X-FAB MEMS Foundry GmbH

Their core work

X-FAB MEMS Foundry is a specialized semiconductor foundry based in Erfurt, Germany, providing MEMS and advanced wafer-level fabrication services. They operate pilot lines and production facilities for micro-transfer-printing, heterogeneous integration, and custom semiconductor processing. Their foundry capabilities support both established silicon technologies and emerging wide-bandgap materials like gallium nitride (GaN), serving clients who need reliable, scalable manufacturing for sensors, power devices, and logic circuits.

What they specialise in

How they've shifted over time

In the earlier period (2015–2020), X-FAB focused on micro-transfer-printing and heterogeneous integration — essentially building pilot lines to bond different functional components onto wafers (TOP HIT, MICROPRINCE). From 2020 onward, their work shifted toward more exotic device types: nanomechanical (NEMS) switches for ultra-low-power logic and memory (ZeroAMP), and vertical GaN power semiconductors (YESvGaN). This signals a clear move from process-level manufacturing R&D toward fabrication services for next-generation device architectures beyond conventional CMOS.

X-FAB is positioning its foundry capabilities to serve the post-CMOS device landscape — expect them to offer fabrication for NEMS-based logic, non-volatile memory, and wide-bandgap power electronics.

How they like to work

X-FAB has taken both leadership and supporting roles: they coordinated MICROPRINCE (an ECSEL pilot line project) and participated in RIA-type research consortia. With 46 unique partners across 10 countries from just 4 projects, they operate in large, multi-national consortia typical of ECSEL and semiconductor R&D programs. Their role as a foundry means partners come to them for fabrication access — they are an infrastructure enabler rather than a science driver.

X-FAB has collaborated with 46 unique partners across 10 countries in just 4 projects, reflecting the large consortium sizes typical of European semiconductor initiatives. Their network spans the major EU semiconductor ecosystems.

What sets them apart

X-FAB is one of the few independent MEMS foundries in Europe that participates in EU-funded R&D, meaning they can take research-stage device designs and move them toward volume manufacturing. Their combination of micro-transfer-printing, NEMS, and GaN processing capabilities is unusual — most foundries specialize in one device family. For consortium builders, they offer something rare: a production-ready fabrication partner who can turn lab prototypes into reproducible wafer-level processes.

Highlights from their portfolio

• MICROPRINCE
  X-FAB's only coordinator role — a pilot line project for micro-transfer-printing, demonstrating their ambition to lead foundry-scale process development.
• ZeroAMP
  Explores nanomechanical switches for ultra-low-power logic and memory, including extreme environments (cryogenic and high temperature) — a significant departure from conventional semiconductor work.
• YESvGaN
  Targets vertical GaN power transistors at silicon cost, signaling X-FAB's strategic move into wide-bandgap semiconductor manufacturing.