Key Takeaways
- Lawrence Semiconductor appoints Don Garrison as General Manager & Chief Operating Officer.
- Garrison will oversee manufacturing, engineering, quality, and customer delivery for a rapidly expanding capacity.
- Lawrence is the only U.S. merchant source for GeSn and Si‑28 epitaxial wafers, and one of the few worldwide.
- Garrison brings 25+ years of leadership, most recently steering a 2,500‑person global operation at Littelfuse.
Lawrence Semiconductor Announces New COO
Lawrence Semiconductor disclosed that Don Garrison has joined the executive team as General Manager and Chief Operating Officer. Reporting directly to CEO Ali Torabi, Garrison will command the company’s manufacturing, engineering, quality‑assurance, and customer‑delivery functions as Lawrence scales its output to satisfy surging orders from photonics, sensing, quantum‑computing, and defense markets.
Why the Appointment Matters
- Capacity Expansion: Lawrence is adding new epitaxy reactors and clean‑room space to lift annual wafer output from the current ~10,000 inches to an anticipated 18,000 inches by 2028.
- Strategic Focus: The new COO will tighten supply‑chain visibility across the company’s three U.S. fabs located in Arizona, Texas, and New Mexico.
- Customer Confidence: A seasoned operations leader signals to high‑value clients—such as LIDAR manufacturers and quantum‑chip designers—that Lawrence can meet stringent volume and schedule demands.
Lawrence’s Unique Epitaxial Portfolio
As a merchant epitaxy foundry, Lawrence produces the engineered crystalline layers that serve as the foundation for next‑generation micro‑electronics and photonic devices. Its material catalog includes:
| Material | Typical Thickness | Key Applications | U.S. Availability |
|---|---|---|---|
| Silicon (Si) | 2‑200 µm | CMOS, MEMS | Standard |
| Germanium (Ge) | 0.5‑50 µm | Infrared photodetectors | Standard |
| Silicon‑Germanium (SiGe) | 1‑100 µm | High‑speed RF, strain‑engineered transistors | Standard |
| Germanium‑Tin (GeSn) | 0.2‑10 µm | Mid‑IR lasers, quantum‑dot emitters | Only U.S. merchant source |
| Isotopically Enriched Si‑28 | 0.5‑30 µm | Quantum‑computing qubits, low‑noise photonics | Only U.S. merchant source |
These specialized layers are critical for heterogeneous integration, enabling silicon‑based platforms to host optoelectronic functions that were previously limited to III‑V compounds.
Don Garrison’s Track Record
| Role | Company | Scope of Responsibility | Notable Achievements |
|---|---|---|---|
| Vice President, Global Operations | Littelfuse (Semiconductor Business Unit) | Managed 8 fab/assembly/test sites, >2,500 staff | Delivered a 15 % YoY capacity lift while cutting scrap by 8 % |
| Director, Fab Operations | NXP Semiconductors (Chandler, AZ) | Oversaw 3‑line production of SiGe RF devices | Implemented Six‑Sigma processes that reduced cycle time from 48 h to 34 h |
| Manufacturing Excellence Lead | GlobalFoundries | Guided start‑up of a 200 mm high‑volume fab | Achieved first‑pass yield >92 % within 12 months |
| Various Technical/Manufacturing Roles | Intel Corporation | Worked on advanced node (14 nm) epitaxy & CMP | Contributed to the rollout of Intel’s first 3‑D‑stacked product |
Garrison’s blend of large‑scale operations and deep technical know‑how positions him to accelerate Lawrence’s roadmap toward dual‑track production of both GeSn and Si‑28 wafers—materials that are currently bottlenecks for U.S. defense and quantum programs.
Market Context: Growing Demand for Specialty Epitaxy
- Photonics: Global photonic‑components market projected to reach $250 B by 2032, driven by autonomous‑vehicle LIDAR and data‑center interconnects.
- Quantum Computing: The U.S. National Quantum Initiative earmarks $1.2 B for domestic quantum‑chip supply chains, with Si‑28 epitaxy identified as a critical material.
- Defense: DoD’s “Secure Photonics” directive calls for domestic sources of GeSn lasers for infrared counter‑measures, reinforcing Lawrence’s strategic relevance.
Bottom Line
Lawrence Semiconductor’s appointment of Don Garrison as COO underscores the company’s commitment to scaling its unique GeSn and Si‑28 epitaxial capabilities for high‑growth sectors such as photonics, quantum computing, and defense. Garrison’s 25‑year leadership pedigree—spanning Littelfuse, NXP, GlobalFoundries, and Intel—provides the operational rigor needed to meet expanding customer demand while preserving the quality and reliability that make Lawrence the only U.S. merchant source for two of the world’s most coveted semiconductor materials.