Semtech expands date centre portfolio with acquisition of HieFo Corporation
Semtech Corporation, a provider of high-performance semiconductor, IoT systems and cloud connectivity service solutions, has acquired HieFo Corporation (HieFo), a California-based private manufacturer of high-efficiency Indium Phosphide (InP) optoelectronic devices for optical transceivers used across data centre interconnects (DCI) and intra-data centre interconnects.
The addition of HieFo to Semtech’s portfolio of semiconductor solutions aims to bolster US technology supply chains, adding new capacity and resiliency at a key inflexion point in the AI infrastructure buildout.
According to Semtech, the transaction also represents an opportunity to infuse critical upstream components for the optical module supply chain directly into the company's data centre platform, adding another element to its chipset portfolio for data centre networking connectivity.
HieFo’s core technology centres on InP-based gain chips and distributed feedback (DFB) laser chips. Gain chips are the light-emitting building blocks embedded within tunable lasers that power coherent optical transceivers used across data centre applications.
By acquiring HieFo, Semtech gains the ability to co-develop and co-optimise InP optoelectronic chip performance alongside its transimpedance amplifiers (TIAs) and laser/modulator drivers, creating an optimised electronic-optoelectronic-photonic chipset for high bandwidth transceivers.
Semtech acquired HieFo Corporation for approximately USD 34 million in cash. To meet significantly growing demand from numerous hyperscalers and other customers across the AI ecosystem, Semtech has initiated an investment and hiring plan at HieFo’s Alhambra, California site to expand domestic manufacturing capacity and accelerate product development.
