GLOBALFOUNDRIES (GF ), the world's leading specialty foundry, and GlobalWafers Co., Ltd. (GWC), one of the top three silicon wafer manufacturers in the world, today announced they have signed a memorandum of understanding (MOU) to develop a long-term supply agreement for 300 mm silicon-on-insulator (SOI) wafers.

GWC is one of the world's leading manufacturers of 200 mm SOI wafers, and has a long and ongoing relationship with GF for supplying 200 mm SOI wafers. GWC also manufactures 300 mm SOI wafers, and under the anticipated supply agreement, GWC and GF will collaborate closely to significantly expand GWC's 300 mm SOI wafer manufacturing capacity.GF intends to use the resulting additional supply of 300 mm SOI wafers to meet the growing demand for its industry-leading RF SOI technologies, which are optimized to deliver a low power, high performance, and easy-to-integrate solution for current and next-generation mobile and 5G applications.

"Mobile, wireless, and 5G represent a significant opportunity for GLOBALFOUNDRIES, and our vital RF technology is featured in more than 85 percent of smartphones on the market today," said Bami Bastani, senior vice president for mobile and wireless infrastructure at GF. "We are pleased to collaborate with GlobalWafers, and look forward to working with them to develop and qualify an additional supply of 300 mm SOI wafers to integrate into our manufacturing processes and help meet the growing demand for our RF SOI solutions."

"Given our market position, it is in our best interest - and the best interest of our clients - to build out and diversify the supply chain for 300 mm SOI wafers," said Tom Weber, senior vice president and chief procurement officer at GF. "GlobalWafers is the right partner for us to make this happen."

"We are pleased with this opportunity to extend the long-standing partnership between GlobalFoundries and GWC, in light of the market evolution toward next-generation RF applications," said Doris Hsu, Chairman and CEO of GWC. "Ultimately, this collaboration will lead to even greater success for both companies."