TECHNOLOGY AND INNOVATION

As a global advanced materials company, we know we have an important role in transforming materials and enabling the development of innovative solutions that change the world. We are continuously investing in new collaborations, partnering with world-renowned institutions, seeking out the next generation of innovators and funding the pursuit of new discoveries and research to further empower our customers to excel in their markets.

We know that achieving our ESG objectives will require more than just best-in-class operational training, which is why we are focused on continuous innovation and investing in leading technology solutions that drive economic and environmental benefits for our customers.

We also continue to engage in strategic partnerships and innovation challenges that enable us to identify, test and implement new technologies and corresponding product improvements.

ENABLING A GLOBAL WIRELESS INDUSTRY

Within the rapidly growing global wireless industry, Materion provides materials to nearly all facets of the commercial wireless industry. From physical vapor deposition (PVD) materials and high-Performance Materials to metalized lids and solders, technical ceramics and services that encompass complete precious metal lifecycle support, we are committed to providing materials to help enable the wireless industry. Materion provides:

• PVD consumables and services to manufacturers of power amplifier (PA) chips for the handset industry. Without PA chips, it would be impossible to amplify the digital voice or data signal toward the antenna and outward to the closest base station.
• Ceramic packages and matching lids that are used for transistors that amplify signals for digital broadcast television, as well as commercial radar. Commercial radar applications include weather radar, air traffic control radar, and Doppler radar (used to detect wind shear near runways).
• High Performance Materials and clad alloys used in the connectors of some consumer products. These alloys offer the unique combination of mechanical and electrical properties necessary to meet the demanding requirements of products such as connectors for battery chargers and USB ports.

• Aluminum Scandium (AlSc) alloy sputter targets with a wide range of compositions resulting from nearly a decade of collaboration with research institutes, equipment manufacturers and our customers. Through this work we have created a unique technology to manufacture AlSc alloy targets with high purity, highly controlled Sc contents, and low impurity levels. Our material is widely used in Bulk Acoustic Wave fabs around the world and is the material of record for several sputter tool manufacturers.

LIFECYCLE APPROACH TO REDUCE PRECIOUS METAL USE AND COST

Materion’s customers use high purity gold and gold alloys for a number of critical electronic applications Gold provides many unique and technical advantages including: corrosion resistance, compatibility with other semiconductor materials, high ductility and good thermal and electrical conductivity. In addition to designing products to use less gold, Materion works with its industrial gold consumers to minimize cost by managing the entire gold lifecycle. Materion provides:

• Improved electrical performance and reduced precious metal content through unique electroplating and cladding capabilities. This allows designers to create an optimized mechanical and electrical material for even the most demanding components. Materion’s iON Connector family of solutions offers specific value propositions for a variety of applications, including high temperature applications as well as corrosive environments and high vibration applications that provide solutions in automotive, industrial and consumer electronics markets around the world.

EXPLORING SPACE

Materion is no stranger to Mars and other space missions, having provided filters for all the NASA Rover missions. In 2021, NASA’s Perseverance rover successfully landed on Mars and Materion was again along for the ride to the red planet. Materion provides:

• The bandpass filters which were a key component of the Mastcam-Z camera system on the Perseverance rover. These filters and the camera system enable high end spectral performance, transmission control, and tight cosmetic and pinhole requirements that result in the stunning images captured by the rover.
• Support to space exploration through our past and continued involvement in Project Mercury, the Hubble Space Telescope, Landsat, and more recent innovations such as the James Webb Telescope, which is scheduled to launch in 2021. Materion’s advanced materials such as beryllium metal, copper beryllium alloys and precision optics for space-based applications enable light weighting, yet provide a unique combination of strength and stiffness or further optimize space imaging across a range of space and satellite applications.