UK government awards £22m for semiconductor research
Research hubs in Bristol and Southampton have received £11m each to accelerate their development of new semiconductor technologies.
The fresh funding package is part of the UK’s semiconductor strategy, which was published in 2023 and promises 1 billion pounds over 10 years. This round will support two “Innovation and Knowledge Centres” located in Bristol and Southampton.
In Bristol, the funding will support the REWIRE facility, which will focus on wide/ultra-wide bandgap compound semiconductors. Meanwhile, the research team at Southampton's Cornerstone will specialise in silicon photonics, an approach to semiconductors that uses light waves instead of electrical currents to communicate information.
Professor Graham Reed, who leads the Cornerstone facility, said the centre will “unite leading UK entrepreneurs and researchers, together with a network of support to improve the commercialisation of semiconductors and deliver a step-change in the silicon photonics industry”.
Speaking for the UK government, Saqib Bhatti, minister for tech and the digital economy, added: “This investment marks a crucial step in advancing our ambitions for the semiconductor industry, with these centres helping bring new technologies to market in areas like net zero and AI, rooting them right here in the UK.”
