The current AOL thread follows - its the best I can do with my limited knowledge
Date: Thu, 20 Feb 1997 20:23:09 EST
From: Wesley0428
I've been cruising the web. Not finding too much yet, but I'll continue.
Here's an interest site I tryed posting earlier, but since I don't see the
post I'll try again.
lfw.com "Laser Focus World" magazine
Date: Thu, 20 Feb 1997 21:50:10 EST
From: CountDcash
I read Laser Focus World regularly. I just signed up for their magazine.
Laser Focus World was the sponsor of the recent laser company convention in
San Jose Ca. I'm told that SLIC 's presentation at that convention
regarding their high powered aluminum free diode was very well received. I
believe that the high point was the demonstration of some 35 watts of power
from a single bar. Does anyone know of anybody who attended the San Jose
event?
Date: Mon, 24 Feb 1997 10:35:45 EST
From: MMeyer8860
I attended. It was called "Photonics West", held at the San Jose Convention
Center, and it was sponsored by SPIE, attended by thousands. Laser Focus
World sponsored a related one day seminar in a local hotel, attended by
around 100.
I did not go to SLIC's presentation (which was at the big conference) because
it conflicted with the Laser Focus World seminar, which I did attend. The
most interesting outcome of that, as far as this group is concerned, is that
the jury is still out on the claimed superiority of Al-free lasers.
Date: Mon, 24 Feb 1997 14:45:19 EST
From: Wesley0428
Interesting. What did the seminar have to say about high power semiconductor
lasers in general. Any market size estimates? Growth projections? Who in
particular, if anyone specific, says the jury is out on Al-free laser
superiority? Did you visit the SLIC booth?
Date: Mon, 24 Feb 1997 22:32:10 EST
From: MMeyer8860
Market for high power - maybe $100M. Those numbers weren't broken out as
well as they were for bigger applications, like telecomms or CD lasers, etc.
Date: Mon, 24 Feb 1997 19:49:56 EST
From: DReedJump
Just a hunch here, but I bet the folks that say "the jury is still out on the
advantages of Al-free lasers" is holding a big chunk of SDLI.
The nice thing about our investment in SLIC is that we are covering both red
and black here (for the roulette players in the crowd). We win if Al-free
beats non Al-free lasers. We also win if the new (more efficient)
manufacturing process for making laser diodes (either type) works better than
the old process.
Personally, I think we win big if either of these conditions are met. If
both are met we have a 100 bagger here (to quote Mr. Lynch). If neither are
met, we still have a company that can manufacture laser diodes in a market
where the demand exceeds the supply.
IMHO: a no-brainer
SkyDave
Date: Mon, 24 Feb 1997 22:40:37 EST
From: MMeyer8860
No, I believe all of the commentators at this seminar were doing their level
best to be objective and informative.
The opinion that the superiority of Al-free lasers has not yet been
demonstrated is very widespread - even among people who have no vested
interest in SDL or any other laser company. Their superiority exists only in
theory - the published results from the research field do not show a clear
winner.
As for your other two points: maybe you win if Al-free lasers prove to be
superior. But then again, maybe not - other companies have acsess to Al-free
technology as well. And SLI has not yet proven that it can supply laser
diodes. It is still a developmental stage company. No developmental stage
company is ever a no-brainer. They are all calculated gambles.
Date: Tue, 25 Feb 1997 00:01:52 EST
From: CountDcash
I agree. Even without the aluminum free diodes SLIC is bound to succeed.
Demand for these diodes far exceeds the supply. If SLIC can produce (and
indications are that they can) they are guaranteed a share of the market. We
are all awaiting official confirmation that SLIC has been approved by the
consortium of laser diode customers. The hope for this approval was the
reason we all bought SLIC on the innitial public offering. Such approval is
literally a guarantee for a steady steam of orders well into the next decade.
But what makes SLIC most exciting is the possibilty that the aluminum free
diode is the crown jewel of diodes. If it does in the field what it's done in
the lab, we're all going to be smiling. And contrary to what was said in the
last post, other companies do not have access to the aluminum free
technology. Nortwestern University owns the patent and SLIC won the EXCLUSIVE
license to that patent. If you own SDLI or CREE it's foolish not to
hedge your bet by owning SLIC.
Date: Tue, 25 Feb 1997 09:02:33 EST
From: MMeyer8860
Coherent (NASDAQ:COHR), a more diversified laser company with 1996 sales of
$364 M, is already shipping Al-free diodes. And I believe that they are not
the first - that honor may belong to EG&G (corrections on this, anyone??).
SLI has licensed Northwestern's patents and know-how. I admit that I have
not read those patents, but I think that cover just one particular process
for making the laser diodes. And, just as there is always more than one way
to skin a cat, there is always more than one good way to process a
semiconductor. As is demonstrated by the fact that other companies are
already doing volume manufacturing. (FYI: Coherent has been shipping
Al-freediodes for over a year.)
I'm not familiar with this "consortium of laser diode customers" that you
mentioned - can you tell me more?
Date: Tue, 25 Feb 1997 09:11:26 EST
From: Wesley0428
I've heard different opinions about the size of the high-power market and
this is an area I'll dig more deeply into.
Count, you mention "waiting for approval by a consortium of laser customers".
Can you be more specific as this is the first I recall of this subject.
Regarding Aluminum -free exclusivity, this also bears looking more deeply
into. Their is a brief article on Aluminum-free devices in the January issue
of Laser Focus World that states "At the Lasers and Electro-Optics Society
Annual Meeting last November, researchers from the University of Wisconsin,
Madison, Hitachi Ltd., the Ferdinand-Braun Institude (Berlin, Germany),
Tutcore Ltd. (Tampere, Findland), and Jenoptic Laser Diode (Jena, Germany)
all reported on aluminum-free lasers offering increased efficiency, power,
and reliability. There's lots of technical stuff in both this article and
the SLI press release concerning their exclusive license with Northwestern,
but it's beyond me whether it is comparable or "apples and oranges".
I'm as much a SLI bull as anyone, but having learned the hard way I intend to
pursue every negative thread to a satisfactory resolution. I am pleased to
see some challenging posts on this board.
Give me a couple of weeks. |
