The global market for power discrete devices will rise at a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 8.43% over 2013-2018, forecasts a new report from TechNavio (the market research platform of Infiniti Research Ltd).
According to the report, growth of the global power discrete market is driven by several factors, including high demand for discrete silicon-based insulated-gate bipolar transistors (IGBTs). Discrete IGBTs enable increased efficiency in electronic devices ranging from consumer electronics to several high-power electronic applications, and they play a major role in the technical advancement of power electronics, says the market research firm .
In addition, silicon carbide (SiC) is currently widely used in the development of power semiconductors, including SiC MOSFETs, SiC JFETs, SiC BJTs, and SiC Schottky diodes. However, as a wide-bandgap material that offers similar performance benefits to SiC but has greater cost-reduction potential, the market for gallium nitride (GaN) power semiconductors is expected to grow rapidly in the coming years. In addition, GaN can be made available using existing silicon substrates, which can enable mass production and reduced cost.
Power semiconductors using next-generation materials such as SiC and GaN are characterized to have lower energy loss, high-speed switching, and higher heat resistance than conventionally used silicon. The adoption of SiC and GaN power semiconductors is hence expected to witness a significant increase, particularly in the electric vehicle/hybrid electric vehicle (EV/HEV) and industrial motor drive segments.
The report ‘Global Power Discrete Market 2014-2018’ states that demand for power discrete semiconductors is dependent on the growth of various application segments, including the EV/HEV, renewable energy, industrial motor drive, and LED lighting segments. In recent years, the industrial motor drive segment has been witnessing a slowdown because of several factors such as the sluggish economic recovery in the USA, the natural disasters occurring in Japan, and the Eurozone debt crisis, notes TechNavio.
The report recognizes the following companies as the key players in the power discrete market: Fairchild Semiconductor International Inc, Infineon Technologies AG, Mitsubishi Electric Corp, STMicroelectronics N.V., and Toshiba Corp. Other vendors mentioned in the report are Fuji Electric Co Ltd, International Rectifier, ON Semiconductor Corp, Renesas Electronics Corp, and Vishay Intertechnology Inc.
