The materials of tomorrow are here. Manufacturing has not caught up.
K1’s platform technology changes that.
From AI data centers to quantum computing and telecommunications, the next wave of global innovation demands materials that can endure extreme voltage, heat, and frequencies. Next generation materials like SiC, GaN, Lithium Niobate, and Diamond are the solution, but manufacturing them at scale remains the industry’s greatest bottleneck. Traditional wafer production squanders the ultrapure crystalline material, and existing layer-transfer alternatives like the ion-cut process struggle with shallow depths, high-temperature requirements, and compromised epitaxial quality. Innovation requires a structural shift.
K1 Semiconductor provides the ideal, scalable solution through our innovative spalling technology. By depositing a highly stressed metal layer to carefully propagate a subsurface crack, we deterministically release a flawless 5 to 50 micrometer active layer from the parent wafer. This process uses 95% less bulk crystal, bypasses the damage caused by heavy ion implantation, and works seamlessly with ultrahard, refractory materials like SiC and diamond that have historically resisted wafer splitting. By bonding this pristine layer to an engineered handle wafer, we deliver uncompromised bulk-quality performance at a fraction of the traditional material cost.
K1’s wafer-splitting (“spalling”) platform technology enables reuse of advanced, expensive semiconductor wafers upto 20 times while also producing ultra-thin layers that can enable heterogeneous “engineered” wafers delivering a generational 20% performance gain.
K1 is led by a multidisciplinary team of scientists, engineers, and business operators — backed by world-class advisors experienced in semiconductor manufacturing, deep-tech commercialization, and venture investing.
