Market Trends of Japan Power Transistor Industry
Consumer Electronics is Expected to Hold Significant Market Share
- Power transistors primarily aim to switch electric currents quickly while incurring the fewest switching losses. Insulated gate bipolar transistors (IGBTs) are found in various consumer electronics applications. For large applications like air conditioners, refrigerators, washing machines, microwave ovens, induction cooktops, and dishwashers, IGBT-based circuits are appropriate.
- Due to the growing use of inverters in air conditioners and the need to reduce power consumption in large-scale power supplies for household equipment, there is an increasing demand for highly efficient switching devices in consumer home appliances that consume a significant amount of electricity. The need for IGBTs is rising due to the increased demand for low-loss switching devices and higher switching frequencies in PFC circuits.
- For example, in March 2023, Toshiba Electronic Devices & Storage Corporation introduced the "GT30J65MRB," a 650V discrete insulated gate bipolar transistor (IGBT) for power factor correction (PFC) circuits in air conditioners and ample power supplies for industrial equipment. The GT30J65MRB from Toshiba is the company's first IGBT for PFC intended for use below 60 kHz. This was accomplished by lowering switching loss (turn-off switching loss) to ensure higher frequency operation.
- Additionally, homes frequently use electric automatic washing machines to clean household laundry. The power supplied by the power transistor can be used to control the motor's speed and rotational direction in the washing machines. The amount of water and motor torque can be adjusted to fit the washing load due to inverter control with power transistors, reducing wash/spin noise and vibration.
- Further, most consumers today are searching for advanced features that meet their needs for health and hygiene while being energy-efficient. Due to a spike in demand brought on by the recent heatwave that affected many areas of the world and the pent-up demand from the previous two summers, which was impacted by the COVID-19-induced lockdowns, manufacturers of air conditioners and refrigerators increased production to their total capacity. The increase in sales of ACs and refrigerators is expected to fuel the power transistor demand.
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Automotive Sector is Expected to Drive the Market
- The automotive industry accounts for a significant share of the total demand for semiconductors in the country. The automotive industry's migration from fossil fuel vehicles to hybrid and electric vehicles drives strong demand for power transistors. The leading power transistor makers compete to develop higher-performance devices on new materials such as SiC and GaN.
- In April 2022, DENSO Corporation, a mobility supplier, and United Semiconductor Japan Co., Ltd., a subsidiary of global semiconductor foundry United Microelectronics Corporation, announced that the companies have agreed to collaborate on the production of power semiconductors at USJC's 300mm fab to serve the growing demand in the automotive market.
- Research and Development activities also continue to rise in the region, which will help foster product innovation. For instance, in July 2022, the United States and Japan recently decided to launch a new joint international semiconductor research hub. They agreed to work on collaborative research for next-generation semiconductors, which will drive the studied market in the country.
- In December 2022, Nidec-Read Corporation announced that it had launched NATS-1000, fully automatic inline semiconductor inspection equipment, to test the functions of automotive IGBT (insulated gate bipolar transistor) /SiC (silicon carbide) modules.
- Further, in September 2022, onsemi, a provider of intelligent power and sensing technologies, announced a trio of silicon carbide (SiC) based power transistor modules in transfer molded technology that is intended for use in onboard charging and high voltage (HV) DCDC conversion within all types of electric vehicles (xEV). The APM32 series is the first-of-its-kind that adopts SiC technology into a transfer molded package to enhance efficiency and shorten the charge time of xEVs and is specifically designed for high-power 11-22kW onboard chargers (OBC).
