The REFERENCE project aims to leverage a European leading edge Radio Frequency (RF) ecosystem based on RF Silicon On Insulator (SOI) disruptive technology, perceived as the most promising to address performance, cost and integration needs for RF Front End Modules (FEMs)s. The project targets to develop over the next 3 years, innovative solutions from material, engineered substrates, process, design, metrology to system integration capable to address the unresolved 4G+ requirements for RF FEMs (data rate >1Gb/s) and pave the way to 5G. The R&D and demonstration actions include: • Development of innovative RFSOI substrates for 4G+ / 5G • Move to 300 mm diameter • Development of 4G+ / 5G RF-SOI devices with 2 major European foundries : analog in 200 mm 130nm technology, RF digital by combining RFSOI and FDSOI in 300 mm at 22nm; • Innovative design for 4G+ /5G (analog and RF digital), • Integration of several 4G+ FEM components on the same chip and demonstration System in Package Technology (SiP). 3 applications are investigated : • Cellular / Iot : 4G+ RFSOI FEM demonstrator at SiP device level • Automotive : 4G+ RF-SOI demonstrator at SiP device level • Aviation: RF-SOI high data rate wireless communication module at system level; targeting a new frequency band for aeronautic. The project is executed within 5 European countries, by on a strong and complementary and well balanced consortium, 6 large industrial companies (world leaders in material, foundries, aeronautics), 4 SMEs and a network of world class level and major European public research institutes and academics. It clearly aims to develop industrial solutions enabling European leadership and production. Through this technology disruption, REFERENCE project addresses major thrusts for smart mobility, smart society, semiconductor processes, equipments, design technology and smart systems implementation, and support the societal challenges of smart transport, as well as secure and innovative society.

Over the past 60+ years CMOS-based digital computing has giving rise to ever-greater computational performance, „big data“-based business models and the accelerating digital transformation of modern economies. However, the ever-growing amounts of data to be handled and the increasing complexity of today’s tasks for high performance computing (HPC) are becoming unmanageable as the data handling and energy consumption of HPCs, server farms and cloud services grow to unsustainable levels. New concepts and technologies are needed. One such HPC technology is Quantum computing (QC). QC utilizes so-called quantum bits (qubits) to perform complex calculations fundamentally much faster than a conventional digital-bit computers can. First quantum computer prototypes have been created. Superconducting Josephson junctions (SJJs) have been shown to be extremely promising qubit candidates to achieve a significant nonlinear increase of computational power with the number of qubits. For novel materials there is a great challenge yet opportunity in Europe to create a complete value chain for SSJs and QCs. Such a complete value chain will contribute to Europe’s technology sovereignty. The MATQu project aims at validating the technology options to produce SJJs on industrial 300 mm silicon-based process flows. It covers substrate technology, superconducting metals, resonators, through-wafer-via holes, 3D integration, and variability characterization. These will be assessed with respect to integration practices of qubits. Core substrate and process technologies with high quality factors, improved material deposition on large-substrates, and increased critical temperature for superconducting operation, will be developed and validated. The MATQu partners complement each other in an optimal way across the value chain to create a substantial competitive advantage, e.g. faster time-to-market and roll-out of technologies and materials for better Josephson junctions for quantum computing.

YESvGaN targets a new low-cost wide band gap (WBG) power transistor technology for enabling high-efficiency power electronic systems in the field of electromobility, industrial drives, renewable energies and data centers. In many applications requiring power transistors with high voltage and current rating (600…1200V, ~100A), silicon IGBT technology is nowadays used due to cost considerations accepting its lower efficiency compared to WBG solutions. The main objective of YESvGaN is to demonstrate innovative vertical gallium nitride (GaN) power transistors fabricated on a low-cost substrate such as silicon. This so-called vertical membrane architecture combines the superior performance of GaN as WBG power transistor material with the advantages of a vertical architecture regarding current and voltage robustness at a price competitive to silicon IGBTs. To this end, the entire value chain from substrate, epitaxy, process technology, interconnection technology to application in relevant power electronic systems is addressed. YESvGaN clusters the relevant competences along the value chain in a consortium of large companies, SMEs and institutes from seven European countries.