By inspecting the latest technologies in cosmos, there’s a buzz around space-based semiconductor crystals. It’s the qualities of these crystals that offer such tantalizing potential to revolutionize electronic devices. From 1973 through 2016, scientists grew roughly 160 semiconductor crystals in microgravity on various space vehicles. These crystals exhibited impressive benefits over those grown on Earth. They just have the ideal conditions for microgravity, which produces crystals that are higher quality and faster growing.
The unique vacuum of space provides a much more homogenous environment, essentially providing the delicate crystal growth process a “better head start.” This leads to increased average crystal size and crystal uniformity with enhanced performance. Those efforts have led to 86 percent of space-grown semiconductor crystals being larger and more consistently perfect. Tackle for tackle, they show significantly stronger performance metrics across the board.
The Role of Microgravity in Crystal Growth
The distinctive qualities of the microgravity environment are key to the development of semiconductor crystals. In the microgravity of space, the lack of gravitational pull reduces the vibrations and other disruptions that can cause defects in crystal structures. This creates a space where the conditions necessary for crystal growth are reliably met.
Joshua Western, co-founder and CEO of Space Forge, highlights the advantages of microgravity:
“For example, if you’re worried about nitrogen interfering with your growth process, on Earth [in a vacuum chamber] nitrogen might be present at concentration of around 10 to the -11. In space, above 500 kilometers altitude, it’s naturally present at 10 to the -22.”
This dramatic decrease in environmental intrusion increases the ability to produce semiconductor materials. Due to their inherent periodic structures, these materials have significantly greater electron mobility. Significantly higher electron mobility could translate into a game-changing 20-40 percent increase in switching efficiency compared to conventional earth-grown materials.
Advancements by Space Forge and Market Potential
Space Forge is at the forefront of this innovation. In December, they successfully activated an orbital furnace on their orbital ForgeStar-1 satellite. The furnace generates a stream of super-hot plasma designed specifically for creating seed crystals necessary for producing substrates of gallium and aluminum nitride or silicon carbide. The company aims to demonstrate the feasibility of growing semiconductor crystals in orbit, which may lead to groundbreaking applications in advanced electronics.
The in-orbit manufacturing market alone is estimated to reach $28.19 billion by 2034. This expansion has captured the interest of ACME Space, Varda industries and Voyager Technologies, all looking to capitalize on opportunities to manufacture unique semiconductor crystals and other materials in-space.
“There is potential for significant energy savings, perhaps as much as 50 percent within large infrastructure installations such as [5G] towers. This could be a game-changer for [AI data centers] where cooling costs are a primary bottleneck.”
Industry insiders warn that space-grown crystals may not be economically viable. Matt Francis, CEO of Ozark Integrated Circuits, points out that while the price of silicon substrates has drastically decreased, it may deter infrastructure operators from investing in costly space-grown alternatives.
“While I remember paying $20k a wafer in the early days, we are down in the hundreds of dollars range in volume markets like power.”
Francis further notes that as costs for launching materials into space decrease, they do not necessarily drop at a rate faster than the cost of producing wafers on Earth.
“When they were a prized commodity, maybe sending to space made sense. While the cost of space is decreasing, it’s not decreasing faster than the cost of producing wafers.”
Considerations for Future Applications
Anne Wilson cautions that microgravity may not be ideal for all types of material manufacturing:
“I don’t think that microgravity is going to be ideal for the manufacture of bulk materials. However, niche materials for specific applications might be worth the investment.”
Joshua Western acknowledges the challenges posed by growth over time:
“There will be a level of degradation over time and over generations of growth.” However, he believes that if a space-grown substrate can significantly improve production yields for advanced technologies, such as increasing the yield of a $10,000 high-end AI processor from 50 percent to 90 percent, the launch cost becomes a trivial fraction relative to the value created:
“If a space-grown substrate increases the yield…the launch cost becomes a negligible fraction of the total value created.”