ARC Energy today announced the successful repeat growth of the world's largest crack-free sapphire crystal (often called a "boule"), weighing over 300 kg (660 lbs.), grown using the new, proprietary CHES®500 furnace.
The cylindrical portion of these massive crystals is 500 mm in diameter and 340 mm tall. The sapphire is expected to meet quality standards for large-scale production of cellphone screens and cover glass, LED substrates, and large optical windows.
"Growing 300+ kg sapphire boules, largest in the world, is challenging. Showing repeatability is essential to gaining market confidence. With this repeat run using the same exact process, we have shown the stability of our process," said Dr. Rick Schwerdtfeger, co-founder and CTO of ARC Energy, shown here with sequentially grown boules in front of the production version of an ARC Energy CHES®500 crystal growth furnace. "With this automated and repeatable process, our technology is currently able to provide 70mm x 140mm sapphire mobile screen bricks for costs of around $8 per mm."
ARC Energy has received its first purchase order for CHES®500 furnaces, with the first shipments scheduled for Q3 of this year. Discussions with several other companies for large production orders are underway.
"Our team has done a great job of developing a stable and repeatable process," commented Dr. Kedar Gupta, CEO of ARC Energy. "We are excited about the future of this product, and to aid the industry in solving their challenges," Dr. Gupta added.
The boules pictured are "as-grown" with no processing done after removal from the furnace. The slight discoloration is in a thin skin on the outside of the boule which is not incorporated into the bricks during brick slicing. Process improvements are ongoing to enhance yields and reduce costs for ARC Energy's customers.
