Forge Nano, a Denver-based start-up developing Atomic Layer Deposition (ALD) equipment and advanced materials technology, announced that a commercial photonics technology company has selected its TEPHRA semiconductor wafer fabrication platform for manufacturing advanced integrated photonic devices. The company did not identify the customer or disclose the financial value of the order. The deal marks another commercial deployment of Forge Nano’s ALD technology in the integrated photonics sector.
The TEPHRA platform is designed for high-volume semiconductor manufacturing and uses ALD processes to deposit ultra-thin films with atomic-scale precision. According to Forge Nano, the system supports applications including photonics, advanced packaging, memory, logic, heterogeneous integration, and optoelectronics. In integrated photonics manufacturing, ALD processes can help improve barrier layers, interface engineering, environmental protection, device reliability, and manufacturing consistency.
Integrated photonics has emerged as a key enabling technology for AI infrastructure, optical interconnects, data center networking, sensing systems, and future photonic computing architectures. Forge Nano said the customer selected TEPHRA to support commercial production requirements, including film uniformity, process repeatability, throughput, and manufacturing scalability. The announcement comes as semiconductor manufacturers evaluate new process technologies that can improve yields and performance for increasingly complex photonic devices.
• Customer remains undisclosed and order value was not released.
• TEPHRA is Forge Nano’s semiconductor wafer fabrication platform based on ALD technology.
• Target applications include integrated photonics, advanced packaging, memory, logic, and optoelectronics.
• The deployment supports commercial-scale manufacturing rather than research or prototyping.
• Forge Nano is pursuing a merger with Archimedes Tech SPAC Partners II.
“We are excited to support a leading innovator in the photonics industry with our TEPHRA platform,” said Paul Lichty, CEO of Forge Nano. “This selection demonstrates the growing role of ALD in commercial photonics manufacturing and validates TEPHRA’s ability to meet the demanding requirements of next-generation device production.”
