Evoxia Uses Hydrogen Plasma to Make Solar-Grade Silicon, Takes Aim at India's China Dependence

India's solar and semiconductor ambitions rest on a material the country largely imports: high-purity silicon. Chennai-based Evoxia is building an alternative production process that uses hydrogen plasma to convert silica directly into elemental silicon — with lower energy consumption and carbon emissions than conventional methods. Co-founder and CEO Harsh Chordia says Evoxia would be the first startup in India working on decarbonising the silicon sector.

Founded in 2024, the startup initially explored biomaterials made from agricultural waste such as rice husk and rice straw before shifting to silicon after discussions with customers and investors. Chordia points to the stakes: India is 100% dependent on China for polysilicon, and Chinese manufacturers account for about 94% of global supply.

Evoxia's in-house reactor — geometry and nozzle configuration designed internally — has reached a capacity of 10 kg per hour, equivalent to roughly 70 metric tonnes annually. It has validated 6N (99.9999%) purity in the lab, and is targeting 9N purity for solar applications and 11N for semiconductor-grade silicon. It has filed two patents (one published and under examination) with four more on the way, and estimates gross margins of around 70% at commercial scale — a projection still to be validated.

The startup has received around Rs 1.3 crore in grants and accelerator funding and is now preparing to raise approximately $1.5 million in pre-seed funding for infrastructure to support semiconductor-grade production. It is in discussions with prospective customers for paid pilots requiring several tonnes of material, and is awaiting letters of intent from three prospective partners. Longer-term, Evoxia wants to become a semiconductor wafer manufacturer in India.