MEMS Journal -- The Largest MEMS Publication in the World

Ultrabooks spur massive growth in MEMS motion sensor sales

Intel's initiative to promote new features like indoor navigation and augmented reality in ultrabooks will spur dramatic growth in the sales of motion sensors for the next-generation notebook PCs, with revenue rising by a factor of 14 during the next four years.  Global sales of motion sensors -- including accelerometers, gyroscopes and compasses -- used in ultrabooks will expand to $117.3 million by 2016, up from just $8.3 million in 2012.  This equates to a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 93.9 percent for 2012 through 2016, according to the IHS iSuppli.

Optical MEMS switch company CrossFiber raises $13.4 million, acquires OMM

CrossFiber, a developer and manufacturer of MEMS based photonic switches for use in data centers and next-generation telco fiber-optic networks, announced this week the completion of the final tranche of its Series D funding, now totaling $13.4 million.  The company said that the majority of the funds have been and will continue to be used for rapid expansion of manufacturing capacity, to meet the high demand for its family of photonic switches.  Southern Cross Venture Partners led the round, with participation from New Venture Partners, Arsenal Venture Partners and existing investors including Back Bay Management and PacifiCap.

MEMS for tunable RF applications: has the time finally come?

Everybody seems to be using their mobile phones for their business and social lives these days, so each new model brings increasingly more features to our portable devices. The problem is that all these new uses bring an explosion of frequency bands that must be packed into one portable device. This can lead to dropped calls and slower web browsing, frustrating users. The answer, according to San Jose, Calif.-based Cavendish Kinetics, is the company's tunable RF MEMS technology that provides 3G and 4G networks with improved RF communication. The company has raised a $10 million financing round with Qualcomm and other investors. We recently caught up with Dennis Yost, Cavendish Kinetics' CEO, to learn more.

MEMS energy harvesting startup MicroGen raises $2.6 million

MicroGen Systems announced this week that XTRION, a closely held holding company located in Tessenderloo, Belgium, completed the first investment round of the company.  The reportedly oversubscribed raise was a total of $2.6 million, which includes non-dilutive funds equaling $800,000 from a separate licensing agreement, and a contract with the NY State Energy Research Development Authority.  XTRION has holdings in multi-national semiconductor and MEMS companies, including a presence in the United States, Europe and Asia.