Gallium nitride-based semiconductors have been a boon for high-frequency and power electronics. They've also revolutionized energy-efficient LED lighting. But no semiconductor wafer has been able to do both at the same time efficiently.

Now Cornell researchers, in collaboration with a team at the Polish Academy of Sciences, have developed the first dual-sided—or "dualtronic"—chip that combines its photonic and electronic functions simultaneously, an innovation that could shrink the size of functional devices, make them more energy efficient and reduce manufacturing costs.

The team's paper, "Using Both Faces of Polar Semiconductor Wafers for Functional Devices," published Sept. 25 in Nature. The co-lead authors are doctoral students Len van Deurzen and Eungkyun Kim.

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