In recent years, compound semiconductors represented by materials such as SiC (SiC) and gallium nitride (GaN) have attracted much attention due to their excellent properties such as wide bandgap, high saturation drift velocity, and high critical breakdown electric field. SiC and Si compete to manufacture power semiconductors, both scientifically and practically. Especially with the popularity and development of new energy electric vehicles, OEMs have begun to shift to 800V high-voltage platforms, and the demand for SiC has increased. As it gets bigger, its application in automobiles is also accelerating. This has had a certain impact on silicon-based IGBTs. However, recent news about IGBT shortages has spread like wildfire. It was caused by a news report from Taiwanese media. Ye Zhengxian, chairman of Maotech, said that IGBT price increases and shortages are not new. It is not a question of how high the price is, but the fundamental purchase. Less than. At the same time, foundries have also followed the rising trend. Foundry manufacturer Hanlei Group increased its foundry price for IGBT production lines by about 10% at the beginning of this year, highlighting the hot market. Judging from the delivery dates of several major IGBT manufacturers in the world, it seems that IGBTs are indeed in short supply. At present, IGBTs are mainly dominated by European and Japanese manufacturers. Infineon’s global IGBT market share exceeds 32%. In addition, Japan’s Fuji Electric, ON Semiconductor, Toshiba, STMicroelectronics, etc. are also major suppliers. These major IGBT manufacturers have The lead time is also around 50 weeks on average. According to data from the "2023 Q1 Chip Market Report" released by Future Electronics on February 17, 2023, ON Semiconductor's IGBT delivery period is 39-62 weeks, Infineon's IGBT delivery period is 39-50 weeks, IXYS The delivery time of IGBTs of (ACE) is 50-54 weeks, the delivery time of Microsemi's IGBTs is 42-52 weeks, and the delivery time of ST's IGBTs is 47-52 weeks. However, the delivery dates and price trends of these manufacturers are stable, and the market is relatively healthy. In an environment where SiC is booming, why can IGBT still be so popular? Lenovo’s recent practices of Tesla, let us re-examine the existence significance of IGBT and SiC. Tesla reduces SiC, continues to embrace silicon The first shot of SiC in cars was fired by Tesla. In the past five years, the growth of the SiC market has largely depended on Tesla. It was the first car manufacturer to use SiC materials in electric vehicles. Businessmen are also the largest buyers now. However, due to the problem of high costs, Tesla announced at the AI ​​Investment Day held some time ago that it would reduce the SiC content in its next-generation models by 75%, which caused a shock in the industry. 75% is not a small number! Tesla will reduce costs by $1,000 in next-generation electric vehicles through multiple actions including reducing SiC.   Tesla is currently developing a new entry-level model - Model 2 or Model Q, which will be cheaper and more compact than existing vehicles. In Tesla's view, for such a small car with fewer features Cars will not need as many SiC devices to power them. According to industry analysis, Tesla will adopt a low-power silicon-based IGBT + SiC MOSFET method to replace the previous SiC for low-end models. Currently, Tesla Model S/X and Model 3/Y platforms use the same inverter. According to the SystemPlus consulting disassembly report, there are a total of 24 SiC modules on the main inverter of Model 3, each module contains 2 SiC bare chip (Die), a total of 48 SiC MOSFETs, these 48 SiC MOSFETs replace 84 IGBTs. Tesla's new powertrain aims to use only 12 SiC MOSFETs. Tesla’s move has two far-reaching implications: one is that this is positive news for SiC, and Tesla’s move expands the potential market for SiC, making it applicable to the low-end market; the other is, Tesla's approach may also be followed by other OEMs, which may trigger demand for IGBTs again. Analysts at Yole Intelligence said that silicon-based IGBTs for EV inverters will be well positioned in the industry in terms of capacity and cost in 2023.Why Can't SiC MOSFET Replace IGBT?

Indeed, although SiC has some superior characteristics, it is not suitable for all application scenarios. SiC transistors have the advantages of higher switching speed, lower on-resistance, and higher voltage withstand capability, which makes them very suitable for high-frequency, high-voltage applications. In the 600-1,700V range, SiC power devices have a great advantage, especially in the field of new energy vehicles. Traditional silicon-based IGBT chips have reached the physical limit of the material in high-voltage fast-charging models, so new energy vehicles have started to embrace SiC.

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However, the disadvantage of SiC transistors is that their price is relatively high, and the SiC production process is more complex. The main reason for the high price of SiC is the SiC substrate: the growth rate of SiC crystals is slow, and it takes about 7 days for a SiC crystal to grow 1cm, compared to pulling out a 2-meter-long 8-inch silicon rod, which only takes 2-3 days; the hardness of SiC is also very high, not only is the cutting time long, but the yield is also low. Generally speaking, it only takes a few hours to cut a silicon wafer, while SiC requires hundreds of hours. Therefore, the actual control of the SiC industry chain is in the hands of substrate suppliers. In addition, other production costs are also higher than Si, but the proportion accounted for by the substrate is relatively small. SiC processing and production require higher temperatures and more expensive consumables. SiC transistors also have some shortcomings, such as being prone to damage and temperature sensitivity. Considering these characteristics, SiC is not suitable for some low-cost, low-power application scenarios.

The manufacturing cost of IGBT is lower than that of SiC MOSFET because the silicon-based material used by IGBT is low-cost, and the production technology is mature. The price of silicon is only one-third to one-fourth of that of wide-bandgap materials. Secondly, the reliability of IGBT is higher than that of SiC MOSFET because the structure of IGBT is relatively simple, and the failure rate is lower. At the same time, IGBT has better capacitance performance and better overvoltage resistance, suitable for high-power, high-current application scenarios. For example, in the field of DC-DC charging piles, which do not have high environmental requirements and do not have high requirements for weight and space, it is very difficult to replace the cost-advantaged IGBT.

Therefore, SiC cannot completely replace IGBT.

Some industry insiders have also told the author, "SiC is like a smart and extremely individualistic teenager, with outstanding advantages and equally outstanding shortcomings. IGBT is more like a steady and mature young man, capable of bearing the heavy burden of power devices."

Infineon Technologies Senior Vice President and Head of the Automotive Electronics Division in Greater China, Cao Yanfei, also said at a recent media communication meeting: "For many applications that prioritize top performance and appearance factors, silicon-based is still very competitive. We believe that in the automotive field, Si and SiC will coexist in the medium and long term."

It is indeed true that IGBT (Insulated Gate Bipolar Transistor), as a new type of power semiconductor device, is internationally recognized as the most representative product of the third revolution in power electronics technology and is the core component in the field of industrial control and automation. IGBT is known as the "CPU" of the power electronics industry. IGBT is still the best choice in many application scenarios and is widely used in fields such as frequency converters, wind power generation, and solar power generation. The development speed of these fields is very fast, leading to a rapid increase in the demand for IGBT.

High demand for IGBT in the market

Industry insiders analyze that this round of high demand for IGBT is mainly due to the rapid development of global new energy applications such as electric vehicles and solar energy. In 2022, the market demand for consumer electronics applications is declining, but the demand for emerging applications such as photovoltaics and energy storage, new energy vehicles, etc., continues to be strong.Under the backdrop of "carbon peak" and "carbon neutrality," the large-scale application of solar photovoltaic power has become an inevitable trend in the development of the world's energy. The photovoltaic inverter is the "heart" of the solar photovoltaic system, and the IGBT module is the core component of the photovoltaic inverter, accounting for 10% to 15% of the inverter's cost. With the continuous development of the power generation efficiency of solar modules, the transition to high-power modules is gradually taking place, thus greatly increasing the proportion of IGBTs introduced.

The increase in photovoltaic installed capacity has become an important driving force for the increased demand for photovoltaic IGBT modules. This can also be reflected in the revenue of domestic manufacturers: Xin Jie Neng achieved a sales revenue of 400 million yuan in the IGBT business in 2022, a year-on-year increase of 398.23%, and it is expected that the company's IGBT product sales will continue to accelerate in 2023; the domestic IGBT supplier Star Semiconductor stated in its 2022 performance forecast that IGBT modules and discrete devices have been installed in large quantities in the photovoltaic power generation and energy storage fields and have rapidly increased in volume; BYD Semiconductor announced in June last year that its IGBT modules have been shipped in batches to the photovoltaic field.

Trend of downstream application fields of IGBT products of supplier Xin Jie Neng in 2022 (Source: Xin Jie Neng financial report)

Electric vehicles need no further elaboration. It is reported that the number of IGBTs used in an electric vehicle is as high as hundreds, which is seven to ten times that of traditional fuel vehicles. IGBTs are mainly used in three areas in automobiles: the main inverter of the motor drive, the on-board charger (OBC) and the direct current voltage converter (DC/DC) related to charging, and the modules for completing auxiliary applications.

According to data from analysis institutions, the global photovoltaic new installed capacity reached 244GW in 2022, and the actual sales volume of new energy vehicles in China reached more than 6.8 million, and according to data from the International Energy Agency (IEA), by 2030, there will be 125 million electric vehicles on the road.

Under the continuous promotion of multiple green energy markets, the IGBT market scale is rapidly expanding. The Business Research Company's data research points out that the global IGBT market scale will grow from $7.27 billion in 2022 to $8.42 billion in 2023, with a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 15.7%, and will grow to $15.27 billion by 2027, with a compound annual growth rate of 16.0%.

In addition to market driving factors, the continuous development of new products by a number of IGBT suppliers is the contributor to the "invincible position" of IGBT. Companies such as Infineon, ON Semiconductor, Toshiba, and domestic participants are improving the performance and stability of IGBTs through continuous innovation and improvement, making them more suitable for various application scenarios. For example:

In November 2022, Infineon Technologies developed a new single IGBT power module for 1500V inverters.

On March 20, 2023, ON Semiconductor launched a series of new ultra-high efficiency 1200V VII (FS7) IGBTs, with new devices having smaller conduction and switching losses.Toshiba Electronics Europe GmbH has released a new 650V-rated discrete IGBT for PFC circuits in air conditioning, household appliances, industrial equipment power supplies, and other applications, with turn-off loss improved by at least 40% compared to the previous generation.

In September 2022, Renesas Electronics Corporation developed a new generation of Si-IGBT AE5 for next-generation electric vehicle (EV) inverters. Compared with the company's current generation AE4 products, the silicon-based AE5 process for IGBT can reduce power loss by 10%. Renesas Electronics will mass-produce the AE5 generation IGBT on the 200 and 300 mm wafer production lines at its factory in Naka, Japan, in the first half of 2023.

Multiple IGBT projects have been launched domestically and internationally.

China is the largest market for IGBT demand, and in the medium to long term, the domestic semiconductor market demand is expected to continue to grow rapidly. To alleviate the shortage of IGBTs, we have seen that many IGBT suppliers are increasing production efforts and improving supply.

In April 2022, Denso and United Semiconductor Japan Co., Ltd. (USJC) announced that the two companies will cooperate in the production of power semiconductors at USJC's 300 mm wafer factory. USJC's wafer factory will install an IGBT production line, which will be the first factory in Japan to produce IGBTs on 300 mm wafers. Denso will contribute its system-oriented IGBT devices and process technology, while USJC will provide its 300 mm wafer manufacturing capabilities, with plans to start in the first half of 2023.

Domestically, on February 18, the Chongqing Fuling District held a centralized commencement and completion ceremony for key projects in the first quarter of 2023. Among them, the centralized commencement projects included the 6-inch IGBT power semiconductor production line project of Daxin Electronics, with a total investment of 2 billion yuan, to build a 6-inch power semiconductor specialty process wafer production line with an annual output of 1.2 million pieces. The product application will cover new energy vehicles, smart grids, photovoltaic energy storage, wind power generation, industrial applications, and white home appliances.

On February 22, Jiangsu Jiejie Microelectronics Co., Ltd. announced that it intends to increase investment in its wholly-owned subsidiary, Jiejie Semiconductor Co., Ltd., for the "Power Semiconductor 6-inch Wafer and Device Packaging and Testing Production Line Construction Project" from the initial 510 million yuan to 810 million yuan, of which equipment investment is 523 million yuan.

Subsequently, as global manufacturers gradually release capacity, the IGBT delivery period will gradually return to normal levels under supply and demand adjustments, and the shortage situation will be alleviated.

Capital has also been active in the IGBT track. In the past six months, many semiconductor companies in the IGBT field have received financing:

On December 15, 2022, Zhejiang Jingneng Microelectronics Co., Ltd., a subsidiary of Geely Technology Group, announced the completion of the Pre-A round of financing. On March 16, Geely Technology Group's public account released information that the first vehicle-grade IGBT product independently designed and developed by Zhejiang Jingneng Microelectronics has been successfully taped out, using the seventh-generation micro-trench gate and field stop technology, with comprehensive performance indicators reaching the industry-leading level.In February 2023, Meipushen Semiconductor completed its Series A+ round of financing, focusing on the field of high-power semiconductor components such as MOSFET/IGBT. On March 20th, Guoxin Technology invested in the domestic IGBT field startup company, Shanghai Ruiqu Micro-Electronic Technology Co., Ltd., with an investment of 15 million yuan, accounting for 4.87% of the shares, and focusing on the development of the seventh-generation IGBT chip and IPM intelligent modules. On March 25th, Anjian Semiconductor received a B round of financing of 180 million yuan, and the funds raised will mainly be used for the development of high and low voltage MOS and IGBT full series products, the development of the third-generation semiconductor SiC devices, and the construction of the IGBT module packaging and testing factory.

Conclusion

In general, IGBT, SiC, and even GaN are very important semiconductor devices in the current market applications, and they have a wide range of applications in the field of power electronics and many other fields. Although IGBT has some shortcomings, with the continuous development and innovation of technology, SiC and IGBT complement each other in competition and unite in competition. In the future, IGBT will continue to shine in the field of electronic power.