Institute of High Pressure Physics PAS

What Institute of High Pressure Physics PAS does

The Institute of High Pressure Physics PAS (Instytut Wysokich Ciśnień Polskiej Akademii Nauk, also known as IWC PAN / IHPP PAS) is a Polish government research institute under the Polish Academy of Sciences, headquartered in Warsaw at ul. Sokołowska 29/37, and founded in 1972. It employs over 240 staff across 16 specialized laboratories covering high-pressure physics, nitride semiconductor technology, nanomaterials, terahertz radiation, superconductors, hydrogen technologies, and high-pressure apparatus. The institute holds full-stack competencies in gallium nitride (GaN) semiconductor technology, from ammonothermal bulk crystal growth through MBE epitaxy to optoelectronic devices, anchored by the GaN-Unipress (MAB FNP) center. It also operates an ISO 13485-certified clean-room facility producing proprietary nanohydroxyapatite particles for bone regeneration and implant coatings, with deployments in veterinary medicine.

The institute is funded through public research grants from the Polish Academy of Sciences, the National Science Center, the National Center for Research and Development, and the European Research Council, and is currently implementing 43 active research projects. It holds doctoral and habilitation rights and participates in the Warsaw-4-PhD Doctoral School for physics PhD recruitment. Strategic positioning includes A+ classification in Physical Sciences and A classification in Materials Engineering from the 2022-2025 national evaluation, and membership in the ELI-Poland Consortium since July 2026. The institute also maintains a small portfolio of open-source research software (pmicro, logpli, unipress) released on GitHub for the scientific community. Commercial pricing is not applicable; the operating model is public-sector research funding with technology transfer through industry collaboration and selective productization (e.g., nanohydroxyapatite).

Name

Institute of High Pressure Physics PAS

Legal name

Institute of High Pressure Physics of the Polish Academy of Sciences (Instytut Wysokich Ciśnień Polskiej Akademii Nauk)

Website

https://unipress.waw.pl

Company type

Private

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

51–100 employees

Short description

The Institute of High Pressure Physics PAS is a Polish Academy of Sciences research institute in Warsaw conducting fundamental and applied research in high-pressure physics, GaN semiconductor technology, and medical nanomaterials, serving academic and industrial research communities across 16 specialized laboratories.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Semiconductor Physics Research

NAICS

Semiconductor and Other Electronic Component Manufacturing (33441)

SIC

Services-Commercial Physical & Biological Research (8731)

akta.pro industry

PRIMARYHDAHAGAB

Compound Semiconductor Wafers & Substrates (SiC/GaN/GaAs/InP/Sapphire)

Hardware, Technology & Telecom/Semiconductors & Electronic Components/Materials, Wafers & Specialty Chemicals

SECONDARYHDAHAHAG

Wide-Bandgap Power Devices (SiC/GaN Discretes)

Hardware, Technology & Telecom/Semiconductors & Electronic Components/Discrete Semiconductors (Power & Signal)

Keywords

• High pressure physics
• Nitride semiconductors
• Nanomaterial synthesis
• Semiconductor crystal growth
• Medical nanomaterials

Headquarters

HQ city

Warsaw

HQ country

Poland

HQ region

Europe

Offices2 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Technology or R&D, Infrastructure, Operations

Revenue model

1. Public Research Funding: Funded by the Polish Academy of Sciences and various national/international research grants from entities such as National Science Center, National Center for Research and Development, and European Research Council

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels1 record

Marketing channels3 records

Core offering

The Institute of High Pressure Physics PAS is a state-owned research institute conducting fundamental and applied research in high-pressure physics, nitride semiconductor technology, and advanced materials engineering. It maintains full competencies in GaN semiconductor technology from crystallization to electronic/optoelectronic devices, and develops nanomaterial products for medical applications including nanohydroxyapatite for bone regeneration and bioactive coatings for orthopedic implants.

Product overview

The Institute of High Pressure Physics PAS operates as a leading research center with competencies spanning physics and materials engineering, focused on industrial applications. The portfolio includes GaN (gallium nitride) semiconductor technology - from crystallization to advanced optoelectronic devices - as well as medical nanomaterial products (nanohydroxyapatite for bone regeneration and implant coatings). The institute also develops internal research software tools (pmicro, logpli, unipress) for semiconductor physics simulation and analysis. Research infrastructure includes 16 specialized laboratories covering areas such as superconductors, terahertz radiation, nanostructures, crystal growth, and high-pressure equipment.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• GaN-Unipress: Center for Physics and Technology of Nitride Semiconductors GaN-Unipress (IRAP FNP project)

Quantifiable outcome

• A+ category in Physical Sciences and A category in Materials Engineering from national evaluation 2022-2025

Segments1 record

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Technology focussed Yes

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature4 records

Partnerships

Two partnerships are on record, tiered major and core.

• ELI-Poland ConsortiummajorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 23 July 2026Institute of High Pressure Physics PAS joined the ELI-Poland Consortium on July 23, 2026. This partnership strengthens the institute's involvement in large-scale European research infrastructure.
• Warsaw-4-PhD Doctoral SchoolcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerCollaboration with Warsaw Doctoral School of Exact and Biomedical Sciences for recruiting PhD students. The institute participates in recruiting doctoral candidates for physics research projects.

Scale indicators3 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Emerging players

• Nanoco Technologies: UK-based company specializing in cadmium-free quantum dots and nanomaterials for life sciences and electronics. Comparable as an emerging nanomaterial commercializer relevant to IWC PAN's medical-nanomaterial platform.

Broad incumbents

• Sumitomo Electric Industries: Japanese industrial conglomerate with a leading position in commercial bulk GaN substrate production via HVPE. Comparable as the dominant commercial incumbent in the same end-product space (GaN substrates) that IWC PAN's ammonothermal method targets.
• Mitsubishi Chemical: Major Japanese chemical/materials producer with bulk GaN substrate operations and a broad compound-semiconductor materials portfolio. Comparable as a commercial supplier of GaN substrates and related compound-semiconductor materials.

Direct peers

• Fraunhofer Institute: Germany's largest applied-research organization with institutes covering semiconductor technology, materials science, and high-pressure processing. Comparable as a publicly funded research network conducting contract research and technology transfer for industry.
• CEA-Leti: French government research institute (CEA) specializing in micro/nanotechnologies, semiconductor process integration, and materials. Comparable as a publicly funded applied-research organization with semiconductor manufacturing and characterization infrastructure serving industrial partners.
• Max Planck Institute for Solid State Research: German basic-research institute focusing on solid-state physics, materials synthesis, and semiconductor research. Comparable as a publicly funded national research organization with crystal-growth and materials-characterization programs analogous to IWC PAN's NL-2/NL-3/NL-12 footprint.
• CSIC (Spanish National Research Council): Spain's largest public research institution covering materials science, physics, and chemistry. Comparable as a national academy with broad research portfolio and doctoral training programs similar to IWC PAN's Warsaw-4-PhD pipeline.
• Consiglio Nazionale delle Ricerche (CNR): Italian National Research Council — a public multi-disciplinary research organization. Comparable as a national academy research structure conducting materials, semiconductor, and applied physics research.
• Ioffe Institute (Russian Academy of Sciences): St Petersburg-based national academy institute historically leading in III-V compound semiconductors, GaN, and high-pressure semiconductor physics. Comparable as an academy-of-sciences research center with deep compound-semiconductor and high-pressure physics programs.
• IMEC: Belgium-based inter-university research center operating a semiconductor R&D platform with compound-semiconductor, GaN-on-Si, and epitaxial capabilities. Highly comparable as a public-funded, application-driven semiconductor research institute working across the GaN device stack.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/institute-of-high-pressure-physics

Compliance2 records

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles6 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 Institute of High Pressure Physics PAS