Finland’s Canatu has signed a one-year joint development agreement with Denso Corporation, the Japan-headquartered supplier of automotive technology and components, aimed at improving the performance of carbon nanotubes (CNTs) and products for the semiconductor, automotive and medical diagnostics industries.

This builds on the long-standing collaboration between the two companies to improve CNT performance, develop high-performance reactors and advance practical applications for CNT technology, such as ADAS camera and full windshield heaters. The goal is to optimise the sheet resistance to transmittance ratio of CNTs in order to achieve high electrical conductivity while maintaining excellent light transmittance, enhancing performance in current applications and expanding potential uses.

Carbon nanotubes are known for their unique combination of properties, including high electrical and thermal conductivity, along with exceptional optical performance. As such, they are a promising material for a wide range of emerging applications such as solar cells.

Canatu’s current core programme includes CNT membranes for extreme ultraviolet (EUV) processes in the semiconductor industry, enabling the manufacturing of the most advanced chips, as well as film heaters for advanced driver-assistance systems (ADAS) in the automotive industry. Additionally, electrochemical sensors for medical diagnostics are in the development phase. Canatu’s patented CNT reactors and Dry Deposition method yield clean and pristine CNTs. The company operates through two business models, selling CNT products directly as well as selling CNT reactors and licensing the related technology to customers.

“Denso is committed to advancing mobility through cutting-edge technology,” said Hirotsugu Takeuchi, CTO of Denso Corporation. “Our collaboration with Canatu will accelerate the development of high-performance CNT applications and enable us to explore new high-value applications.”

“We are excited about this collaboration to improve CNT performance and contribute to sustainable mobility with Denso,” added Juha Kokkonen, CEO of Canatu. “This strengthens our position as a leader in developing transformative, future-proof solutions for the automotive industry with our partners. This new agreement is a key step in our automotive strategy, developing ADAS camera heaters and exploring new high-value applications for our advanced carbon nanotubes.”

www.canatu.com

www.denso.com