
Charlotte, N.C., March 18, 2019 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Akoustis Technologies, Inc. (NASDAQ: AKTS) (“Akoustis” or the “Company”), an integrated device manufacturer (IDM) of unique and patented bulk acoustic wave (BAW) high-band RF filters for mobile and other wireless applications, announced today that it has shipped 3.6 GHz filter samples to its first Citizens Broadband Radio Service (CBRS) customer, against an order announced in August of 2018.
Akoustis previously announced the receipt of a purchase order whereby the Company committed to develop and deliver 3.6 GHz CBRS filters to its customer by the end of March 2019. With this successful delivery to the customer, the Company expects to receive commercial orders for qualified product later in 2019, which aligns with the current roll-out schedule for CBRS infrastructure, which is expected by the industry to begin in the September quarter of 2019. Furthermore, the development of this 3.6 GHz CBRS filter is synergistic with the Company’s development of filters for 5G New Radio (NR) frequency bands residing higher in the radio frequency (RF) spectrum compared to 4G LTE.
This first CBRS customer is evaluating the 3.6 GHz filter for inclusion in customer premise equipment (CPE) targeting infrastructure. The filter was developed and manufactured in Akoustis’ Canandaigua, NY fabrication facility using its proprietary XBAW™ process. Akoustis was chosen for the development of this filter given advantages which include an ultra-small form factor, wide bandwidth, high-power handling and surface-mount packaging.
Jeff Shealy, Founder and CEO of Akoustis Technologies, said, “The use of the CBRS band allows lower cost of data transmission and is expected to facilitate the deployment of 5G faster and easier by using shared airwaves instead of the lengthy process of allocating and licensing spectrum.” Mr. Shealy continued, “For Akoustis, the CBRS market is a key facet of our 5G strategy and we expect the market will be meaningful over the next several years as providers look to create new last-mile connectivity opportunities, enterprises look to deploy private networks and individuals look to utilize the shared spectrum in novel ways. The CBRS market presents another greenfield opportunity for our high-performance, high frequency XBAW RF filters, and we are excited to take a leadership position delivering hardware into this new market.”
The CBRS band consists of 150 MHz shared spectrum covering 3.55 to 3.7 GHz that has been earmarked for access by the FCC. Initial deployments within the CBRS bands have been with LTE, with the expectation that most will transition to 5G cellular over time. The bands will enable existing carriers to provide last-mile data service and augment individual networks. In addition, it will enable enterprises to deliver campus-wide communications and create secure IoT networks. Given the lack of micro filter solutions in the market that can target this frequency spectrum, CBRS represents another new opportunity for Akoustis using its proprietary and patented XBAW technology.
Akoustis has introduced several new filters over the past six months including its 5.2 GHz and 5.6 GHz WiFi co-existence filters, the 3.8 GHz filter for phased-array radar military applications and the Band 25 downlink and uplink filters for LTE infrastructure. The Company is also developing several new filters for the sub 7 GHz bands including multiple 5G mobile filters for the mobile device and mobile infrastructure markets, CBRS infrastructure market, WiFi device and infrastructure markets as well as military markets.
About Akoustis Technologies, Inc.
Akoustis® (www.akoustis.com) is a high-tech BAW RF filter solutions company that is pioneering next-generation materials science and MEMS wafer manufacturing to address the market requirements for improved RF filters - targeting higher bandwidth, higher operating frequencies and higher output power compared to incumbent polycrystalline BAW technology deployed today. The Company utilizes its proprietary XBAW manufacturing process to produce bulk acoustic wave RF filters for mobile and other wireless markets, which facilitate signal acquisition and accelerate band performance between the antenna and digital back end. Superior performance is driven by the significant advances of high-purity, single-crystal and associated piezoelectric materials and the resonator-filter process technology which drives electro-mechanical coupling and translates to wide filter bandwidth.
Akoustis plans to service the fast growing multi-billion-dollar RF filter market using its integrated device manufacturer (IDM) business model. The Company owns and operates a 120,000 sq. ft. ISO-9001:2015 certified commercial wafer-manufacturing facility located in Canandaigua, NY, which includes a class 100 / class 1000 cleanroom facility - tooled for 150-mm diameter wafers - for the design, development, fabrication and packaging of RF filters, MEMS and other semiconductor devices. Akoustis Technologies, Inc. is headquartered in the Piedmont technology corridor near Charlotte, North Carolina.
Forward-Looking Statements
This document includes “forward-looking statements” within the meaning of Section 27A of the Securities Act, and Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended, that are intended to be covered by the “safe harbor” created by those sections. These forward-looking statements include, but are not limited to, statements about our estimates, expectations, beliefs, intentions, plans or strategies for the future (including our possible future results of operations, business strategies, competitive position, potential growth opportunities, potential market opportunities and the effects of competition), and the assumptions underlying such statements. Forward-looking statements include all statements that are not historical facts and typically are identified by use of terms such as "may," "will," "should," "could," "expect," "plan," "anticipate," "believe," "estimate," "predict," “intend,” “forecast,” “seek,” "potential," "continue" and similar words, although some forward-looking statements are expressed differently. Forward-looking statements are neither historical facts nor assurances of future performance. Instead, these forward-looking statements are based on management’s current beliefs, expectations and assumptions and are subject to risks and uncertainties. Factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from those currently anticipated include, without limitation, risks relating to the results of our research and development activities, including uncertainties relating to semiconductor process manufacturing; the development of our XBAWTM technology and products presently under development and the anticipated timing of such development; our ability to protect our intellectual property rights that are valuable to our business, including patent and other intellectual property rights; our ability to successfully manufacture, market and sell products based on our technologies; the ability to achieve qualification of our products for commercial manufacturing in a timely manner and the size and growth of the potential markets for any products so qualified; the rate and degree of market acceptance of any of our products; our ability to raise funding to support operations and the continued development and qualification of our products and the technologies underlying them; and our ability to service our outstanding indebtedness. These and other risks and uncertainties are described in more detail in the Risk Factors and Management’s Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations sections of the Company’s most recent Annual Report on Form 10-K and in subsequently filed Quarterly Reports on Form 10-Q. Considering these risks, uncertainties and assumptions, the forward-looking statements regarding future events and circumstances discussed in this document may not occur, and actual results could differ materially and adversely from those anticipated or implied in the forward-looking statements. You should not rely upon forward-looking statements as predictions of future events. The forward-looking statements included in this document speak only as of the date hereof and, except as required by law, we undertake no obligation to update publicly or privately any forward-looking statements, whether written or oral, for any reason after the date of this document to conform these statements to new information, actual results or to changes in our expectations.
Contact: COMPANY: Tom Sepenzis Akoustis Technologies VP of Corporate Development & IR (980) 689-4961 tsepenzis@akoustis.com The Del Mar Consulting Group, Inc. Robert B. Prag, President 858-794-9500 bprag@delmarconsulting.com
Released March 18, 2019