Akoustis Enters Agreement With Cornell Research Foundation for Single Crystal Piezoelectric Material Patent
Expands Akoustis IP Portfolio With Patented Technique to Achieve High Purity, Acoustic Materials for Next Generation BAW RF Filters
CHARLOTTE, NC -- (Marketwired) -- 12/07/15 -- Akoustis Technologies (OTCQB: AKTS) ("Akoustis" or the "Company"), a manufacturer of innovative Bulk ONE™ single crystal piezoelectric RF filters for mobile wireless, announced today that the Company has entered into an agreement with Cornell Research Foundation ("CRF") to expand its portfolio of intellectual property ("IP") in the area of single crystal piezoelectric materials to improve performance of radio frequency ("RF") filters in mobile devices and smartphones.
Through an agreement signed with the Center for Technology Licensing ("CTL") at Cornell University, Akoustis Technologies, Inc. has exclusive access to U.S. Patent No. 7,250,360, titled "SINGLE STEP HIGH TEMPERATURE NUCLEATION PROCESS FOR A LATTICE MISMATCHED SUBSTRATE," invented by Cornell Professor James R. Shealy and assigned to Cornell Research Foundation, Inc. The patent relates to advanced configurations of single crystal nitride-based materials suitable for construction of next-generation resonators used in BAW RF Filters. The technology rights acquired by Akoustis are anticipated to provide valuable intellectual property for its Bulk ONE™ RF filter technologies currently under review by the Company's design clientele. Akoustis currently has greater than ten design clients in Phase 1 of its 4-phase design cycle, who are actively reviewing Bulk ONE™ for applications in future smartphone radio-frequency front ends (RFFEs).
"Cornell has been innovating in single crystal group III-nitride materials for RF power applications since the late 1990s," said Dr. James R. Shealy, Professor of Electrical and Computer Engineering at Cornell University. "The processes covered in Patent No. 7,250,360 is critical to obtaining high quality single crystal materials, and I am pleased to see these advanced process configurations migrate into RF BAW filters."
"Our agreement with Cornell allows Akoustis to access nearly two decades of research at a leading university in single crystal materials," said Jeffrey Shealy, Chairman and CEO of Akoustis Technologies, Inc. "We continue to innovate BAW devices made from single crystal materials and plan to deploy the best material science and processes available, leading to the highest performance BAW filters. Our relationship with Cornell University will help us accelerate our design engagements currently underway. Further, adding IP to our portfolio protects our technologies, increases barriers to entry, and supports our position with smartphone OEMs as an emerging player and key supplier of RF BAW filters."
Akoustis Technologies, Inc. has seven (7) US Patents filed, plus three (3) Patent Cooperation Treaty (PCT) applications protecting its use of single crystal piezoelectric materials for the manufacturing, packaging and circuit integration in BAW filtering devices and resonators, and holds exclusive rights to two (2) US Patents and associated foreign filings from the University of California at Santa Barbara. BAW filtering devices are considered the next generation of RF filtering technologies for mobile devices and smartphones worldwide. Akoustis believes a new class of RF Filters, based upon high purity single crystal piezoelectric resonators, can service a multi-billion dollar market of device OEMs, network providers, and consumers to diminish front end phone heat, battery drain and signal loss -- all considered to be directly related to current RF filter technologies' limitations.
About Akoustis Technologies
Akoustis™ is a semiconductor designer and manufacturer of radio frequency ("RF") resonators and filters that facilitate signal acquisition and accelerate band performance between the antenna and the back end of mobile devices. Akoustis' patent-pending Bulk ONE™ technology produces single crystal, piezoelectric bulk acoustic wave (BAW) filters to maximize mobile device performance and minimize energy demands. Founded in 2014, Akoustis is located in the Piedmont technology corridor between Charlotte and Raleigh, North Carolina.
Company Contact:
Dave Aichele
Akoustis, Inc.
VP of Business Development
Main: 704-997-5735, x106
Email: daichele@akoustis.com
For Investors:
John Mattio
AKTS Investor Relations
Main: (704) 997-5735 x112
Direct: (203) 297-3911
Email: jmattio@akoustis.com
Source: Akoustis Technologies
Released December 7, 2015