Aegis Semiconductor to add Wayne Sharfin as its VP Engineering; Former Lasertron and Telephotonics Executive Joins Optical Monitoring Component Provider.

Business/Technology Editors

LAWRENCE, Mass.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Oct. 2, 2001

Aegis Semiconductor, Inc., a start-up and developer of embedded components for monitoring advanced optical networks, today announced Dr. Wayne Sharfin has been named VP Engineering. Sharfin is an optical components industry veteran who has held key positions at Lasertron, Inc. and Telephotonics, Inc. In this new position, Sharfin will be responsible for product development, establishing a reliability and Telcordia qualification program, and extending Aegis's world-class engineering team.

"Wayne's appointment will enable us to accelerate product development and ship embedded optical monitoring solutions with breakthrough price/performance and unparalleled reliability," said Matthias Wagner, CEO of Aegis. "He brings a wealth of experience at the optical device and packaging level and a track record of leading development of best-in-class products."

"This is another significant step in the rapid evolution of Aegis," said Tim Kraskey, Managing Partner at YankeeTek Ventures, an investor in the company. "With Wayne's leadership we gain valuable operational experience as well as the proven ability to deliver high-quality products to customers."

As VP Engineering at Telephotonics, Inc., Sharfin was responsible with the VP of Operations for delivering initial prototypes of integrated optoelectronic components for customer demonstrations and for directing the buildout of the chemistry and packaging facilities. He also established the company's reliability program with the target of achieving Telcordia qualificiation.

Prior to this, Sharfin held key positions at Lasertron, Inc., including Director of Advanced Product Development and later Director of Pump Laser and Package Development. His teams developed a series of pump laser chips as well as industry-leading optical and packaging assemblies. He also initiated the development of a new line of pump lasers for Raman amplification. Products developed under Sharfin's leadership were a key factor in the successful acquisition of Lasertron by Corning in late 1999.

Sharfin previously held optoelectronics development positions at GTE Laboratories and MIT Lincoln Laboratory. He received a PhD in Chemical Physics from the University of Chicago and a BA in Physics and Chemistry from the University of Rochester. He is active in a number of professional societies and has served as organizer of several conferences on optical amplifiers. He holds four US patents, with several others pending.

About Aegis Semiconductor

Headquartered in Lawrence, MA, Aegis Semiconductor, Inc. is a developer of advanced components for integrated monitoring and control of optical communications systems. Aegis's products enable all-optical transmission and switching systems to have higher performance, better reliability, and dramatically reduced costs. The company's innovations are based on tools developed by leading optoelectronic materials researchers at Princeton University. For more information, visit the company's Web site at www.aegis-semi.com or call [phone].