Basic knowledge of electronic components purchasing -Ameya360 electronic components purchasing website

Trade news

Jiangsu Runic Technology Co., Ltd Honored with China IC Design Achievement Award & Selected in China Fabless100 List

　　On March 29th, the award ceremony of "2024 China IC Design Achievement Award" organized by ASPENCORE was held in Zhangjiang Science Hall, Shanghai. Jiangsu Runic RS50XX series of low noise, high accuracy and ultra-low temperature-drift precision voltage references were awarded the Best Amplifier/Data Converter/Isolator of the Year in China IC Design Achievement Award.　　Jiangsu Runic Technology Co., Ltd has been listed as one of the "Top 10 Analog Signal Chain Companies" for two consecutive years.　　Jiangsu Runic Technology Co., Ltd as China's high-performance, high-quality analog/mixed-signal IC R&D and sales of high-tech semiconductor design company has been selected for two consecutive years in the China Fabless100 list of Top 10 analog signal chain companies, fully demonstrates Runic in the analog signal chain market area of technical strength and competitive advantage, and has been widely recognized by the industry.　　The China IC Design Fabless 100 list is based on quantitative mathematical models, corporate public information, vendor questionnaires, and first-hand interviews by a team of AspenCore analysts, who carefully select the companies with the strongest overall strength and growth potential in China's IC design industry; the Top 10 companies are selected according to the category (each company is categorized into one category only); and the criteria for selecting the Top 10 companies in each category are as follows The selection criteria for each category of Top 10 companies are as follows:　　Companies headquartered in mainland China and Hong Kong/Macau, but excluding Taiwan enterprises　　Fabless companies only, IDM companies with fabs are excluded from screening　　Self-developed and designed chip products have been mass-produced and have been put into commercial use or entered the supply chain of mainstream OEMs.　　Owns a number of patents for Invention Technology, and has strong chip R&D and application design capabilities

Key word：

Jiangsu Runic

Release time：2024-04-10 13:24 reading：713 Continue reading>>

Trade news

STMicroelectronics to Invest EUR 5 Billion in New SiC Wafer Fab

　　STMicroelectronics, following its EUR 7.5 billion wafer fab project with GlobalFoundries in Crolles, France. is set to invest EUR 5 billion in building a new SiC super semiconductor wafer fab in Catania, Sicily, Italy. The fab in Italy will specialize in producing SiC chips, a pivotal technology for electric vehicles with substantial growth potential, according to French media L’Usine Nouvelle on November 26th,　　STMicroelectronics competitively plans to transition to 8-inch wafers starting from 2024. The company will integrate Soitec’s SmartSiC technology to enhance efficiency and reduce carbon emissions. Simultaneously, STMicroelectronics aims to increase capacity, achieve internal manufacturing, and collaborate with Chinese firm Sanan Optoelectronics to raise SiC chip-related revenue from the expected USD 1.2 billion in 2023 to USD 5 billion by 2030.　　On June 7th earlier this year, STMicroelectronics and Sanan Optoelectronics announced a joint venture to establish a new 8-inch SiC device fab in Chongqing, China, with an anticipated total investment of USD 3.2 billion.　　To ensure the successful implementation of this extensive investment plan, Sanan Optoelectronics said to utilize its self-developed SiC substrate process to construct and operate a new 8-inch SiC substrate fab independently.　　TrendForce: over 90% SiC market share by major global players　　According to TrendForce, the SiC industry is currently dominated by 6-inch substrates, holding up to 80% market share, while 8-inch substrates only account for 1%. Transitioning to larger 8-inch substrates is a key strategy for further reducing SiC device costs.　　8-inch SiC substrates offer significant cost advantages than 6-inch substrates. The industry’s major players in China, including SEMISiC, Jingsheng Mechanical & Electrical Co., Ltd. (JSG), Summit Crystal, Synlight Semiconductor, KY Semiconductor, and IV-SemiteC, are advancing the development of 8-inch SiC substrates. This shift from the approximately 45% of total production costs associated with substrates is expected to facilitate the broader adoption of SiC devices and create a positive cycle for major companies.　　Not only Chinese companies but also international semiconductor giants like Infineon Technologies and Onsemi are actively vying for a share of the market. Infineon has already prepared the first batch of 8-inch wafer samples in its fab and plans to convert them into electronic samples soon, with mass production applications scheduled before 2030. International device companies like Onsemi and ROHM have also outlined development plans for 8-inch SiC wafers.　　Currently, major companies hold over 90% of the market share, intensifying competition. A slowdown in progress could provide opportunities for followers. According to TrendForce, the market share of the top 5 SiC power semiconductor players in 2022 was dominated by STMicroelectronics (36.5%), Infineon (17.9%), Wolfspeed (16.3%), Onsemi (11.6%), and ROHM (8.1%), leaving the remaining companies with only 9.6%.

Key word：

STMicroelectronics

Release time：2023-11-30 10:53 reading：2729 Continue reading>>

Trade news

8-Inch Wafer Fabs to Increase Monthly Production Capacity by 14% in 2026

　　Source to China Times, the International Semiconductor Industry Association (SEMI) forecasts that from 2023 to 2026, the global semiconductor industry will add 12 new 8-inch wafer fabs, with 8-inch fab monthly production capacity increasing by 14% to a historic high of 7.7 million wafers. In response, UMC stated that from a supply and demand perspective, capacity growth still lags behind demand growth. UMC emphasized that it remains optimistic about the future of the 8-inch wafer market, thanks to ongoing advancements in special processes and differentiation.　　SEMI notes that the continuous rise in the penetration rate of electric vehicles (EVs) worldwide is driving substantial growth in the demand for inverters and charging stations. The future mass adoption of EVs is the primary driver for increased investments in 8-inch fabs and the continued expansion of global 8-inch fab capacity.　　Examining the situation of new 8-inch fabs in various countries, Southeast Asia will see the largest capacity increase, with a growth rate of approximately 32%. SEMI predicts that China’s 8-inch fab capacity will follow, with an increase of about 22%, reaching a monthly production capacity of 1.7 million wafers. The United States, Europe, the Middle East, and Taiwan are expected to have growth rates of approximately 14%, 11%, and 7%, respectively.　　SEMI reports that by 2023, China’s 8-inch fab capacity will account for approximately 22% of the global total, with Japan at around 16%, Taiwan at around 15%, and Europe, the Middle East, and the United States each at about 14%. Furthermore, to meet future market demand, suppliers such as Bosch, Infineon, Mitsubishi, Onsemi, and STMicroelectronics are accelerating their 8-inch fab capacity expansion. It is estimated that from 2023 to 2026, the 8-inch fab capacity for automotive and power semiconductors will increase by 34%.　　Concerns have been raised about potential oversupply as global 8-inch fabs expand, but UMC, a major semiconductor foundry, states that given the current rate of 8-inch fab expansion worldwide, the increase in capacity is relatively modest compared to demand. From a supply and demand perspective, it is certain that capacity growth will not keep pace with the growing global demand for 8-inch wafers.　　UMC further notes that while 8-inch fabs are increasing, demand is unlikely to remain stagnant. Currently, the majority of semiconductor fabs being built worldwide are 12-inch fabs, making the expansion of 8-inch fabs relatively limited, and the supply-demand balance has not worsened.

Key word：

fab

Release time：2023-09-22 16:08 reading：2093 Continue reading>>

Trade news

onsemi Completes Sale of Japan Fab

　　onsemi has completed of the divestment of its Niigata, Japan facility to JS Foundry.　　onsemi has completed of the divestment of its Niigata, Japan facility to JS Foundry K.K. The sale aligns with onsemi’s fab-liter strategy to expand gross margin and improve its financial results by reducing fixed cost footprint.　　JS Foundry was founded through a partnership between Mercuria Investment Co. Ltd and Sangyo Sosei Advisory Corp. Inc. Mercuria, a subsidiary of Mercuria Holdings Co. Ltd, is one of the leaders in the Japanese alternative investment space, with its investments covering different industries including manufacturing and service industries. SSA is the first financial advisor in Japan specializing in the technology, media and telecommunications (TMT) industry. Through their partnership, they established JS Foundry to be a Japanese-owned foundry company to supply semiconductors to Japanese customers.　　“After an in-depth search for a buyer for the last two years, we are confident to have found the right partner for the facility in JS Foundry,” said Hassane El-Khoury, president and chief executive officer of onsemi. “As always, when making decisions about our manufacturing structure and facilities across the globe, we consider the well-being of employees and seek to create a smooth transition for everyone involved. We look forward to a bright future for JS Foundry K.K. and Niigata employees, who we thank for their hard work and commitment to onsemi.”　　JS Foundry is planning to use the site as the foundation for its new foundry business in Japan. To ensure continuity of supply to its existing customers, onsemi has entered into a wafer supply agreement with JS Foundry K.K. to continue existing wafer fabrication at the site.

Key word：

onsemi

Release time：2023-01-04 09:45 reading：3686 Continue reading>>

Trade news

SEMI: Global IC Industry Projected to Invest Over $500B in New Fabs by 2024

　　The projected growth in global factory count includes a record high 33 new semiconductor manufacturing facilities starting construction this year and 28 more in 2023.　　The worldwide semiconductor industry is projected to invest more than $500 billion in 84 volume chipmaking facilities starting construction from 2021 to 2023, with segments including automotive and high-performance computing fueling the spending increases, according to SEMI’s latest quarterly World Fab Forecast report.　　The projected growth in global factory count includes a record high 33 new semiconductor manufacturing facilities starting construction this year and 28 more in 2023.　　“The latest SEMI World Fab Forecast update reflects the increasing strategic importance of semiconductors to countries and a wide array of industries worldwide,” said Ajit Manocha, SEMI president and CEO. “The report underscores the significant impact of government incentives in expanding production capacity and strengthening supply chains. With the bullish long-term outlook for the industry, rising investments in semiconductor manufacturing are critical to laying the groundwork for secular growth driven by a diverse range of emerging applications.”　　New Semiconductor Facilities Starting Construction by Region　　The SEMI World Fab Forecast reports data from SEMI’s seven regions:　　In the Americas, the U.S. Chips and Science Act has vaulted the region into the lead worldwide in new capital spending as the government investment spawns new chipmaking facilities and supporting supplier ecosystems. From 2021 through next year, the Americas is forecast to start construction on 18 new facilities.　　China is expected to outnumber all other regions in new chip manufacturing facilities, with 20 supporting mature technologies planned.　　Propelled by the European Chips Act, Europe/Mideast investment in new semiconductor facilities is expected to reach a historic high for the region, with 17 new fabs starting construction between 2021 and 2023.　　Taiwan is expected to start construction on 14 new facilities, while Japan and Southeast Asia are each projected to begin building six new facilities over the forecast period. South Korea is forecast to start construction on three large facilities.

Key word：

IC

Release time：2022-12-29 15:00 reading：2002 Continue reading>>

Trade news

Israel Approves $185 Million Grant for Intel Fab

The Israeli parliamentary finance committee approved a $185 million grant to Intel in return for meeting job creation targets and local contract guarantees.Last May, Intel announced it would spend $5 billion over two years to upgrade its Fab 28 in Kiryat Gat, Israel, from 22nm to 10nm production technology.Israel's grant is conditional on Intel meeting its already announced commitment to hire 250 new staff at the fab, and on awarding contracts worth around $560 million to local suppliers.Earlier this month, Ann Kelleher, Intel’s senior vice president and general manager of manufacturing and operations, said the company was planning for manufacturing site expansions in Oregon, Ireland and Israel, with multi-year construction activities expected to start in 2019.In a blog post, Kelleher said, “Having additional fab space at-the-ready will help us respond more quickly to upticks in the market and enables us to reduce our time to increased supply by up to roughly 60%. In the weeks and months ahead, we will be working through discussions and permitting with local governments and communities.”Kelleher said it was part of the company’s strategy to prepare the company’s global manufacturing network for flexibility and responsiveness to demand. As part of this, the company is spending to expand its 14nm manufacturing capacity, made progress on the previously announced schedule for the Fab 42 fit-out in Arizona, and located development of a new generation of storage and memory technology at its manufacturing plant in New Mexico.Kelleher also said that Intel would also supplement its own manufacturing capability with selective use of foundries for certain technologies "where it makes sense for the business." The company had already been doing this but will do so more as it aims to address a broader set of customers beyond the PC and into a $300 billion market for silicon in cars, phones, and artificial intelligence (AI) based products.

Key word：

Intel

Release time：2019-01-04 00:00 reading：1459 Continue reading>>

Trade news

Foxconn May Use Sharp to Roll out First Chip Fab

Foxconn, the main assembler of Apple’s iPhones and iPads, is expected to flex its majority stake in Japan’s Sharp to build its first chip fab, according to analysts.The world’s largest electronics contract manufacturer, also known as Hon Hai Precision, aims to launch a $9 billion fab near southern China’s Zhuhai city, Nikkei reported in late December, following earlier media reports. The total amount of the investment in the project could add up to around 60 billion yuan, or $9 billion, with most of the investment coming from the Zhuhai government. Foxconn did not answer queries from EE Times.Initially, Foxconn is expected to draw on Sharp, which has experience making CCD/CMOS sensors, LCD drivers, game console CPUs and other logic. Japan’s leading LCD TV maker has operated an 8-inch fab in Fukuyama at the 0.13μm process node. Foxconn’s 2016 takeover of Sharp provides the ability to design and produce semiconductors for the first time in Foxconn’s history as it shifts from electronics assembly to higher margin chip production.“One of the Hon Hai group’s goals when acquiring Sharp was to gain semiconductor technology,” Tokyo-based Mizuho Securities analyst Yasuo Nakane told EE Times. “If the overall investment totaled ¥1 trillion ($9 billion), we would expect Hon Hai group and Sharp to pay ¥200 billion and ¥100 billion, respectively.”The plan comes as Foxconn is building a 10.5G LCD plant (90,000/month capacity for a-SI substrates) in the southern Chinese city of Guangzhou, with installation of equipment starting from early 2019 and production starting in the fourth quarter. Foxconn will shoulder about 30% of that investment, according to Nakane. The company will probably use a similar arrangement with China’s central government for the investment in the China fab, he said.Unlike LCD operations, in which local governments are the main investors, chip projects are financed partly by China’s central government, which sees semiconductors as a more important field, Nakane said.After decades of effort, China, with the world’s largest market for semiconductors, still depends on imports for most of its supply. Beijing’s more recent Made in China 2025 industrial policy, aimed at making the nation dominant in high-technology, faces opposition from the U.S. on issues of intellectual property theft.Possible Downgrade of Wisconsin ProjectThe plan to build the fab in China may also signal a downgrading in Foxconn’s project to produce LCDs in the U.S. state of Wisconsin, according to Nakane.“For Sharp, ¥100 billion would be a major investment, but the company looks less likely to invest in a 6G LCD plant Wisconsin (60,000/month capacity for IGZO ‘oxide’ substrates), so we can envision it diverting such funds to semiconductor facilities,” he said.The main hurdle for the China fab project is likely to focus on securing intellectual property and engineers.“If Sharp were to invest in a 12-inch wafer plant in China, we doubt it would begin operations using processes several generations old, and we think it currently lacks enough engineers for the task,” Nakane said.AppleFoxconn may use the project to reduce its reliance on Apple, which accounts for half of its annual revenue of NT$4.7 trillion ($152.65 billion), as the global smartphone market slows, the Nikkei report said.The new fab will initially make chips for ultra high-definition 8K televisions and camera image sensors, as well as various sensors for industrial use and connected devices, the report said. The aim is eventually to expand the 12-inch chip facility in Zhuhai to make more advanced chips for robotics and autonomous vehicles, according to Nikkei.Step by StepFoxconn has made gradual steps into the semiconductor industry in recent years, mainly in the backend assembly and test segment.In 2003, the company acquired the wireless IC module division of Ambit, which was part of the Acer group. The Ambit unit, renamed as Shunsin, now focuses on system in packaging for smartphone power amplifier modules with Apple and Samsung as the two major customers.Over the long term, Foxconn may seek tie-ups with second- or lower-tier foundries as part of the chip fab plan, according to Nakane. One possibility would be Taiwan’s UMC Group, but such an alliance seems unlikely anytime soon, as the U.S. government has charged Taiwan’s second-largest foundry with illegally obtaining DRAM intellectual property, he said. Sharp also faces intellectual property-related constraints as its own library is limited to finished-product knowhow, he added.Foxconn may be swimming upstream with the fab project. Global chip equipment spending in 2019 is projected to drop 8%, a sharp reversal from the previously forecast increase of 7%, according to the latest edition of the World Fab Forecast Report published by SEMI.Plunging memory prices and a sudden shift in companies’ strategies in response to trade tensions are driving rapid drops in capital expenditures, especially among leading-edge memory manufacturers, fabs in China and projects for mature nodes such as 28nm, according to SEMI. Industry sectors expecting record-breaking growth in 2019, such as memory and China, are now leading the decline, the report said.

Key word：

Foxconn,Sharp

Release time：2019-01-02 00:00 reading：1479 Continue reading>>

Trade news

Foxconn Reportedly Readies Chip Fab in China

Taiwan's Hon Hai Precision is set to break ground in 2020 on a $9 billion 300mm chip fab in the city of Zhuhai in southern China, according to a report by the Nikkei news service.Hon Hai, which operates under the trade name Foxconn, has been mulling plans since early this year to build and operate its own semiconductor fab to make chips for the products it builds for other firms on a contract manufacturing basis. In August, the Wall Street Journal reported that Foxconn inked a deal with Zhuhai's government to locate its first chip fab there.Last week, Nikkei reported that Foxconn plans to build chipsets for ultra high-definition televisions and CMOS image sensors for phones in Zhuhai, with hopes to eventually expand into production of higher value chips for robotics and autonomous vehicles. Nikkei reported that Foxconn will also enter the foundry market, offering to build chips designed by other semiconductor companies.A majority of the cost of the fab will be subsidized by the city of Zhuhai, according to the Nikkei report.

Key word：

Foxconn

Release time：2018-12-28 00:00 reading：1559 Continue reading>>

Trade news

Fab Equipment Challenges For 2019

After a period of record growth, the semiconductor equipment industry is facing a slowdown in 2019, in addition to several technical challenges that still need to be resolved.Generally, the equipment industry saw enormous demand in 2017, and the momentum extended into the first part of 2018. But then the memory market began deteriorating in the middle of this year, causing both DRAMand NAND vendors to push out their equipment orders.The memory downturn is expected to extend into 2019, which will impact equipment makers with exposure to DRAM and NAND. Then, on the geopolitical front, the trade issues between the United States and China are a cause for concern, although the long-term impact remains unclear.On the positive side, foundry vendors continue to ramp up their 7nm processes, propelling equipment orders in the logic space. The outlook is good at the other end of the spectrum, as well, where the industry continues to see demand for mature 200mm equipment.Still, the demand for leading-edge and mature tools can’t make up for the downturn in memory, which likely will put the equipment industry in negative territory. In total, the worldwide semiconductor equipment industry is expected to grow by 13.7% in 2018, but the business is projected to slow and decline by 8.6% in 2019, according to VLSI Research.Of course, the forecast could change overnight, and it’s not all gloomy in the market. Tool segments with exposure to logic will fare better in 2019. But amid a downturn in memory, tool segments with exposure to DRAM and NAND are in for a rough ride.For example, some foundries are expected to ramp up extreme ultraviolet (EUV) lithography at 7nm, a move that will likely propel EUV scanner orders for ASML. Inspection and metrology are also bright spots.“If you look at the equipment side, EUV is obviously going to be positive. The other one that you see performing better in downturns is process control. If foundry and logic maintain their spending, they are heavy on process control compared to memory,” said Risto Puhakka, president of VLSI Research. “On the negative side, you will probably see etch and some deposition segments that are heavily dependent on memory. That will probably see a bigger decline.”To help the industry get ahead of the curve in 2019, Semiconductor Engineering has taken a look at several equipment segments, including foundry, memory, China and 200mm.More numbersWhat a difference a year makes. Citing huge demand for memory, the semiconductor market is projected to grow by 15.5% in 2018, according to VLSI Research. But the current memory slowdown is expected to drag down the industry, causing the IC market to decline by 1.6% in 2019, according to the firm.The equipment industry is following a similar pattern. 2018 started out looking like another record year for the equipment industry, but the memory downturn slowed the momentum.“The equipment market will grow about 14% in 2018, which is a little bit below what we were predicting earlier in the year. But still, it’s a good year,” said Andrea Lati, an analyst with VLSI Research. “But we did see a de-acceleration in the second half of 2018, which we expected. If you look how much spending went on in 2017, we knew at some point that supply was going to catch up with demand and surpass it. That happened in the second half of this year.”At that point, the market failed to regain the momentum. “This downward pressure we are seeing in the second half of 2018 is going to roll over into 2019. We’re a little bit more bearish about 2019. We do expect both the semiconductor and the equipment markets to decline in 2019,” Lati said. “Part of it is because there is some over-build in our industry. The second part is really the macro picture. It’s slowing, and we also have the China situation. That is also adding uncertainty.”Compounding the problem is the memory downturn. “We expect memory sales to decline almost 10% in 2019. We do see that logic will probably be in positive territory and growing almost 4%. So it will be primarily a memory-driven downturn in 2019,” Lati said.Needless to say, this will impact the equipment industry. In a different forecast, SEMI predicts that worldwide sales of new semiconductor equipment will increase 9.7% to $62.1 billion in 2018, but the market will decline by 4% in 2019. In 2019, South Korea will remain the largest equipment market, followed by China and Taiwan, according to SEMI.Fig. 1: Worldwide sales of new semiconductor manufacturing equipment. Source: SEMITwo other metrics, semiconductor capital spending and the wafer-fab equipment (WFE) market, are seeing similar trends.“(For) WFE CapEx, calendar 2018 was driven by buoyant demand for memory,” said Toshiki Kawai, president and chief executive of TEL, in a recent presentation. “Expect year-over-year growth of approximately 5%-10%.”In 2019, though, WFE will reach $50.6 billion, down 5% over 2018, according to KeyBanc Capital Markets. Capital spending will reach $87.2 billion in 2019, down 5% over 2018, according to KeyBanc.“For memory, what we are seeing right now is a definite slowdown. I see a CapEx decrease in ’19 for DRAM after an incredible year. In NAND, it will be modestly down in ’19,” said Oreste Donzella, senior vice president and chief marketing officer at KLA-Tencor. “We believe foundry will go up. The question is how much will foundry go up.”From an applications perspective, it’s also a mixed picture. The smartphone market is flat, but there are other applications that will drive IC demand, such as automotive, artificial intelligence and wireless.AI involves a technology called machine learning. In simple terms, machine learning uses a neural network in a system. In neural networks, a system crunches data and identifies patterns. It matches certain patterns and learns which of those attributes are important.The industry is accelerating the use of machine learning in various systems, thereby driving the demand for ASICs, FPGAs, GPUs and memory.“The world of memory is increasing in the era of AI and deep learning,” said Gill Lee, managing director of memory technology at Applied Materials. “Bit growth is happening with all of these new applications, such as AI, deep learning and data centers. The memory applications are becoming more diversified.”Others see similar trends. “Startup funding for semiconductor companies is back up, with similar increases for new programs inside existing companies,” said Aki Fujimura, chief executive of D2S.“Excitement over deep learning, autonomous driving, and continued innovation in IoT are providing new design starts,” Fujimura said. “Despite the recent hiccup from the cooling off in cryptocurrency, I continue to see a strong rising tide behind Nvidia for simulation of natural effects, image and video processing, and deep learning. It is great to see a new wave of funding of innovation in new chips, particularly driven by deep learning. We are going to see deep learning improve what we do in semiconductor manufacturing, as well, in 2019.”Thirumal Thanigaivelan, senior marketing director at Veeco’s UItratech division, said: “Diverse market requirements in AI, graphics and automotive are driving leading-edge development. We expect the investment to continue as we drive toward more processing capability in HBM (high-bandwidth memory). The diverse markets and applications space dampens the fluctuations in fab equipment spending, reducing the cyclicality.”Wafers and masksOne way to get a pulse on the market is to look at the demand picture for two key building blocks in the IC sector—silicon wafers and photomasks.In 2019, silicon wafer shipments will reach 13,090 million square inches, up 5.2% over 2018, according to SEMI. In 2018, silicon wafer shipments grew 7.1%.Then, the photomask market is forecast to exceed $4 billion in 2019, up 4% over 2018, according to SEMI.Photomask makers see demand for both leading- and trailing-edge masks. For example, EUV mask shipments are expected to double, from 1,041 in 2017 to 2,185 in 2018, according to a survey from the eBeam Initiative. That’s a small percentage of overall mask shipments, as 587,233 photomasks will be delivered in 2018, up 27% over 2017, according to the survey.“EUV masks went up 2X, which is expected. That’s a good thing. But the numbers are insignificant compared to the overall masks that are reported. But taken by itself, a 2X increase is a strong indication that the industry is getting ready for EUV,” D2S’ Fujimura said.EUV lithography—a next-generation technology that patterns tiny features on a chip—is moving into high-volume production in 2019 after years of delays. In an EUV scanner, a power source converts plasma into light at 13.5nm wavelengths, enabling the system to print fine features.Chipmakers need EUV because it’s becoming more difficult to pattern the tiny features using today’s 193nm immersion lithography and multiple patterning.Foundry growthMeanwhile, the foundry business, which is a big equipment market, is a mixed bag. Capital spending in the foundry sector will reach $25.1 billion in 2019, up 14% over 2018, according to KeyBanc.But the number of leading-edge foundries is dwindling, meaning there are fewer buyers of equipment at the most advanced nodes.Tool vendors are seeing demand in several foundry segments. At the high end, the demand driver is 7nm, although the product mix is changing at advanced nodes. “20nm, 16nm, 14nm and 10nm were really driven by mobile,” KLA-Tencor’s Donzella said. “At 7nm, we still have a high number of tape-outs driven by mobile. We also see AI applications. Now, the question is how many of these tape-outs are going to be realized in wafer capacity.”Not all of the action is at advanced nodes. “If you look at the percentage of revenue coming from the trailing edge, say 40nm and above, it’s still quite significant. Some 50% of the foundry revenue comes from trailing edge. That isn’t going to change. The reason is because of IoT demand, driving RF and MEMS. Then, you have automotive,” Donzella said.At 22nm and above, the industry continues to develop chips based on traditional planar transistors. In contrast, 16nm/14nm and 10nm/7nm are based on finFETs.It’s becoming more difficult to scale at each node. “PPAC (power, performance, area, cost) scaling at the leading edge is getting more complex and costly,” said Yang Pan, corporate vice president of advanced technology development at Lam Research.The challenges have caused a major shakeup in the leading-edge foundry landscape. Today, there are only two companies shipping 7nm—Samsungand TSMC. In 2018, GlobalFoundries halted its 7nm efforts. The company couldn’t justify the return-on-investment at 7nm, as only a few customers can afford to design chips at advanced nodes. At the same time, Intel is struggling at 10nm and has delayed it several times. (Intel’s 10nm is roughly equivalent to 7nm from the foundries.)Still, Samsung and TSMC are moving ahead at 7nm, but they will face challenges along the way. In 2018, TSMC moved into production at 7nm using traditional optical lithography. Then, TSMC plans to insert EUV for its second version of 7nm, which is slated for early 2019.Samsung recently announced 7nm using EUV. Then, at some point, Intel is expected to insert EUV.Bringing up EUV into production presents some challenges. “The introduction of EUV creates new challenges and opportunities for new patterning films and advanced etch processes such as atomic layer etching. Multiple patterning, complementary to EUV, will continue to drive density scaling,” Lam’s Pan said.There are other challenges at advanced nodes. “The other grand challenge in PPAC scaling is RC (resistive-capacitance) reduction, which requires new materials and integration to reduce line and via resistance to improve circuit power performance,” Pan said.Memory woesMemory, another big market for equipment, is in a difficult period. In early 2018, the NAND market declined and fell into an oversupply mode. Oversupply has extended throughout 2018, while prices have plummeted.The NAND outlook is gloomy. “For NAND flash, 2019 revenues should be down 40% from 2018,” said Jim Handy, an analyst at Objective Analysis. “I expect for NAND to reach cost and hug the cost curve until the current oversupply situation ends in a couple of years.”The DRAM market faces a similar situation after years of growth. “DRAM is just beginning a collapse that NAND has been undergoing since early this year,” Handy said.And if that isn’t enough, there are some technical challenges in memory. For example, planar NAND has reached its physical limit at the 1xnm node. So, NAND vendors have been migrating from planar NAND to 3D NAND. Both types are used for solid-state storage drives (SSDs).Unlike planar NAND, which is a 2D structure, 3D NAND resembles a vertical skyscraper in which horizontal layers are stacked and then connected using tiny vertical channels.Today, vendors are migrating from 48- to 96-layer 3D NAND devices with 128-layer products in R&D. Some refer to layers as pairs.The bit density increases as you add more layers. “In 2018, we’ve seen 96 pairs come into the market. Next year, I expect that we will see the next-generation technology, something larger than 120,” Applied’s Lee said.Continued scaling of 3D NAND will drive down the bit cost, enabling high-density SSDs at lower prices. This in turn expands the market for SSDs. “NAND-based SSDs were originally targeted for more of the high end. Now, it’s a big part of notebook computers. SSDs are also targeting even the low-end of storage. So, the market for NAND is not only going up, but it’s also covering a big part of the hard disk-drive market,” Lee said.Still, it’s difficult to scale 3D NAND from 64 to 96 layers and beyond. In the 3D NAND flow, alternating films are stacked on a substrate using deposition. The process is repeated several times. But as more layers are added, the challenge is to stack the layers uniformly and without defects.In the next step, a plasma etcher etches tiny circular holes or channels from the top of the device stack to the bottom substrate. Each channel must be uniform. Otherwise, CD variations may occur.“Stress management is another area of extreme importance when the layer count increases,” Lam’s Pan said. “High aspect ratio (HAR) etch continues to be the most critical and difficult step in the entire flow. At 96 layers and above, not only does the memory hole module get more challenging, other structures such as slits also become critically difficult with layer stacking.”China and 200mmFor years, China has been a growing market for semiconductor equipment. Trade issues, however, are infusing uncertainty in this arena.In China there are two types of chipmakers—multinational and domestic players. “The domestic semiconductor companies have been spending quite a bit. And the business is up at all major equipment suppliers in 2018,” VLSI Research’s Puhakka said.What about 2019? ‘’I don’t expect overall WFE from China to change significantly between ’18 and ’19,” KLA-Tencor’s Donzella said. “The mix is different. We see more foundry and less memory. We see more foreign investment and less local.”Meanwhile, 200mm is also a key equipment market. Demand for analog, MEMS and RF chips continue to cause shortages for 200mm fab capacity and equipment.“Some of the Asian foundries are afraid of lower orders in the second half of 2018. However, the current utilization of most fabs in Asia is over 90%,” said Bruce Kim, chief executive of SurplusGlobal, a supplier of secondary equipment. “There is still a big demand for 200mm tools.”What about 2019? “It will be very tight. Some of the advanced devices will be moved from 200mm to 300mm. I estimate the 300mm transfer won’t be so large in 2019,” Kim said.Heading into 2019, there is a shortfall of 200mm equipment. The industry requires from 2,000-3,000 new or refurbished 200mm tools to meet fab demand, according to SurplusGlobal. But there are only 500 available 200mm tools on the market, according to the company.200mm tool prices will remain high. “300mm tool prices are lower than 200mm tool prices these days,” Kim said.All told, 2019 looks cloudy for the equipment industry. Foundry looks up, but memory is down. And so, equipment vendors will need to hold on tight. It will likely will be a stormy ride over the next year.

Key word：

Market trend

Release time：2018-12-25 00:00 reading：1213 Continue reading>>

Trade news

TSMC 3-nm Fab Environmental Assessment Approved, to Commence in 2020

Taiwan's Environmental Administration yesterday approved the environmental assessment for Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company, Limited's (TSMC) 3-nanometer factory, signifying that TSMC's 3-nm factory will be able to commence operations on schedule in 2020 with total investment amounting to NT $600 billion.The point of this environmental evaluation was concerns about water and electricity usage and whether or not they would bring about any impacts on the water usage of local residents. However, after Taipower and the Water Resources Agency guaranteed a completely flawless supply, the evaluation was amended and passed.Regarding this decision, TSMC stated that they have selected Southern Taiwan Science Park as the location to establish a 3-nm process factory to manufacture their 12-inch chips.Meanwhile, TSMC also pledged that after commencing mass production they will expand the use of renewable energy each year, and in order to reduce power consumption burdens in the local area, they expect to use renewable energy for 20% of overall consumption.

Key word：

TSMC

Release time：2018-12-21 00:00 reading：1450 Continue reading>>

model	brand	Quote
BD71847AMWV-E2	ROHM Semiconductor
RB751G-40T2R	ROHM Semiconductor
MC33074DR2G	onsemi
CDZVT2R20B	ROHM Semiconductor
TL431ACLPR	Texas Instruments

model	brand	To snap up
STM32F429IGT6	STMicroelectronics
ESR03EZPJ151	ROHM Semiconductor
IPZ40N04S5L4R8ATMA1	Infineon Technologies
BU33JA2MNVX-CTL	ROHM Semiconductor
BP3621	ROHM Semiconductor
TPS63050YFFR	Texas Instruments

PART	Quantity*	Target Price
	Quantity MOQ: 1	Target Price $ If not sure, you may skip this
remark

Telephone *	Name
Company
Email