Views: 0 Author: Site Editor Publish Time: 2023-02-06 Origin: Site
GaN Systems, the leader of GaN power semiconductor, looks forward to the development trend of the global power semiconductor industry in 2023 from the perspective of the dynamics of the global semiconductor industry chain under geopolitics, energy conversion efficiency innovation and other aspects. The three global trends of electrovaporization, digitalization and net zero sustainability will continue to accelerate the growth and application of GaN power semiconductor industry.
The stable, high pressure and high temperature resistant physical properties of gallium nitride make it gradually emerge in the "energy-driven" application market of data centers, electric vehicles, industrial manufacturing, and consumer electronics, and become an ideal alternative to solve the current bottleneck of silicon-based components. However, in the face of adverse factors such as political and economic uncertainty in the general environment, supply chain management and diversified layout will become the decisive point for power semiconductor manufacturers - to consolidate the delivery time of existing customers, and at the same time, spare no effort to ignite the fire of innovation and break through the technical bottleneck.
Geopolitics urges global governments and enterprises to expand local investment, and the semiconductor industry chain tends to diversify
Jim Witham, the global CEO of GaN Systems, pointed out in an earlier interview with Forbes that if the semiconductor industry has learned anything from the past 18 months, it is that the risk of wind dispersion is not only the diversity of product portfolio, but also the diversity of "supplier portfolio". In addition to geographical diversity, enterprises also need to recognize the value of supplier diversity, because even smaller suppliers may provide the most timely solution to the current dilemma.
"As a global enterprise, we are happy to see governments expand their investment in local semiconductor industry and make long-term development plans for the diversification of the industrial chain," said Stephen Coates, general manager of GaN Systems Asia. In the near future, we will see more investment plans of semiconductors in Europe, America and emerging markets, but the vertical and horizontal integration of the semiconductor industry ecosystem cannot be copied or replaced in a short time.
The challenge of energy independence and decarbonization intensifies, blowing the clarion call of energy conversion efficiency revolution
The rapid increase of energy demand caused by the electric vaporization and digitalization of various industries, even though the growth of renewable energy power generation has broken through in recent years, it is still far from the global demand for electricity. When global enterprises regard decarbonization as not only an immediate action, but also a long-term goal to be achieved, the innovation of energy conversion efficiency has become an important means for enterprises to achieve a win-win situation between sustainability and profitability.
GaN Systems believes that gallium nitride power semiconductors will play an important role in the energy revolution. From reducing the energy loss between energy conversion, developing higher power but smaller energy storage systems, and finally comprehensively improving the efficiency of renewable energy power generation, gallium nitride power semiconductors will be the shortcut to the global net zero transformation.
The data center of large carbon emission customers will maintain profits and achieve net zero by relying on gallium nitride
In order to cope with the increasing volume of data, data centers need to upgrade hardware equipment every 3-5 years on average to maintain efficiency. The European Union redefines the size specification of power supply in data centers through the ErP environmental protection design directive Lot 9 and the Open Computing Plan (OCP) for energy efficiency of servers, data storage and other products - 30% smaller than the original size, "Next, we will see more cloud giant data centers introduce GaN power semiconductors to achieve more efficient power management," said Zhuang Yuanqi, deputy general manager of market development of GaN Systems.
The faster switching speed and higher conductivity of GaN power modules will help data centers reduce the generation of heat energy in power conversion and circuit distribution, thus reducing the need for complex cooling solutions. With gallium nitride technology, every 10 groups of server racks can increase profits by about US $3 million per year.
GaN power semiconductor enters the sweet spot of electric vehicle market
The growth rate of the electric vehicle market will be even more rapid under the combination of factors such as the policy of abandoning fuel for electricity, energy risks under regional conflicts, and the establishment of global carbon reduction targets. Looking forward to 2023, the development of silicon carbide power modules will be limited by material shortage, yield and high cost, "In contrast, GaN automotive power components are still in the development stage, but the market will begin to ferment from 2025 to 2026. GaN technology will meet the requirements of Tier 1 car factory for automotive components in terms of efficiency, reliability, cost and capacity," Zhuang Yuanqi added.
At present, the application of GaN in power system is still dominated by 400V, but 800V power system will also be certified at different application levels.
GaN power semiconductor technology will continue to be commercialized in the consumer market
Single-hole or porous GaN chargers from mainstream 45W and 65W to 100W-180W will continue to rewrite consumers' definition of fast charging next year. Gallium nitride power modules will also continue to penetrate different audio markets such as home appliances, automobiles and ships with lighter and smaller appearance and better sound quality. At the same time, emerging application opportunities such as home appliances, large-screen televisions, electric bicycles and electric tools will also emerge.
Stephen Coates concluded that the global GaN power semiconductor market will reach a market value of US $2 billion by 2027, driven by consumer electronics, automotive, data centers, industrial manufacturing and other applications, regardless of adverse factors such as the environment, politics and economy. The commitment of global enterprises to profit and sustainability will continue to add growth momentum to the GaN power semiconductor industry.
