Audio Pixels and TowerJazz Announce Agreement for Volume Production of Groundbreaking, High Performance MEMS-based Loudspeaker Chip

Enables new device applications to exceed sound performance and design demands of world’s consumer electronics, industrial and medical device manufacturers

Audio Pixels Ltd., the global leader in the digital transition of loudspeakers, announced today that it has chosen TowerJazz, the global specialty foundry leader, for the mass production of its first generation high performance MEMS-based loudspeaker chip. The silicon chip loudspeaker is expected to introduce an entirely new generation of groundbreaking device applications that exceed the sound performance specifications and design demands of the world’s consumer electronics, industrial and medical device manufacturers.

TowerJazz was chosen as a manufacturing partner for Audio Pixels due to its superior MEMS technology, including particle free deep silicon etch technology and thick films with controlled low stress. TowerJazz is an ideal partner for this project due to its ability to move quickly from development to mass production while providing strong project support and insight from its vast experience in servicing large consumer electronics customers.

“TowerJazz has a dedicated team with the proven technology and design enablement capabilities to meet our advanced process requirements for high performance, quality and technological support for our revolutionary product,” says Shay Kaplan, Audio Pixels Chief Scientist. ”In addition, their demonstrated commitment to provide expansive capacity and multi-fab sourcing makes TowerJazz an ideal partner to augment our future mass production requirements.”

Audio Pixels has taken sound reproduction down an evolutionary path similar to transition display technologies which have moved from large and bulky analog tube-based monitors to the slim digital flat panel hi-resolution displays of today. The company has developed a technological platform that generates sound waves directly from a digital audio stream using micro-electromechanical structures rather than conventional loudspeaker elements. The underlying Digital Sound Reconstruction (DSR) techniques allow for the production of a chip based audio loudspeaker that is smaller, thinner, clearer sounding, more power-efficient and far more compatible in meeting the demands of modern electronic manufacturing and devices. Audio Pixels is focused on producing a single type of MEMS-based silicon chip that can be used either as a standalone micro-speaker or cascaded in any multiples in order to achieve virtually any loudspeaker application.

TowerJazz provides world-class “Foundry MEMS Enablement” solutions which combine rapid implementation and ramp-up high volume production of both 150mm and 200mm MEMS manufacturing capabilities. “Audio Pixels’ MEMS-based loudspeaker is expected to have a significant impact on the multitude of industries and applications that currently consume billions of analog loudspeakers,” says Nachi Vofsy, Director of R&D at TowerJazz. “We are extremely pleased to be Audio Pixels’ foundry of choice for MEMS manufacturing to address these vast market opportunities.”