Global GaN Semiconductor Industry Report

Gallium Nitride is an upcoming alternate material to pure silicon in the field of semiconductors and electronics. Several advanced features of gallium nitride proved useful for semiconductors such as high-brightness emission and intensity when used in opto-semiconductors. High power efficiency, superior high frequency handling capacity, and flexibility are generally used in opto-semiconductors alongside various substrates such as Si, sapphire, SiC were discovered. Extensive research studies took place in the past decade to utilize gallium nitride for semiconductor devices and electronic systems in two major segments – power-semiconductors and opto-semiconductors. 

The penetration of GaN was the first in opto-semiconductors in 2001, followed by power semiconductors (merging both, pure-power and RF-power semiconductors) in 2007. Commercialization of GaN power semiconductors (discretes and ICs) started at a medium scale in 2008. While the penetration growth rate is healthy and substantial in opto-semiconductors, the penetration rate in power semiconductors is explosive. One of the prime reasons for this is the growing application areas in the medium-voltage (200 to 1 KV) ranges, where GaN offers unique and unbeatable power efficiency over pure silicon. Another reason is the superior capability offered by GaN to handle high switching frequencies (>1 GHz), particularly for RF-power functions such as power amplification and switching in RF devices. In power semiconductors, several transistors and diodes (and rectifiers) have been in the market since 2008, with extraordinary growth in the volume of power discretes (HEMTs, Diodes, and Rectifiers and FETs) boosting the total revenue of the SiC power semiconductors market. Another factor for revenue growth was from GaN power ICs, where new power ICs (hybrids) such as MMICs and RFICs were launched commercially every year by industry players after extensive R&D efforts on developing new technologies to enable the same. The complete GaN power semiconductors industry shifted to a mass-production scenario in 2011 with the success and revenue potential drawing the focus of several power semiconductor market giants.

The global GaN semiconductor industry’s value chain has grown to a vast network of players involved in various segments. There have been tremendous changes in the landscape of the value chain with several developments in segments such as raw material suppliers, EDA and design tool vendors, wafer manufacturers, wafer equipment vendors, foundry models, fabless players, fab facilities, IDMs, ODMs, OEMs, ATP players, and so on. The wafer manufacturers’ and wafer equipment manufacturers’ landscape is very dynamic, with increasing number of players in these two segments, and has a high level of collaborations, agreements, and partnerships activities among the players. The ODMs, IDMs segments are obviously the fastest growing segments with several new product launches, new technology launches taking place every year. In the supply chain landscape, both – upstream and downstream sectors have different landscapes, with new wafer manufacturing technologies related to epitaxy process, dyeing, etching, and wafer diameters playing a major role in the upstream and new device fabrication technologies related to technology node, circuit design, and assembly and packaging making their mark in the downstream.

Asia-Pacific (excluding Japan) holds the largest share in GaN semiconductors market among all the geographic segments. Owing to huge market potential, increasing focus of the semiconductor industry and diversifying and strengthening value chain segments in the upcoming markets such as China, South Korea, and Taiwan, the revenue share from APAC (excluding Japan) is expected to grow at the fastest rate. North America and Europe are the primary establishment base markets for GaN semiconductors.

Currently, GaN wafer market is majorly in “Research & Development” phase. Several research organizations are currently involved in numerous research activities in all the fields of GaN wafer development to produce the high purity material with improved thickness.

As the high thickness wafers such as 6-inch are already introduced in the market, the market value would decrease across the forecast period for low thick wafers. ASP of 2-inch wafers are preferable for R&D purpose, however, for commercial use larger wafers are preferred. Thus, the decrease in demand in the coming years is expected to bring the price down for smaller wafers.

GaN has been identified to have superior properties; however, it is not yet commercialized to its fullest extent. The main reason for this is the ultra-high prices of the raw material and complex manufacturing processes. The expenditure is very high to produce the material with high quality aspects. Furthermore, this will not affect the market in the long term as the average selling prices are expected to come down in the future.

GaN wafers have the capability to serve a vast pool of applications especially in military and defense, consumer electronics, and industrial among others. However, GaN competes with SiC in these verticals due to its affordable prices.

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Details of the new report, table of contents and ordering information can be found on Electronics.ca Publications’ web site:  Gallium Nitride Semiconductor Devices and Substrate Wafer Market Forecast & Analysis to 2013 – 2022.

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Global GaN Semiconductor Industry Report

Partial List of Tables:

Table 1 GAN Semiconductor Devices Market Revenue, By Geography, 2013 – 2022 ($Million)

Table 2 Global GAN Semiconductor Devices &Substrate Wafer Market, 2013-2022 ($Million)

Table 3 Properties of the Major Semiconductor Materials

Table 4 Global GAN Semiconductor Devices Market Versus Overall Semiconductor Devices Market Revenue, 2013 – 2022 ($Billion)

Table 5 Global GAN Semiconductor Devices Market Revenue, By Application Sectors, 2013 – 2022 ($Million)

Table 6 Global GAN Semiconductor Devices Market Volume,By Application Sectors, 2013 – 2022 (Million Units)

Table 7 GAN Wafer Market Revenue, By Application Sector, 2013-2022 ($Million)

Table 8 Computers Sector: GAN Semiconductor Devices Market Revenue, 2013 – 2022 ($Million)

Table 9 Computers Sector: GAN Semiconductor Devices Market Volume, 2013 – 2022 ($Million)

Table 10 GAN Semiconductor Devices Market Revenue from Computers Hardware Power Modules, By Geography,2013 – 2022 ($Million)

Table 11 GAN Semiconductor Devices Market Revenue from UPS Systems, By Geography, 2013 – 2022 ($Million)

Table 12 Communication Infrastructure Sector: GAN Semiconductor Devices Market Revenue, 2013 – 2022 ($Million)

Table 13 Communication Infrastructure Sector: GAN Semiconductor Devices Volume, 2013 – 2022 (Million Units)

Table 14 GAN Semiconductor Devices Market Revenue from Signal Amplifiers & Switching Systems, By Geography,2013 – 2022 ($Million)

Table 15 GAN Semiconductor Devices Market Revenue from Wireless Applications, By Geography, 2013 – 2022 ($Million)

Table 16 GAN Semiconductor Devices Market Revenue from Wired Communication Devices, By Geography,2013 – 2022 ($Million)

Table 17 GAN Semiconductor Devices Market Revenue from Satellite Communication Applications, By Geography, 2013 – 2022 ($Million)

Table 18 GAN Semiconductor Devices Market Revenue from Radar Applications, By Geography, 2013 – 2022 ($Million)

Table 19 GAN Semiconductor Devices Market Revenue from RF Applications, By Geography, 2013 – 2022 ($Million)

Table 20 Consumer Electronics Sector: GAN Semiconductor Devices Revenue, 2013 – 2022 ($Million)

Table 21 Consumer Electronics Sector: GAN Semiconductor Devices Volume, 2013 – 2022 (Million Units)

Table 22 GAN Semiconductor Devices Market Revenue from Inverters in Consumer Applications, By Geography, 2013 – 2022 ($Million)

Table 23 GAN Semiconductor Devices Market Revenue from Led Lighting in Consumer Applications, By Geography, 2013 – 2022 ($Million)

Table 24 GAN Semiconductor Devices Market Revenue from Switch Mode Consumer Power Supply Systems, By Geography,2013 – 2022 ($Million)

Table 25 Automotive Sector: GAN Semiconductor Devices Revenue, 2013 – 2022 ($Million)

Table 26 Automotive Sector: GAN Semiconductor Devices Volume, 2013 – 2022 (Million Units)

Table 27 GAN Semiconductor Devices Market Revenue from Electric Vehicles & Hybrid Electric Vehicles, By Geography, 2013 – 2022 ($Million)

Table 28 GAN Semiconductor Devices Market Revenue from Automotive Braking Systems, By Geography, 2013 – 2022 ($Million)

Table 29 GAN Semiconductor Devices Market Revenue from Rail Traction, By Geography, 2013 – 2022 ($Million)

Table 30 GAN Semiconductor Devices Market Revenue from Automobile Motor Drives, By Geography, 2013 – 2022 ($Million)

Table 31 Industrial, Power, Solar and Wind Sector: GAN Semiconductor Devices Revenue ($Million), 2013 – 2022

Table 32 Industrial, Power and Solar Sector: GAN Semiconductor Devices Volume (Million Units), 2013 – 2022

Table 33 GAN Semiconductor Devices Market Revenue from Smart Grid Power Systems, By Geography, 2013 – 2022 ($Million)

Table 34 GAN Semiconductor Devices Market Revenue from Wind Turbines and Wind Power Systems, By Geography,2013 – 2022 ($Million)

 

Global GaN Semiconductor Industry Report

RTLS Market Report: Real-Time Location Systems Market Worth $3.70 Billion by 2020

According to a new market research report “Real-Time Location Systems (RTLS) Market by Product, Technology, Application, Industry Vertical & Geography 2013-2020“,  the global RTLS market is expected to grow at a CAGR of 31.2% from 2013 to 2020 and reach $3.70 billion in 2020.

The ever growing need of achieving optimum resource utilization in different industries paved a path for location-based systems such as Real-Time Location Systems. In an enterprise, these systems facilitate location tracking and management of assets/personnel in real time thus resulting into improved operational efficiency and staff productivity. RTLS solutions have numerous applications in industries such as healthcare, manufacturing, logistics & transportation, government & defense, mining, oil & gas, retail, hospitality, education, and many others. Presently, healthcare is the largest market for RTLS solutions and industrial manufacturing is estimated to be the fastest-growing industry vertical with a huge market potential in the forecast period from 2013 to 2020.

In 2013, Americas held the largest market revenue share followed by Europe in the global RTLS market, including hardware, software, and services. The high penetration of RTLS solutions in the healthcare sector and the presence of major Real-Time Location Systems’ providers in this region such as AeroScout (U.S.), Zebra Technologies (U.S.), Awarepoint (U.S.), Centrak (U.S.), and Ekahau (U.S.) are the two major factors for the high RTLS growth rate in Americas. However, the increasing adoption of new technologies such as Ultra-Wideband and Zigbee in RTLS applications is estimated to drive the upsurge of the Real-Time Location Systems market, especially in developed economies including APAC and Europe. Moreover, APAC and ROW are projected to be the emerging markets with tremendous growth potential mainly due to high industrial growth, increasing customer awareness, broad application scope, and government support. Industrial manufacturing, process industries, and government & defense are the major industry verticals that are expected to propel the adoption of RTLS solutions in APAC and ROW regions. Some of the major companies operating in this market are AeroScout (U.S.), Zebra Technologies (U.S.), Ekahau (U.S.), GE Healthcare (U.K.), Motorola Solutions (U.S.), Ubisense (U.K.), Centrak (U.S.), Sonitor Technologies (Norway), and Awarepoint Corporation (U.S.), among others.

The overall Real-Time Location Systems market is expected to reach $3.70 billion by 2020 at an estimated CAGR of 31.2% from 2013 to 2020.The major driving factors for RTLS market’s growth include rapid increase in RTLS applications, rising customer awareness, increasing security & safety concerns in process industries (mining, oil & gas) & defense, technological advancements in hardware & software, declining cost of tags, and optimum resource utilization through real-time asset/personnel location tracking. In this research study, different technologies such as RFID, Wi-Fi, ultrasound, infrared, Zigbee, Ultra wideband, GPS, and others are discussed in detail with qualitative as well as quantitative data. The overall market is also segmented by different product segments – hardware, software, and services; industry verticals – healthcare, logistics, manufacturing, process industries, government & defense, retail, hospitality, and education; applications- asset/ personnel tracking and management, patient safety and environment sensing & monitoring; and geography – Americas, Europe, APAC, and ROW. All the major segments are further segregated into sub-market segments. All the segments and sub-segments are separately described in the report.

Details of the new RTLS market report, table of contents and ordering information can be found  on Electronics.ca Publications’ web site. View the report:  Real-Time Location Systems (RTLS) Market by Product, Technology, Application, Industry Vertical & Geography 2013-2020.

 

RTLS Market Report: Real-Time Location Systems Market Worth $3.70 Billion by 2020

IPC J-STD-001F

IPC J-STD-001F is recognized worldwide as the sole industry-consensus standard covering soldering materials and processes. This revision includes support for both traditional solder alloys and for lead-free manufacturing. Examples of some of the significant changes are revision to plated-through hole, PTH, minimum fill requirements; criteria for two new SMT termination types; and expanded conformal coating criteria. Whenever possible, the criteria descriptions have been adjusted to make them easier to understand for materials, methods and verification for producing quality soldered interconnections and assemblies. The requirements for all three classes of construction are included. Full color illustrations are provided for clarity. This standard fully complements IPC-A-610F and is supported by IPC-HDBK-001. TOC and ordering information can be found on Electronics.ca Publications" web site. Requirements for Soldered Electrical and Electronic Assemblies IPC J-STD-001F.

New IPC A-610F Standard

DoD Adopted! IPC-A-610 is the most widely used electronics assembly standard in the world. A must for all quality assurance and assembly departments, IPC-A-610F illustrates industry-accepted workmanship criteria for electronics assemblies through detailed statements reflecting acceptable and defect conditions, supported by full-color photographs and illustrations. This lates revision, IPC A-610F includes two new SMT termination styles, as well as changes in plated-through hole fill and BGA void criteria. Additionally, wherever possible statements were modified to make readability easier and to enhance understanding — all without eliminating any requirements.
Major topics include flex attachment, board-in-board, part-on-part, both lead-free and tin-lead criteria, component orientation and soldering criteria for through hole, SMT, cleaning, marking, coating and laminate requirements. TOC and ordering information can be found on Electronics.ca Publications" web site. Acceptability of Electronic Assemblies IPC A-610F.

IPC-CC-830B Standard

This is the industry standard for qualification and quality conformance of conformal coating. Its intent is to show how to obtain maximum information with minimum test redundancy. Includes requirements and evaluations of material properties using standardized test vehicles. Amendment 1 updates include new qualification, retention and conformance inspection requirements for FTIR, MIR and hydrolytic stability. IPC-CC-830B ordering information can be found on Electronics.ca Publications" web site. IPC-CC-830B Standard.

Embedded Systems: Technologies and Markets

The worldwide market for embedded technology was estimated to be worth $142.8 billion in 2013. The market is expected to grow at a projected compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 5.4% over the next five years to total $152.4 billion by 2014 and $198.5 billion by 2019. This report provides:
An overview of the global markets for embedded systems and related technologies and applications.
Analyses of global market trends, with data from 2013, estimates for 2014, and projections of compound annual growth rates (CAGRs) through 2019. Information on embedded systems hardware including: Processor IP (Intellectual Property): Key players include ARM and MIPS, MPU/MCU: Microcontrollers and microprocessors, DSP: Digital signal processors, ASIC: Application-specific integrated circuit, FPGA: Field processing gate arrays, Embedded boards. Details of the new report, table of contents and ordering information can be found on Electronics.ca Publications" web site. View the report: Embedded Systems: Technologies and Markets.

The Big Bang Theory Of Wearable Technology

The impending explosion of the wearable computing market is one of the most interesting and highly anticipated developments taking place in the high-tech industry.  According to a new study, Wearable Computing: Technologies, Applications and Global Markets, the $3 billion wearable consumer market is intrinsically linked with the $240+ billion smartphone market. The key market driver for wearable computing is the soaring global popularity of smartphones from manufacturers including Apple, Samsung Electronics, LG Electronics, HTC, Blackberry, Nokia and Microsoft.

The burgeoning field of wearable technology is hitting the mainstream and one of the highlights of high-tech wearable devices is that they are getting smaller, faster, cheaper, and more powerful with every new product. The computing power of an Electronic Numerical Integrator And Computer or ENIAC a decade ago can now be easily fitted inside a chip in a musical greeting card. Similarly, the smartphones today are more powerful than the PCs used, say, five years ago. Now, all the capabilities of a smartphone like making calls, taking pictures, connecting to the internet, video chats, and so on, are being condensed into smartwatches—practically everything a phone or a tablet can do.

If the growing trend in the wearable computing industry is to be believed, the time may soon come when phones and tablets are a thing of the past. Google Glass is a perfect example. The product is still under development, but if everything goes as planned, consumers will soon have no need for their standard smartphone. Google Glass will be able to easily respond to verbal commands, augmented by the occasional manual interaction via controls located directly on the frame. There has even been talk about eventually including a laser-projected virtual keyboard for those times when voice just isn’t enough. With the ability to access countless sources of information in seconds and then relay them to a miniature screen situated in the upper corner of the wearer’s vision field, Google Glass makes 4G internet connectivity features seem archaic.

Motorola recently entered the ring with its Moto 360 smartwatch, which is primarily voice operated and can easily display messages and reminders on command. The result is a small, stylish accessory that serves as an assistant, calendar, and phone all at once and completely replaces the smartphone.

However, Apple’s stated entry into the smartwatch arena last week with a device that won’t go on sale until early 2015 raises questions: Can the company work its magic as it has in the past and convince people that they really need a smartwatch —or will this time be different? Referring to its much awaited product of the year, iWatch, Apple CEO Tim Cook said in a press release, “Apple introduced the world to several category-defining products, the Mac, iPod, iPhone and iPad. And once again Apple is poised to captivate the world with a revolutionary product that can enrich people’s lives. It’s the most personal product we’ve ever made.”

In fact, the “wearable category” covers almost everything from Fitbit’s $99 Flex fitness tracker and Nike’s $99 Fuelband fitness monitors to Samsung’s $199 Galaxy Gear smartwatch. In January 2014, Washington-based Innovega revealed its latest effort in introducing a wearable computer in the form of contact lenses at the CES trade show held in Las Vegas, USA—iOptik. Synchronizing its operations with the human eye, the iOptik uses its lenses to project an image of apps and information through the wearer’s pupil and onto the back of the retina. The lenses superimpose one upon the other to produce an image overlaid with information. The product is yet to be given approval by the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA); however, the company plans to schedule further operations later this year or early next year.

Wearable computing concept is evolving to be even more personal, and not just for the benefit of the wearer. Expectant mothers, in the near future, will wear electronic “tattoos”—smartsensing stickers that will monitor fetal heart rate and brain waves, detect early signs of labor, and even notify the doctor directly when it’s time to go to the hospital.

Wearable computing devices have potential benefits for any situation where information or communication is desired, and the use of a hands-free interface is considered beneficial or essential. In addition to consumer products, many industry-specific applications in markets such as defense, healthcare, manufacturing and mining are also emerging.

The growth of the consumer market for wearables largely depends on how rapidly existing smartphone users will adopt wearable accessories and alternative devices. With new and improved innovation hitting the global market every day, only time will reveal whether wearables will ultimately replace smartphone technology in many consumer environments.

Learn more about wearable technology market and publications that provide informed perspective and relevant analysis of emergent technologies.

 

The Big Bang Theory Of Wearable Technology