I'm no expert guys in this kind of science, so reader beware.
But I am a scientist and used to reading papers outside my area of expertise, so sifting through the methods section of Zafer's paper to string together the basic process wasn't too hard - it's actually quite a well written piece of work.
DB, I think the key things for me in this puzzle are the following:
- Sensera's business model will tend to add manufacturing "know-how" to the design IP of a customer. While know-how is IP, it is generally not patentable in an invention sense. This isn't a bad thing for Sensera.
- Nandox brought their sensor design to Sensera, and my interpretation of what Ralph said in his email is that we have added valuable know-how to get that sensor to be able to be built in a manufacturing sense. This is important, and should make nanodx "stick" to us in my view.
- My interpretation of the last few days of information since the IBM annoucement is that since early 2020, the covid pivot by nanodx has always involved the IBM approach - I don't beleive that the licencing annoucement indicates a recent shift in approach in the last few days/weeks. There is no way IMO that Joshi would be confident enough to indicate that EUA is within 2 months, if we had changed tech recently.
- What I can't get comfortable with, is why IBM/Nanodx decided to announce now. They must have handed over key in-confidence information on how to generate the FET sensor in early 2020, under some agreement. Perhaps the financial component of the licencing was only recently agreed, but seems odd to me. I still favour that the licencing agreement was landed long ago, and the annoucement has been made to generate interest in anticipation of the EUA (Qulitman, there goes my own pair of rose coloured glasses getting in the way again!)
The IBM process looks like a much better match to Sensera's core capabilities - no robots placing bought nanowires. Instead, it is all made on the silicon wafer using lithography to trace the design, and etching and deposition to make the structures.
Now, if I really polish those rose-coloured glasses - I think there is a better than even chance that a coporate action will be triggered by nanodx at EUA. I'm just hoping it will involve us.
