BTG to Commercialize Strain-Compensated VCSELs; Vertical Cavity Surface Emitting Lasers Offer Low-Cost Alternative to Long Wavelength FP and DFB Lasers.

Business Editors

WEST CONSHOHOCKEN, Pa.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Nov. 20, 2003

BTG (LSE: BGC), the global technology commercialization company, announced today that it has acquired the exclusive rights to commercialize Strain-Compensated Multiple Quantum Well VCSELs from the Cornell Research Foundation (Ithaca, NY). The lasers, which emit light perpendicular to the surface of the laser chip, are a relatively new class of semiconductor lasers known as VCSELs (vertical cavity surface emitting lasers), and offer communications companies a lower cost alternative to traditional edge-emitting lasers.

VCSELs are extremely attractive for telecom and datacom applications due to the lower power consumption of the technology, as well as high-volume manufacturability, simple two-dimensional array fabrication, superior beam quality, and less complex testing and manufacturing. Because of these advantages, VCSEL-based transceivers operating at 850 nm have become the dominant laser communications solution for high-speed, very short-reach (VSR) optical interconnects applications, such as Gigabit Ethernet and Fiber Channel. With the advent of longer wavelength VCSELs operating at 1300 nm and 1550 nm, VCSELs will increasingly appeal to transceiver products required for short and intermediate reach SONET/SDH and Fiber to the Home (FTTH) applications. Parallel VCSEL transceivers are particularly attractive for back-plane interconnect applications.

VCSELs are constructed by sandwiching the laser gain medium, or active layer, between two stacks of alternating high and low refractive index mirrors, known as Distributed Bragg Reflector (DBR) mirrors. Multiple quantum wells (MQW), extremely thin layers of Group III-V materials, are used as the gain medium in VCSELs and can be strained to improve VCSEL performance. Prior to this invention, it was not possible to employ a sufficient number of strained quantum wells to achieve the gain desired for long wavelength VCSELs due to so-called "critical thickness" constraint. When the thickness of the strained quantum wells exceeds this critical thickness, dislocations and other defects are formed between the quantum well layers, and the performance of the device is significantly compromised.

The Strain-Compensated Multiple Quantum Well technology overcomes the critical thickness constraint by employing strain-compensated quantum wells, allowing many quantum wells to be stacked to form the gain medium without undue strain buildup. This dramatically improves the performance of the VCSEL.

"The telecoms market is looking for a next generation technology that will replace costly, low yield devices, such as Distributed Feedback (DFB) lasers at 1300 nm and 1550 nm wavelengths," said

Jay Kshatri, Vice President of BTG's Semiconductors & Optoelectronics Business Unit. "We believe that the strain-compensated VCSEL is that technology, and we are actively seeking licensees who are interested in integrating this technology into their commercial products."

About BTG

BTG finds, develops and commercializes emerging technologies in the life and physical sciences. These innovations are protected by a strong portfolio of intellectual property that BTG develops and enhances. BTG then captures the value in these technologies through licensing and venturing activities. From the origins of its business in 1949, BTG has commercialized major innovations such as Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI), recombinant factor IX blood-clotting protein, Campath(R) (alemtuzumab) and Multilevel Cell (MLC) memory. BTG is quoted on the London Stock Exchange under the symbol "BGC" and operates from offices in London and Philadelphia, with representation in Tokyo. BTG operates through wholly owned subsidiaries, BTG International Ltd. and BTG International Inc. in the UK and USA, respectively. Further information on BTG can be found at www.btgplc.com.

About Cornell Research Foundation

Cornell Research Foundation (CRF) serves as the steward of intellectual property created by Cornell University's faculty and staff. Each year, CRF receives over 200 new invention disclosures from Cornell's faculty and staff, on which CRF files an average of about seventy utility patents. In keeping with Cornell University's mission to serve the public good, CRF works to "transfer" these technologies, through licenses, to private industry in order that the technologies can be incorporated into useful products or services. CRF manages more than 500 license agreements and close to 2,000 pending and issued patents. Reflecting the diversity of Cornell's 13 colleges, CRF currently has in its portfolio a broad variety of available technologies in areas ranging from nanotechnology to medical, from food science to electronics, from veterinary medicine to material science, from photonics to textiles. CRF operates from two offices, one in Ithaca, NY near Cornell's main campus, the other in New York City adjacent to Cornell's Weill Medical College. Further information on CRF can be found at www.crf.cornell.edu.