Market Trends of RF GaN Industry
This section covers the major market trends shaping the Radio-frequency Gallium Nitride Market according to our research experts:
Strong Demand from Telecom Infrastructure Segment Driven by Advancements in 5G Implementation
- As a primary driver of global digitization and an industry undergoing comprehensive changes in the market environment, the telecommunications industry is regarded as a major user of digital transformation technologies. The telecommunications industry's investment in interoperability and technology has facilitated a paradigm shift in the flow of capital and information throughout the global economy, providing the building blocks for the emergence of entirely new business models across the industry.
- The 5G technology is expected to revolutionize the domain of various broadband services and empower connectivity across different end-user verticals. The major factors boosting the market share of GaN are increasing mobile subscriptions, streaming of online video content, 5G infrastructure, and various IoT applications using 5G. 5G is anticipated to support different services and associated service requirements across multiple scenarios.
- Currently, the number of 5G mobile subscriptions is valued at 0.42 million, and it is expected to reach 400 million subscriptions by 2022. With the substantial growth in the rollouts of 5G technology globally, the demand for RF GaN technology is expected to increase.
- In May 2022, STMicroelectronics (ST) and MACOM Technology Solutions Holdings (MACOM), a supplier of semiconductor products for the telecommunications, industrial, defense, and data center industries, announced the production of RF GaN on silicon (RF Gan-on-Si) prototypes. With this success, ST and MACOM will continue to work together and expand their relationship. GaN-on-Si technology under development by ST and MACOM is anticipated to offer competitive performance and significant economies of scale enabled by integration into standard semiconductor process flows.
- Qorvo is one of the suppliers of RF solutions to the 2G, 3G, and 4G base station manufacturers. It is uniquely positioned in the market to support the development of sub-6 GHz and cmWave/mmWave wireless infrastructure. Qorvo has been investing in product solutions covering relevant 5G bands, such as 3.5, 4.8 and 28, and 39GHz, to service the market, mainly to enable 5G.
- The need for dense, small-scale antenna arrays in 5G infrastructure results in key challenges with power and thermal management in radio frequency (RF) systems. With their improved wideband performance, efficiency, and power density, GaN devices offer the potential for more compact solutions that can address these challenges.
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Asia-Pacific is Expected to Experience Significant Growth
- The Asia-Pacific region's discrete semiconductor industry is driven by China, Japan, Taiwan, and South Korea, constituting around 65% of the global discrete semiconductor market. In contrast, others, like Vietnam, Thailand, Malaysia, and Singapore, contribute to the region's dominance in the market.
- According to the Electronics and Semiconductors Association of India,the Indian market for semiconductor components would register a 10.1% CAGR (2018-2025) to reach USD 32.35 billion by 2025. The country is a vital destination for global research and development centers. Therefore, the ongoing 'Make in India' initiative by the Government of India is expected to result in significant investment in the semiconductor market. Such initiatives by the government of India will leverage the RF GaN market.
- In February 2022, Navitas Semiconductor, a provider of GaN integrated circuits (ICs), announced its participation in the China International Capital Corporation Limited (CICC) Investor Conference. The company's proprietary GaN power IC integrates GaN power and GaN drive, control, and protection in a single SMT package. Such participation will leverage the GaN market in the region.
- Demand for RF GaN across the APAC region is expected to increase due to growing investor interest in developing infrastructure to support 5G technology. For instance, according to the GSMA, the Asia-Pacific mobile operator is expected to spend more than USD 400 billion by 2025, of which USD 331 billion will be expended on 5G deployments.
- The growth of RF GaN companies in China is part of a broader trend as the nation shifts from a manufacturing- to an innovation-driven economy. The Chinese market is witnessing an exploding demand for commercial wireless telecom applications, and Chinese companies are already developing next-gen telecom networks.
- Moreover, in December 2021, researchers from IIT Kanpur in India developed a high-performance, industry-standard model of aluminum GaN (AlGaN) high electron mobility transistor (HEMT). This model provides a simple design method that can be used to manufacture high-power RF circuits. RF circuits include amplifiers and switches used in wireless transmissions and are useful in aerospace and defense applications. Constant innovations by researchers will drive the market growth of RF GaN in the region.
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