A story that Apple tried for three weeks to suppress is now part of the public record.

GT Advanced Technologies has announced a multi-year, US$578 million contract with Apple to supply advanced sapphire material.

Soitec of Bernin, France, which makes engineered substrates including silicon-on-insulator (SOI) wafers (as well as III-V epiwafers through its Picogiga International division), has more than doubled production of bonded silicon-on-sapphire (BSOS) substrates to meet increased demand from strategic partner Peregrine Semiconductor Corp of San Diego,US.

Rubicon Technology says that it has shipped over 200,000 six-inch sapphire wafers to LED manufacturers worldwide.

The new Dimension Edge PSS atomic force microscope from Bruker Corporation delivers precise 3D profile information to control advanced patterned sapphire substrate processes for LED manufacturing.

GT Solar International Inc of Merrimack, NH, USA (a provider of polysilicon production technology as well as sapphire and silicon crystalline growth systems and materials for the solar, LED and other specialty markets) has reported revenue for its fiscal fourth quarter (ended 2 April) of $271.6m, up 3.3% on $262.9m last quarter and 40% on $194.7m a year ago. Revenue by business segment was $79.2m in polysilicon, $186m in photovoltaic (PV), and $6.4m in sapphire (all of which was sapphire materials revenue).

Semiconductor company Rubicon Technology, Inc. (RBCN: News ) reported Thursday a profit for the first quarter that climbed from last year, boosted by strong margin expansion and revenue growth amid strong demand.