According to data from market research organization Yole Développement, the global SiC power semiconductor market will grow rapidly from US $ 302 million in 2017 to US $ 1.399 billion in 2023, and the annual compound growth rate (CAGR) of the market size from 2017 to 2023 will be 29% The driving force comes from the needs of hybrid and electric vehicles, electric power and photovoltaic (PV) inverters, etc. The market potential is huge!
Recently, Cree and ON Semiconductor signed a multi-year supply agreement for SiC wafers. Cree will supply ON Semiconductor with US $ 85 million worth of advanced 150mm silicon carbide (SiC) die and epitaxy wafers for EV High-growth markets such as electric vehicles and industrial applications. In the past year and a half, Cree also signed long-term SiC wafer supply agreements with Infineon, ST and other manufacturers, becoming the exclusive SiC silicon carbide partner of the Volkswagen Group FAST project. What about binding? What is Cree’s advantage in the SiC field?
On March 15, this year, Cree announced that it would sell its LED lighting unit to US Ideal Industries for $ 310 million. Cree sells businesses that include commercial LED lighting fixtures and corporate lighting solutions. Through this divestiture, Cree continues to focus on the compound semiconductor RF and power applications market, meeting the market demand for 5G communications and new energy vehicles.
It can be seen that Cree has been steadily reducing its dependence on the competitive and commercial lighting market, while turning to its Wolfspeed division’s power and RF products.
In February 2018, Career announced that it has signed a long-term agreement with Infineon to produce and supply Wolfspeed SiC wafers for Infineon. The agreement indicates that Cree will supply Infineon with 150 mm SiC silicon carbide wafers, which will help Infineon expand its product supply in high-growth markets including photovoltaic inverters and electric vehicles.
Infineon CEO Reinhard Ploss said: “We have worked with Cree for many years. Cree has a high reputation in the industry and is our strong and reliable partner. Based on the guarantee of long-term supply of SiC silicon carbide wafers, we It will enhance our strengths in strategic growth areas such as automotive and industrial power control. This will help us create more value for our customers. “
In January 2019, Career announced that it has signed a multi-year agreement with STMicroelectronics to produce and supply Wolfspeed silicon carbide wafers for STMicroelectronics. The agreement shows that during this extraordinary period of growth and demand for silicon carbide power devices, Career will supply STMicroelectronics with US $ 250 million in advanced 150mm silicon carbide die and epitaxial wafers.
Jean-Marc Chery, President and CEO of STMicroelectronics, said: “STMicroelectronics is currently the only semiconductor company capable of mass production of automotive-grade SiC. We look forward to further growth of the company’s SiC business, both in volume and In the application areas we serve. Our goal is to achieve a leading position in this market that is expected to exceed $ 3 billion by 2025. Signing this agreement with Cree will increase our flexibility and support our ambitions and plans And help increase the penetration of SiC in automotive and industrial applications. “
On May 10, 2019, Cree became the exclusive SiC silicon carbide partner of the Volkswagen Group FAST (Future Automotive Supply Tracks) project. The goal of FAST is to promote joint cooperation, implement technological innovation faster than ever, and achieve global automotive projects more efficiently and effectively.
Cree CEO Gregg Lowe stood with Mr. Michael Baecker, Head of Purchasing Connection at Volkswagen Group at the FAST Partner Selection Ceremony held at Wolfsburg, Germany.
This agreement brings together two simultaneous industrial changes: the automotive industry is undergoing a transition from internal combustion engines to EV electric vehicles, and in the semiconductor industry, the adoption of SiC silicon carbide is growing. The agreement will also drive innovation on both sides, helping the Volkswagen Group to better serve their customers. The adoption of SiC silicon carbide will accelerate the transformation of the automotive industry to EV electric vehicles and help achieve higher system efficiency, thereby bringing longer mileage and faster charging for EV electric vehicles, while reducing costs, weight and savings space.
Mr. Michael Baecker, Head of Purchasing, Volkswagen Group, said: “The Volkswagen Group plans to release nearly 70 new electric models in the next 10 years, and previously only planned 50 models. It is expected that based on the Volkswagen Group’s electric vehicle platform, The number of cars will increase from 15 million to 22 million. An effective (industrial ecological) network is the key to our success. Our FAST partners are all our strategic partners, and each partner is in its own field Outstanding. We want to shape the future of cars together. “
In August 2019, Career announced that it has signed a multi-year agreement with ON Semiconductor to produce and supply Wolfspeed silicon carbide (SiC) wafers for ON Semiconductor. Wolfspeed is a company of Cree, a global leader in the production of silicon carbide products and epitaxial wafers.
Pioneers in the SiC era
In 1983, several young people with passion and dreams met at North Carolina State University, an American institution of higher learning, and began their decades of friendship and dream journey. John Edmond, John Palmour, Eric Hunter, and their laboratory research assistant professor Calvin Carter, currently studying at the Graduate School of Materials Science and Engineering at North Carolina State University, have formed a research team to jointly participate in the funding of the United States Naval Office (ONR) A research topic aimed at supporting higher power electronic systems for military aircraft by developing a production process for microwave transistors using SiC materials.
Cree released the first commercial SiC substrate material in 1991. In June 1995, the research and development direction shifted to the development of GaN, except that Cree still insisted on using SiC as the substrate to grow GaN on SiC.
In 1998, the first industrial GaN-on-SiC RF device was launched.
In 2002, the world’s first commercial SiC power device was released.
In 2006, Cree acquired Intrinsic Semiconductor, a SiC substrate company.
In 2011, Cree introduced the industry’s first commercial silicon carbide power MOSFET, which set a new benchmark for energy-efficient power switches and enabled design engineers to develop high-voltage circuits with extremely fast switching speeds and ultra-low switching losses. Then in 2013, the second-generation SiC MOSFET was significantly improved.
In April 2013, Cree and Delta Energy Systems announced the launch of a new generation of Delta solar inverters, a breakthrough in the photovoltaic (PV) inverter industry, which uses SiC power MOSFETs. Using SiC MOSFETs in next-generation photovoltaic inverters can achieve important new milestones in terms of power density, efficiency, and weight.
In October 2013, Cree announced that Shinry Technologies adopted Cree’s 1200-V C2M series SiC MOSFETs to achieve new high efficiency, and hybrid electric and electric vehicle (HEV / EV) power converters achieve industry-leading 96% efficiency .
In March 2014, Cree introduced the industry’s most powerful CPW5 Z-Rec high-power SiC Schottky diode, which is the industry’s first commercial 50 A SiC rectifier series.
In September 2014, the C2M series 1200V / 80mΩ SiC MOSFET (Metal Oxide Semiconductor Field Effect Transistor) was adopted by Japan’s Sanix Corporation and applied in the design of its latest 9.9kW three-phase solar inverter, achieving system performance and high reliability A better combination of performance and cost performance for commercial photovoltaic system construction in Japan’s fast-growing solar market.
In September 2014, after the introduction of the full SiC 1.2kV half-bridge power module in May 2014, Career launched the full SiC 1.7KV / 8mΩ power module, using a 62mm package, and continued to maintain its leading position in the field of SiC power devices technology. . In the same month, Cree also introduced a 1.2kV full SiC six-cell power module series, which makes the inverter of the power generation system reduce power consumption by 50% and increase power output by 40%.
In May 2015, Career’s latest SiC power device achieved a technological breakthrough and launched the industry’s first 900V MOSFET platform. This new 900V MOSFET platform expands the product portfolio to address design challenges in new and evolving application markets for higher DC bus voltages. New devices overshadow existing Si-based solutions and provide significant system-level performance and cost advantages in high-frequency power electronics applications. Cree redefines the characteristics of discrete power MOSFETs with the industry’s first 900V SiC MOSFET.
In September 2015, Cree split its power and RF divisions into separate “Wolfspeed” companies.
In May 2016, Wolfspeed launched the high-performance power supply module CAS325M12HM2, which uses a half-bridge topology and consists of seven 1.2kV 25m C2M ™ silicon carbide field effect transistors and six 1.2KV 50A Z-Rec Schottky diodes. Cree sets a new standard for power electronics with this all-SiC high-performance half-bridge power module and gate driver combination.
In October 2016, Wolfspeed launched the industry’s first 1000V SiC MOSFET, which can reduce the overall system cost, improve system efficiency and reduce system size. With the introduction of 1000V SiC MOSFETs, Wolfspeed leads the market with the industry’s most complete device portfolio.
Withstanding the effects of moisture under bias is a long-standing problem for all electronic products. In response, in February 2018, Wolfspeed launched the WAS300M12BM2, which is composed of a new MOSFET (CPM2-1200-0025A) and a fifth-generation Schottky diode, which can meet harsh environmental standards at the chip level. This is also the first full SiC power device that has been verified to have a long service life through HV-H3TRB testing and has not found any potential defects in post-stress physical analysis. These results are for Wolfspeed W series SiC. The use of power modules in outdoor power conversion applications such as renewable energy and transportation has opened the door.
In August 2018, Cree’s Wolfspeed launched the E-series silicon carbide semiconductor devices. The Wolfspeed E-series is the first SiC MOSFET and diode product family that has achieved commercial mass production and has passed AEC-Q101 certification and PPAP compliance. It meets the requirements of high humidity environment and automotive certification, and provides the most reliable and durable products in the power market. Corrosive devices. With the launch of new SiC MOSFETs that meet automotive-related certifications, Wolfspeed becomes the first and only SiC semiconductor manufacturer with a full range of automotive-grade product portfolios to meet the needs of the electric vehicle EV market.
As part of the company’s long-term growth strategy, in May 2019, Cree announced that it will invest US $ 1 billion to expand SiC silicon carbide production capacity, and build an automated 200mm with the most advanced technology at the company’s US headquarters in Durham, North Carolina The SiC silicon carbide production plant and a materials super plant are also Career’s largest investments to date.
By adding existing building facilities as a 253,000-square-foot 200mm power and RF radio frequency wafer fabrication facility, the first step will be to meet the expected market demand. The new North Fab will be designed to fully meet automotive certification factories, and its production will provide 18 times the surface area of wafers available today, and 150mm wafers will be produced at the beginning. In addition, Cree will transform the existing production and materials plant in Durham into a materials super plant. The establishment of these two plants will provide kinetic energy for the Wolfspeed SiC and GaN-on-SiC silicon carbide-based gallium nitride businesses.