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Research and Markets: Status of the Power Electronics Industry 2012 - A $20 Billion Devices Market with 4 Main Semiconductor Technologies

DUBLIN--(BUSINESS WIRE)-- Research and Markets (http://www.researchandmarkets.com/research/rc5nbh/status_of_the) has announced the addition of the "Status of the Power Electronics Industry 2012" report to their offering.

State of the Art and Trends of Disruptive Power Semiconductors Technology and Market

Power Electronics: A $20 Billion Devices Market with 4 Main Semiconductor Technologies

In 2012, the market for semiconductor devices (discrete, modules and ICs) dedicated to the power electronics industry will reach $20 billion. With applications as diversified as hybrid cars, PV inverters, lighting, energy, and voltage ranging from a few volts to a few thousands volts, power electronics is and will remain one of the most attractive branches of the semiconductor industry over the next decade.

In this report, Yole Développement provides a complete breakdown of 1) market forecasts and player shares depending on the application, 2) the voltage range and the geography for power discrete and modules, and 3) wafers used for power semiconductor device manufacturing.

The power electronics industry now deals with conversion and motion, and thus requires lighter/smaller, cheaper and more efficient systems. This evolution starts with improvements at the semiconductor level, and there are four technologies which are best suited to handle new system requirements: silicon IGBT, Super Junction (SJ) MOSFETs, Gallium Nitride (GaN) and Silicon Carbide (SiC)-based devices.

Highlighting the trends of the disruptive power semiconductors technology and market

Already well established in the market, IGBTs account for $1.6 billion in the medium to high voltage sector. In this report, we describe a trend towards decreasing voltage range in order to target consumer applications such as TVs, computer adapters and cameras, in order to access more segments. At the same time, SJ MOSFETs present in these applications offer faster switching frequencies and competitive cost. We estimate the SJ MOSFET market will reach $567 million by the end of the year.

GaN and SiC also have a chance to outdo silicon performance and enhance inverter capabilities. However, materials are still expensive and the technology is not yet ready. On the other hand, both of these materials can benefit from their developed status in the LED industry, and we have seen plenty of LED players paying attention to the opportunity that power electronics represent.

Each Technology Faces Strong Developments:

In this report, Yole Développement clearly identifies the uses for these four main technologies. Nevertheless, all of them still struggle to bring ideal solutions for every application at every power/voltage range.

There Are Two Consequences:

- GaN and SiC are not mature yet for the power electronics market: the first one requires technological enhancement of the manufacturing process, especially for epitaxy thickness, and the second one is an expensive material that does not allow implementation within consumer-like businesses.

- A segmentation between technology and the power/voltage range will take place, and some segments will only accept one « best » technology.

Who Should Buy This Report?:

- Power device manufacturers

- Power module makers

- Other semiconductor players

- Material and substrate suppliers

- Power device manufacturing foundry services

- Inverter manufacturers

- Investors

- R&D laboratories

Key Topics Covered:

  1. Executive summary
  2. Introduction
  3. Power electronics market: devices and wafers
  4. Innovation and disruptive power electronics
  5. Inverters market
  6. Power electronics supply chain
  7. General conclusions
  8. Yole in power electronics

Companies Mentioned: Click the link below to view full list of companies featured.

For more information visit http://www.researchandmarkets.com/research/rc5nbh/status_of_the

Research and Markets
Laura Wood, Senior Manager.
press@researchandmarkets.com
U.S. Fax: 646-607-1907
Fax (outside U.S.): +353-1-481-1716
Sector: Semiconductor

Source: Research and Markets