What Noel Technologies does

Noel Technologies is a Silicon Valley specialty semiconductor foundry founded in 1996 in Campbell, California, by Leon Pearce (CTO) and Kristin Boyce (President). The company provides lab-to-fab process development and wafer fabrication services to fabless semiconductor companies, OEMs, and IDMs, focusing on novel applications in semiconductors, MEMS, and life sciences. Core technical capabilities include lithography (I-Line steppers and contact aligners with resolution down to 500nm across 100mm-300mm wafers, with 450mm in development), thin film deposition (LPCVD, PECVD, PVD of Ti, TiN, and 99.999% pure Al), plasma and wet etch, thermal oxidation, cleans (including a proprietary RPC process), photo resist coating, and lift-off processing (including a patented inorganic lower layer process). The company also creates silicon wafers that define SEMI calibration standards for validating critical semiconductor process equipment globally.

The company does not manufacture its own products and does not retain customer IP, positioning itself as a trusted partner for fabless customers. Its business model is project-based foundry services with quote-based, multi-year contract pricing, distributed through direct enterprise engagement with customer engineering and R&D organizations. Tier 1 customers established over 30 years include Apple, IBM, Intel, ONTO, AMAT, LAM, KLA, and VLSI Standards, alongside newer customers in photonics (Enablence Technologies), MEMS, and life sciences. Operations are delivered from a single Campbell, CA facility with Class 100 cleanrooms, supported by comprehensive metrology including 121-point film thickness mapping and ISO 9001:2015 certified quality systems. The company has been a subsidiary of Pure Wafer since November 2021, while continuing to operate as a separate brand. With approximately 50 employees, recent multi-million dollar capacity expansions in 2017 and 2023 (including a 5X lithography capability increase), and no corporate debt, Noel occupies a niche position as one of only two remaining independent foundry services in Silicon Valley.

Name

Noel Technologies

Legal name

Noel Technologies, Inc.

Website

https://noeltech.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

1996

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

Noel Technologies is a Campbell, California specialty semiconductor foundry founded in 1996 that provides lab-to-fab process development and wafer fabrication services (lithography, thin film deposition, etch, cleans) to fabless semiconductor companies, OEMs, and IDMs. It is a Pure Wafer subsidiary serving Tier 1 customers including Apple, IBM, Intel, AMAT, LAM, and KLA.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Semiconductor Foundry Services

NAICS

Semiconductor and Related Device Manufacturing (334413)

SIC

Semiconductors & Related Devices (3674)

akta.pro primary industry

RF & Compound Semiconductor Foundries (GaAs/GaN/SiGe) (HDAHACAD)

Keywords

• Semiconductor foundry services
• Wafer fabrication
• Process development
• Photolithography services
• Thin film deposition

Headquarters

HQ city

Campbell

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Infrastructure, Technology or R&D, Supply Chain, Operations

Revenue model

1. Foundry Services: Process development and substrate fabrication services for semiconductor, MEMS, and Life Sciences companies. Services include lithography, thin film deposition, etching, cleans, and wafer reclaim. Revenue generated through project-based fabrication services with varying batch sizes from single wafers to thousands per month.
2. Wafer Reclaim Services: Through parent company Pure Wafer, offers silicon wafer reclaim services extending wafer life and providing cost-effective solutions to semiconductor manufacturers

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels1 record

Marketing channels4 records

Core offering

Noel Technologies provides lab-to-fab semiconductor process development and optimization services from its Campbell, California facility. Its offerings include lithography, PECVD films, LPCVD nitride, PVD metals, plasma and wet etch, thermal oxidation, photoresist coating, cleans, lift-off, wafer reclaim, and SEMI standard calibration wafers. The company bridges the gap between design and production for fabless semiconductor companies, OEMs, and IDMs working on semiconductors, MEMS, and life sciences applications.

Product overview

Noel Technologies is a Silicon Valley specialty semiconductor foundry providing lab-to-fab process development and optimization services, operating as a Pure Wafer Company. The company does not manufacture its own semiconductor devices and does not retain customers' IP, making it a trusted partner for fabless semiconductor companies and OEMs. Its portfolio is organized around single and multi-layer processing services (dielectrics, thin film metals, photo resist, and lithography), wafer standards (metrology, inspection, and SEMI equipment calibration), and application verticals (Sensors, MEMS, and Photonics for semiconductor, life sciences, and bioengineering sectors). Key services include Lithography Services (I-Line steppers and contact printers from 100mm to 300mm), PECVD Films, LPCVD Nitride, PVD Metals, Plasma Etch, Wet Etch, Thermal Oxide, Photo Resist coatings, Cleans, Lift Off, Wafer Reclaim (via Pure Wafer), Engineering Services, SEMI Equipment Calibration Standards, Metrology Services, Lab-on-a-Chip for Life Sciences, and MEMS Fabrication. The foundry serves wafer diameters from 50mm to 300mm, with select 450mm services, across industries including semiconductor, MEMS, bio-medical, photonics, power electronics (EV/autotive), and advanced packaging.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Lithography Services

Quantifiable outcome

• Lithography capability increased 5X through recent investments
• +3 more outcomes

Named customers9 records

Segments5 records

Ideal customer profiles5 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature7 records

Partnerships

One partnership is on record.

• Enablence TechnologiesflagshipStrategic or Co-development Partner · 16 May 2023Strategic partnership designed to substantially ramp production of Enablence’s planar lightwave products at its Fremont, California wafer fab. Both companies are making investments in etching, lithography and deposition processing technologies to increase production of Enablence’s PLC products for data center and advanced vision applications. Noel’s proven experience in demanding photonics applications coupled with deep semiconductor processing expertise will enable Enablence to accelerate its technology roadmap, increase yields and meet production goals.

Scale indicators9 records

Recent moves8 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Direct peers

• X-Fab Silicon Foundries: Specialty analog/mixed-signal and MEMS foundry offering process development and small-volume wafer fabrication for fabless customers. Closest functional analogue to Noel — both serve fabless and OEM customers with specialty process flows and small-to-mid wafer sizes.
• Tower Semiconductor: Specialty foundry focused on RF, analog, MEMS, and power semiconductor process development and fabrication. Competes for many of the same fabless customer engagements Noel serves, particularly in MEMS and RF/heterogeneous integration.
• Rogue Valley Microdevices: MEMS and specialty wafer foundry providing process development and small-volume fabrication for medical, biotech, and sensor customers. Direct overlap with Noel's MEMS and lab-on-a-chip service lines.
• Polar Semiconductor: Specialty wafer foundry focused on analog, power, and sensor semiconductor process development and fabrication. Comparable specialty foundry business model with overlapping customer types in automotive and industrial.
• IHP Microelectronics: Research-driven specialty foundry offering SiGe BiCMOS and other specialty process development for fabless customers and R&D programs. Comparable positioning as a specialty/R&D foundry serving advanced non-CMOS processes.
• Innovative Micro Technology (IMT): MEMS specialty foundry offering wafer-level process development and fabrication for medical, industrial, and sensor customers. Direct overlap with Noel's MEMS, microfluidics, and lab-on-a-chip service lines.

Broad incumbents

• GlobalFoundries: One of the world's largest semiconductor foundries with deep specialty process offerings (RF, FD-SOI, BCD, MEMS). Overlaps with Noel on MEMS and specialty process development but at vastly greater scale and with broader portfolio coverage.
• TSMC: Largest global foundry, including advanced packaging and specialty process development services. While primarily focused on leading-edge logic, TSMC's heterogeneous integration/chiplet roadmap is explicitly cited in Noel's materials as a demand driver for Noel's downstream services.
• UMC: Broad-line merchant foundry offering specialty and mature-node process development services. Competes with Noel for certain fabless process development engagements at much greater scale and with global fab footprint.

Others

• Micross: Provider of specialty semiconductor services including wafer processing, packaging, and test for aerospace, defense, and industrial customers. Comparable as an adjacent service provider supporting fabless customers with specialty process needs.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks7 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

Compliance1 record

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles7 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Noel Technologies