Space Forge has already powered up a revolutionary new orbital furnace aboard its ForgeStar-1 satellite. This announcement represents a historic achievement in the search for a new frontier in semiconductor manufacturing beyond our atmosphere. This new experiment is all about growing high-quality semiconductor crystals. By leveraging that same technology, we are determined to make the next breakthrough in advanced electronics, optical networks, and pharmaceutical research. For next-generation applications, co-founder and CEO Joshua Western underscored the transformative potential of space-grown materials.
Moreover, the ForgeStar-1 satellite is designed for experimentation in its microgravity environment. It generated a continuous flow of that supersonically hot plasma to facilitate the growth of nearly perfect semiconductor crystals in space. These relatively new crystals are revolutionizing high-performance power devices. They are particularly critical for devices employing GaN/AlN or SiC substrates. The successful operation of the orbital furnace paves the way for a manufacturing environment that can produce materials of far greater quality than is possible on Earth.
A New Era in Semiconductor Manufacturing
Space Forge’s latest experiment is just one step in a larger effort to understand why manufacturing in space can be beneficial. The company wants to use a microgravity environment to produce new materials that can be used to improve electronic efficiency. Western explained that gravity on Earth makes the crystal growth process challenging, resulting in uneven crystal development across reactors.
“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,” – Joshua Western
The ForgeStar-1 satellite carries a cutting-edge heat shield that will be deployed during its de-orbit maneuver. The satellite is not designed for long-term usage. On its return to Earth, it will perish in a fiery tomb, taking the first space-grown crystals down with it. A return mission is planned for next year to bring back these materials and continue to verify their properties.
The Promise and Challenges of Space-Grown Materials
As Space Forge accelerates its mission of advancing space-based manufacturing, experts are considering the pros and cons of the challenges tied to space production. Anne Wilson, a well-known analyst of the space industry, cast doubt on the promise of microgravity for manufacturing bulk materials. Still, she admitted that there might be some niche applications that are worth investing in.
“I don’t think that microgravity is going to be ideal for the manufacture of bulk materials,” – Anne Wilson
“However, niche materials for specific applications might be worth the investment.” – Anne Wilson
Western is looking forward to the energy savings that can be realized by utilizing materials grown in space. They calculate that with appropriately large infrastructure installations, such as 5G towers, energy consumption could be lessened by as much as 50 percent.
E. Steve Putna followed with the key advantages of crystals grown in space. He explained that these space-grown crystals have greater electron mobility than their conventional Earth-grown equivalents. This improvement would dramatically increase performance for a vast majority of applications. It’s most advantageous for artificial intelligence data centers, in which cooling costs are a significant barrier.
“space-grown crystals have demonstrated significantly higher electron mobility,” – E. Steve Putna
“a game-changer for AI data centers where cooling costs are a primary bottleneck” – E. Steve Putna
Economic Viability and Future Prospects
While the promise of space-grown materials is exciting, many questions still surround their economic viability versus traditional manufacturing processes. Earthrise’s Matt Francis noted how costs for space exploration are going down. This drop isn’t occurring quickly enough to overtake rapidly declining costs in wafer production on Earth.
“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,” – Matt Francis
“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.” – Matt Francis
Yields of space-grown substrates that achieve such a yield increase, particularly for premium processors, will be invaluable. If these substrates allow quantum computers to operate at higher temperatures their advantages would be even greater.
“if a space-grown substrate increases the yield of a $10,000 high-end AI processor from 50 percent to 90 percent or allows a quantum computer to function closer to room temperature rather than near absolute zero, the launch cost becomes a negligible fraction of the total value created.” – E. Steve Putna
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