Global Semiconductor Silicon Wafer Market - Segmented by Diameter, by Product (Logic, Memory, Analog), by Application (Consumer Electronics, Industrial, Telecommunication) and Region - Growth, Trends and Forecast (2022 - 2030)
The revenue of semiconductor silicon wafer globally was estimated at USD 8.7 billion in 2017 and is expected to reach USD 12.85 billion, witnessing a projected CAGR of 6.1% over 2018 -2023. The report profiles companies manufacturing silicon wafers for various industries.
The semiconductor industry is growing at a rapid rate, with semiconductors emerging as the building blocks of all modern technology. The innovations and advancements in this field are directly impacting all-downstream technologies. Semiconductor silicon wafer remains the core component of many microelectronic devices and forms the cornerstone of the electronics industry. With digitization and electronic mobility being the current trends in the technology landscape, these products are finding applications in a multitude of devices.
End users across countries are increasingly demanding high-performance devices, with reliable and highly portable computing platforms. Connectivity over wireless networks, such as Wi-Fi, 3G, 4G, and Bluetooth, to facilitate easy data exchange and transfer have been increasing rapidly. This has led to wireless computing devices, such as tablets, smartphones, wearables, and sensors flooding the market. Wireless computing devices require a high level of integration, which, in turn, is propelling the development of a number of new designs to support multiple applications on a single platform.
In addition, the demand for small-sized gadgets has increased the demand for more functionalities from a single device. This means that an IC chip now should house a higher number of transistors to support more functionalities. Thus, advances in wireless computing devices, such as smartphones and tablets, have increased design activity among semiconductor designers, resulting in a high demand for silicon wafers. The rollout of 4G networks in the highly developing regions of APAC, such as China, India, Taiwan, and Singapore, has resulted in the deployment of long-term evolution (LTE) technology. This technology has a significant impact on the smart device market, leading to an exponential growth of devices with 4G connections.
Currently, the demand for wafers in the market exceeds the supply in the industry, this is creating huge scope for expansion, while companies are taking advantage of this trend to expand their market share, by ramping up production. The average prices in the industry are increasing. For instance, the average price of Siltronic wafer products rose by around 30%, from 2016 to 2017. At the beginning of 2018, GlobalWafers also confirmed that prices will increase by 20% throughout the year. Companies are thus taking advantage of the growing demand and cutting costs in production, further impacting revenue.
Consolidation has been a very prominent trend observed in this particular market, with major vendors acquiring fellow wafer providers to expand their global presence, as well as gain significant market share and remain competitive in the industry. The size of wafers being manufactured has increased radically, however, the market has witnessed drastic instances of collaboration and consolidation, with the number of suppliers declining from more than 20 vendors in 1990’s to 5 major players dominating across the different diameters being produced. Collaboration between the design and construction professionals to deconstruct a semiconductor facility associated with 450mm adoption is also taking place in the market. However, the transition to 450mm seems to be delayed till 2020, with TSMC and Intel reverted their attempt for the introduction of 450mm in volume production.
Countries, such as Japan, China, Taiwan, and South Korea, were the key contributors to this growth in demand. APAC was followed by the Americas and EMEA. The demand for silicon wafers will increase the most in the automotive and industrial sectors during the forecast period, with increasing demand in APAC.
150 mm Wafer is Anticipated to be Extinct Over The Forecast Period
As the area of wafer increases, the number of semiconductor dies that can be obtained from a wafer also increases, reducing the production cost per chip. Wafer diameter growth is an effective means to minimize semiconductor production cost and attempt to foresee how soon the next-generation wafer will become the mainstream. In making wafer size transitions, only a certain percentage of tools can be used to process subsequent wafer sizes. Interestingly enough, many fabs and equipment manufacturers anticipated making minor changes in the equipment while making transitions in wafer diameter processing. In reality, only 40-50% of the systems are transferable; equipment needed to be redesigned, and usually, new equipment sets were needed. Slowly, the 150 mm wafer is anticipated to be extinct over the forecast period. However, the current semiconductor production lines use 300 mm wafers for memory/logic chips for analog devices and are expected to replace the conventional 150 mm wafers currently in use
North America is expected to have a Substantial Semiconductor Silicon Wafer Market Share
The global semiconductor industry increased by more than 20% in 2017. The regional market is expected to grow similarly, due to growing demand from fabless companies in the region. The major fabless companies in the region are AMD, Apple, Broadcom, Qualcomm, NVIDIA, Marvell, and Xilinx. North America is playing a crucial role in advanced semiconductor system design and manufacturing.
North America will remain a major revenue contributor to the market throughout the forecast period, as fabless companies (indirect), integrated device manufacturers, and foundries are the direct customers of semiconductor wafer manufacturers. The United States is home to global leaders in the three categories of semiconductor companies, namely Intel (IDM), Global foundries (U.S./Dubai) (foundry), and Qualcomm (fabless). US companies lead both the IDM and fabless categories of the world IC market, with shares of 50% and 63% in the categories, respectively. In 2017, fabless companies made a revenue of USD 100 billion, globally. The estimated contribution, by the fabless companies mentioned above, to the semiconductor industry is expected to be more than 50%, which is anticipated to positively impact the wafer market during the forecast period.
Key Developments in the Semiconductor Silicon Wafer Market
•Nov 2017: Soitec, key players in the silicon wafer market developed the latest generation of silicon-on-insulator (SOI) substrates in its Imager-SOI product line. The new product development was initiated owing to the growing demand for 3D cameras used in augmented reality (AR) and virtual reality (VR), facial-recognition security systems, advanced human/machine interfaces and other emerging applications. These substrates are designed specifically for fabricating front-side imagers for near-infrared (NIR) applications and advanced 3D image sensors.
Major Players: SILTRONIC AG, SUMCO CORPORATION, SHIN-ETSU HANDOTAI CO. LTD., SK SILTRON CO. LTD, SOITEC S.A., OKMETIC INC., WAFER WORKS CORPORATION, GLOBALWAFERS CO. LTD, and EPISIL-PRECISION INC., among others.
Reasons to Purchase The Report
•Analysis of various perspectives of the market with the help of Porter’s five forces analysis
•The segments that are expected to dominate the market
•Regional analysis of the market during the forecast period
•Latest developments, market shares and strategies employed by the major market players and key innovators
•3 months analyst support along with the Market Estimate sheet (in Excel)
Customization of The Report
•This report can be customized to meet your requirements. Please connect with our representative, who will ensure you get a report that suits your needs.
The semiconductor industry is growing at a rapid rate, with semiconductors emerging as the building blocks of all modern technology. The innovations and advancements in this field are directly impacting all-downstream technologies. Semiconductor silicon wafer remains the core component of many microelectronic devices and forms the cornerstone of the electronics industry. With digitization and electronic mobility being the current trends in the technology landscape, these products are finding applications in a multitude of devices.
End users across countries are increasingly demanding high-performance devices, with reliable and highly portable computing platforms. Connectivity over wireless networks, such as Wi-Fi, 3G, 4G, and Bluetooth, to facilitate easy data exchange and transfer have been increasing rapidly. This has led to wireless computing devices, such as tablets, smartphones, wearables, and sensors flooding the market. Wireless computing devices require a high level of integration, which, in turn, is propelling the development of a number of new designs to support multiple applications on a single platform.
In addition, the demand for small-sized gadgets has increased the demand for more functionalities from a single device. This means that an IC chip now should house a higher number of transistors to support more functionalities. Thus, advances in wireless computing devices, such as smartphones and tablets, have increased design activity among semiconductor designers, resulting in a high demand for silicon wafers. The rollout of 4G networks in the highly developing regions of APAC, such as China, India, Taiwan, and Singapore, has resulted in the deployment of long-term evolution (LTE) technology. This technology has a significant impact on the smart device market, leading to an exponential growth of devices with 4G connections.
Currently, the demand for wafers in the market exceeds the supply in the industry, this is creating huge scope for expansion, while companies are taking advantage of this trend to expand their market share, by ramping up production. The average prices in the industry are increasing. For instance, the average price of Siltronic wafer products rose by around 30%, from 2016 to 2017. At the beginning of 2018, GlobalWafers also confirmed that prices will increase by 20% throughout the year. Companies are thus taking advantage of the growing demand and cutting costs in production, further impacting revenue.
Consolidation has been a very prominent trend observed in this particular market, with major vendors acquiring fellow wafer providers to expand their global presence, as well as gain significant market share and remain competitive in the industry. The size of wafers being manufactured has increased radically, however, the market has witnessed drastic instances of collaboration and consolidation, with the number of suppliers declining from more than 20 vendors in 1990’s to 5 major players dominating across the different diameters being produced. Collaboration between the design and construction professionals to deconstruct a semiconductor facility associated with 450mm adoption is also taking place in the market. However, the transition to 450mm seems to be delayed till 2020, with TSMC and Intel reverted their attempt for the introduction of 450mm in volume production.
Countries, such as Japan, China, Taiwan, and South Korea, were the key contributors to this growth in demand. APAC was followed by the Americas and EMEA. The demand for silicon wafers will increase the most in the automotive and industrial sectors during the forecast period, with increasing demand in APAC.
150 mm Wafer is Anticipated to be Extinct Over The Forecast Period
As the area of wafer increases, the number of semiconductor dies that can be obtained from a wafer also increases, reducing the production cost per chip. Wafer diameter growth is an effective means to minimize semiconductor production cost and attempt to foresee how soon the next-generation wafer will become the mainstream. In making wafer size transitions, only a certain percentage of tools can be used to process subsequent wafer sizes. Interestingly enough, many fabs and equipment manufacturers anticipated making minor changes in the equipment while making transitions in wafer diameter processing. In reality, only 40-50% of the systems are transferable; equipment needed to be redesigned, and usually, new equipment sets were needed. Slowly, the 150 mm wafer is anticipated to be extinct over the forecast period. However, the current semiconductor production lines use 300 mm wafers for memory/logic chips for analog devices and are expected to replace the conventional 150 mm wafers currently in use
North America is expected to have a Substantial Semiconductor Silicon Wafer Market Share
The global semiconductor industry increased by more than 20% in 2017. The regional market is expected to grow similarly, due to growing demand from fabless companies in the region. The major fabless companies in the region are AMD, Apple, Broadcom, Qualcomm, NVIDIA, Marvell, and Xilinx. North America is playing a crucial role in advanced semiconductor system design and manufacturing.
North America will remain a major revenue contributor to the market throughout the forecast period, as fabless companies (indirect), integrated device manufacturers, and foundries are the direct customers of semiconductor wafer manufacturers. The United States is home to global leaders in the three categories of semiconductor companies, namely Intel (IDM), Global foundries (U.S./Dubai) (foundry), and Qualcomm (fabless). US companies lead both the IDM and fabless categories of the world IC market, with shares of 50% and 63% in the categories, respectively. In 2017, fabless companies made a revenue of USD 100 billion, globally. The estimated contribution, by the fabless companies mentioned above, to the semiconductor industry is expected to be more than 50%, which is anticipated to positively impact the wafer market during the forecast period.
Key Developments in the Semiconductor Silicon Wafer Market
•Nov 2017: Soitec, key players in the silicon wafer market developed the latest generation of silicon-on-insulator (SOI) substrates in its Imager-SOI product line. The new product development was initiated owing to the growing demand for 3D cameras used in augmented reality (AR) and virtual reality (VR), facial-recognition security systems, advanced human/machine interfaces and other emerging applications. These substrates are designed specifically for fabricating front-side imagers for near-infrared (NIR) applications and advanced 3D image sensors.
Major Players: SILTRONIC AG, SUMCO CORPORATION, SHIN-ETSU HANDOTAI CO. LTD., SK SILTRON CO. LTD, SOITEC S.A., OKMETIC INC., WAFER WORKS CORPORATION, GLOBALWAFERS CO. LTD, and EPISIL-PRECISION INC., among others.
Reasons to Purchase The Report
•Analysis of various perspectives of the market with the help of Porter’s five forces analysis
•The segments that are expected to dominate the market
•Regional analysis of the market during the forecast period
•Latest developments, market shares and strategies employed by the major market players and key innovators
•3 months analyst support along with the Market Estimate sheet (in Excel)
Customization of The Report
•This report can be customized to meet your requirements. Please connect with our representative, who will ensure you get a report that suits your needs.
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