2022 Chip Forecast: Mixed Signals

By Mark LaPedus - 22 Feb, 2022 - Comments: 0

Jim Feldhan, president of Semico Research, sat down with Semiconductor Engineering to talk about the outlook for the semiconductor market. SE: What was your final 2021 semiconductor forecast? What is your 2022 semiconductor forecast? Feldhan: For 2021, world semiconductor revenues totaled $558 billion and units totaled over 1.1 trillion units. In terms of growth rate, revenues increased 2... » read more

Mixed Outlook For Silicon Wafers

By Mark LaPedus - 20 Jan, 2022 - Comments: 0

Silicon wafers are a fundamental part of the semiconductor business. Every chipmaker needs to buy them in one size or another, such as 200mm, 300mm and others. Silicon wafer vendors produce and sell bare or raw silicon wafers to chipmakers, who in turn process them into chips. So what’s in store for the silicon wafer market? Sungho Yoon, senior research manager at SEMI, sat down with Se... » read more

Covid Masks And Forecasts At Semicon

By Mark LaPedus - 16 Dec, 2021 - Comments: 0

Semicon West 2021 was certainty different, if not surreal, this year. The annual event was held in-person from Dec. 7-9, although there is a virtual component that runs until Jan. 7, 2022. In comparison, Semicon West was an all-virtual event in 2020, due to the Covid-19 pandemic. At this year’s in-person event in San Francisco, attendees, exhibitors and speakers were all required to wea... » read more

Outlook: DRAM, NAND, Next-Gen Memory

By Mark LaPedus - 18 Nov, 2021 - Comments: 0

Jim Handy, director at Objective Analysis, sat down with Semiconductor Engineering to talk about the 3D NAND, DRAM and next-generation memory markets. What follows are excerpts of that discussion. SE: How would you characterize the NAND market thus far in 2021? Handy: All chips are seeing unusual strength in 2021, but NAND flash and DRAM are doing what they usually do by exhibiting more e... » read more

Why Mask Blanks Are Critical

By Mark LaPedus - 21 Oct, 2021 - Comments: 1

Geoff Akiki, president of Hoya LSI at the Hoya Group, sat down with Semiconductor Engineering to talk about optical and extreme ultraviolet (EUV) lithography as well as mask blanks. What follows are excerpts of that discussion. SE: Mask blanks are components that serve as the base or the substrate for a photomask. Why are they critical? Akiki: If you look at Hoya, we've been positioned as... » read more

More Shortages Seen For Silicon Wafers

By Mark LaPedus - 16 Sep, 2021 - Comments: 0

Silicon wafer shipments have been on a torrid and record breaking pace in the first half of 2021, where demand continues to outstrip supply. So what’s in store for buyers of wafers for the remainder of 2021 and beyond? “Right now, the overall wafer pricing environment is becoming more favorable to wafer suppliers due to demand increase. Supply is getting tight and the average selling pri... » read more

What’s Ahead For DRAM, NAND?

By Mark LaPedus - 19 Aug, 2021 - Comments: 1

For the last year, the semiconductor industry has been in the midst of a boom cycle. But if you look close enough, there are mixed signals in the market, especially in memory. Still, it’s a banner year for semiconductors. In total, the semiconductor market is expected to grow by 18.1% in 2021, according to Semico Research. That compares to 6.6% growth in 2020, according to Semico. Today... » read more

Intel/GF deal: Pros, Cons, Unknowns

By Mark LaPedus - 22 Jul, 2021 - Comments: 1

The industry is still buzzing over a Wall Street Journal report that Intel is in talks to acquire GlobalFoundries (GF) for $30 billion. It’s been a week since the report appeared. Intel is still mum. GF says there are no talks taking place. Regardless, it’s worth looking at all of the possible scenarios just in case, and the pros and cons involved. There are layers upon layers of iron... » read more

More Fabs Seen In Chip Boom

By Mark LaPedus - 17 Jun, 2021 - Comments: 0

Over the last year, the semiconductor industry has seen an amazing turnaround. The industry happens to be in a boom cycle. Today, chip demand remains strong. And some fab projects have been accelerated to meet this demand, according to Christian Dieseldorff, an analyst at SEMI. It wasn’t always this way. In early 2020, the business looked bright, but the IC market dropped amid the Covid... » read more

Flat-Panel Display Demand Soars

By Mark LaPedus - 20 May, 2021 - Comments: 0

What a difference a year makes in the flat-panel display market. Prior to the Covid-19 pandemic outbreak in early 2020, the flat-panel display (FPD) market was gloomy. Oversupply, falling prices and losses were the common themes in the market. It’s been a different story during the outbreak. In 2020, the FPD market rebounded. In the stay-at-home economy, consumers went on a buying spree... » read more

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Knowledge Centers
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