• Phononic

  Participated · Equity · Nov 2016

  Phononic develops semiconductor thermoelectric chips and fully integrated solid-state cooling and refrigeration products used across optoelectronics, cold chain fulfillment, and technology licensing. The company says millions of its high-performance thermoelectric devices are in use globally, with tens of thousands of solid-state refrigerators and freezers deployed. Phononic positions its solutions as sustainable alternatives to legacy compressor and high‑GWP refrigerant systems, aiming to address climate and refrigerant‑related emissions challenges. The company plans to expand sales and marketing, scale domestic and international high‑volume manufacturing, and broaden its cooling and refrigeration product portfolio and platform. Phononic highlights use cases including fiber‑optic communications/5G/LIDAR, ecommerce cold‑chain fulfillment, vaccine protection, and retail merchandising. The announcement was made from Durham, N.C. and New York. Phononic produces solid-state thermal management products, including micro- and pico-TEC cooling devices for fiber optics and scalable heat pumps for pharmacy, healthcare and residential refrigerators. Its Durham, North Carolina manufacturing facility is in full-scale production and the company reports products are now in mass production. The company completed a $71 million growth equity financing and secured an additional $40 million in funding from UBS' wealth management businesses; the round featured a $31 million first close on September 6, 2016. Phononic intends to use the funds to expand its global sales and marketing organization and to build after-care customer service and support in new and existing markets. The company frames its technology as a sustainable alternative to compressors, heat sinks and fans and highlights regulatory momentum to phase down HFC refrigerants as a market tailwind. Phononic was named to CNBC’s 2016 Disruptor 50 list for its innovation in cooling and heating. Phononic develops cooling and heating products using semiconductor (solid-state) technology to provide sustainable, distributed, convenient, and connected thermal management solutions. Led by CEO Tony Atti, the company has commercialized residential products and recently introduced a refrigeration product line for laboratories, research centers and medical facilities. Its thermal solutions are also being applied to fiber optics, telecommunications and data server infrastructure cooling. The company positions its technology as necessary to continue Moore's Law. Phononic plans to use new funding to increase sales, penetrate new market opportunities and expand manufacturing capacity. The company is based in Raleigh, North Carolina. Phononic commercializes high-performance solid-state heat pumps and fully integrated systems that displace traditional compressors for residential and commercial refrigeration, window-mounted air conditioning and heating. Its manufacturing-friendly platform produces refrigeration products that are quiet, energy-efficient, toxin-free and require no moving parts. The company targets multi-billion dollar refrigeration and window-mounted air conditioning markets with compressor-free solutions. Phononic was an ARPA-E awardee in 2009 and was named a 2013 Global Cleantech 100 company. The business is headquartered in Research Triangle Park, North Carolina. It plans to expand its engineering team, transition from pilot to volume manufacturing, and establish a presence in Asia. Phononic Devices is a Raleigh, North Carolina–based maker of thermoelectric coolers and generators that convert wasted heat into power and provide solid‑state cooling. The company uses proprietary thermoelectric materials from a different class of elements than incumbent bismuth telluride/selenide, which it says are abundant, low‑cost and manufacturable within existing semiconductor operations. An ARPA‑E press statement and the company project dramatic efficiency improvements (from under 10% to over 30%) that would yield significant dollar‑per‑watt savings for power generation and cooling. Phononic plans to commercialize its modules first for electronics cooling—consumer electronics, military equipment, medical and laser instruments—then for residential refrigeration and, longer term, air conditioners. The company was spun out of the University of Oklahoma’s tech transfer program, is pre‑revenue, and currently has about ten full‑time employees. Management plans to use new capital to develop U.S. commercial manufacturing capabilities and grow the market, targeting customers across high‑tech cooling applications while competing with peers such as Nextreme and MicroPelt.

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