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BAE Systems and GlobalFoundries have announced a collaborative research partnership to strengthen the supply of critical semiconductors for US national security programs.
As part of the strategic agreement, the companies will align technology roadmaps and collaborate on long-term strategies for increasing US semiconductor innovation and manufacturing, with the joint goal of advancing the ecosystem for domestic fabrication and packaging of secure chips and solutions for use in aerospace and defence systems.
Terry Crimmins, president of BAE Systems’ electronic systems sector, said: “Our leadership in microelectronics for critical defence systems is predicated on a reliable and secure supply chain and the availability of trusted, uncompromised semiconductors.”
In addition, the companies will engage in long-term planning for emerging technologies and collaborate on research and development in a range of areas, including advanced semiconductor packaging and integration, gallium nitride on silicon chips, silicon photonics and advanced technology process development.
“This new collaboration with GlobalFoundries, with its expertise in secure chip manufacturing, is imperative for BAE Systems to advance the overmatch thresholds of technologies, stay ahead of the increasingly complex defence environment, and enable creative solutions to mitigate the growing challenges to both the integrity of microelectronics and their associated supply chains,” Crimmins said.
These comments were expanded upon by Dr Thomas Caulfield, president and CEO of GlobalFoundries, who said: “GF is committed to strengthening the semiconductor supply chain for national security and innovating to meet the future needs of the aerospace and defence sector.”
The new non-exclusive collaboration builds upon the longtime relationship between BAE Systems and GF and brings together BAE Systems’ expertise in microelectronics for critical defence systems with GF’s expertise as one of the world’s leading high-volume semiconductor manufacturers and the most advanced supplier of secure, essential chips to the US Department of Defense (DOD).
“We are proud to deepen our strategic relationship with BAE Systems, and further strengthen supply chain resiliency. Together, we will accelerate the research and development of a new generation of essential technologies and securely manufacture essential chips for a diverse range of critical defence applications,” Dr Caulfield said.
This announcement follows the recent announcement by the Biden administration that both BAE Systems and GF were recently named as recipients of planned direct funding from the US government as part of the CHIPS and Science Act.
As a recent example of successful collaboration between the two companies, BAE Systems leveraged GF’s 12LP and 12S0 technology platforms for custom radiation-hardened by-design semiconductor solutions for sensitive space applications.
These highly differentiated US-made chips enable electronic systems to withstand the harsh environment of space while offering power efficiency, area benefits, and a robust design ecosystem to enable cost-efficient and quick-turn prototyping.
These chips deliver the performance, reliability and yield of GF’s high-volume commercial sector offerings, tailored to the needs of the aerospace and defence industry by BAE Systems, and manufactured by GF with the right level of security – up to the DOD’s highest security level, Trusted Supplier Category 1A.
GF’s US manufacturing facilities have Trusted Foundry accreditation from the US government to securely manufacture chips in partnership with the DOD Defense Microelectronics Activity (DMEA) for use in some of the nation’s sensitive national security and critical infrastructure systems on land, air, sea and in space.
In 2023, the DOD awarded GF a new US$3.1 billion (AU$4.65 billion), 10-year contract for a supply of securely manufactured, US-made semiconductors for use across a wide range of critical aerospace and defence applications.
The new contract was the third sequential 10-year contract of its kind between the DOD and the Trusted Foundry business team at GF.
David Hollingworth has been writing about technology for over 20 years, and has worked for a range of print and online titles in his career. He is enjoying getting to grips with cyber security, especially when it lets him talk about Lego.
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