The Anvil's ambition is to enable SiC to displace silicon in the market range of $1bn to $5bn per annum mainly in electric vehicle, smart grid, photovoltaics and the wind turbine inverter applications. Further, low cost SiC power devices must be regarded as a disruptive technology which will enable new applications to be realised and hence the final market size will be much greater than listed.

The SiC Market report from Yole analyses the structure of the industry and its evolution in theindustrial food chain. It provides invaluable calculation on device demand and wafer volumes including diameter evolution forecasts for each market segment as well as a description of the key processes and linked equipment market.

SiC device makers now offer the 2 most expected devices in the power electronics industry: the diode and the transistor. 2011 is the year of the first SiC MOSFET introduction with simultaneous offers from Rohm and CREE. These devices are being used in real systems (air conditioners, motor drives, PV inverters…) and significant effort is being directed toward the packaging side to capture all the added-value of the SiC (High T°, high frequency….)

Thus, the open SiC device market has exceeded $50M in 2010 (excluding defense-related and R&D contracts) with an unexpectedly high penetration in the PV inverter segment where SiC Schottky diodes are now implemented in numerous systems, taking about 15% of the SiC device sales. PFC systems are still the top SiC device sales.

The open question remains the same: will SiC be implemented in Electric Vehicles (EV) and HEV and if so, when?

“The open SiC device market has exceeded $50M in 2010 (excluding defence-related and R&Dcontracts) with an unexpectedly high penetration in the Photovoltaic (PV) inverter segment, where SiC Schottky diodes are now implemented in numerous systems, taking about 15% of the SiC device sales. Power Factor Correction systems are still the top SiC device sales” says Dr Philippe Roussel, project manager at Yole Développement…

The investment level in the SiC industry has never been so huge: Over $100M has been invested in M&A, R&D programs, private and public funding over 2010 and early 2011.

Very recently the SiC industry has also started to consolidate through M&A, large investments or license agreements. Over the last 18 months, the most significant were:

 Rohm – SiCrystal: acquisition
 Power Integration – SemiSouth: large investment
 Fairchild – TranSiC: acquisition
 Cree – Nippon Steel Corp.: license agreement
 SKC – Crysband: acquisition
 Infineon – SiCed: 100% acquisition

6” wafers not accessible in volume
Although 6” SiC wafer capacity is now ramping-up for LED production at CREE, the power industry is not yet able to access it in volume. Yole Développement expects 2012 to be the starting point for a wide diffusion of this 150mm substrate that should act as an incentive for the remaining reluctant companies, arguing that SiC wafers are not compatible with their existing tool-kit.

Is SiC self-protected against GaN market penetration? In most of Yole Développement’s investigations, GaN is always mentioned as THE competing technology that can disrupt the expected natural and organic growth of the SiC business.

Originally Yole Développement and many others though GaN devices could have created turbulence in the SiC area starting from 2010, by proposing 600V devices with a tip-point at 1.2kV. However it seems that technology achievements have been delayed compared to the previous roadmap and only 200V GaN device are available in volume as of now.

Thus, at the moment, the 600V blurry region where SiC and GaN are supposed to fight is safe for SiC as no device can compete yet.

Life and death: China the new Eldorado for SiC?
“Of the 7 new entrants listed in the last 12 months, 4 were established in China and 3 among them were dedicated to material (raw wafer and/or epi). Epiworld, TianYue and TYSTC have invested extensively in top-class equipment to produce both SiC wafers and epiwafers.

Kingway Technology will be active in the device area with a double entry: SiC and  GaN from epi to device” explains (left) Alexandre Avron of Yole Développement.   "Two startups have ambitions for SiC device activity: Anvil Semiconductors in the UK and Ascatron, a spin-off from Swedish ACREO.

On the exiting side, Yole Développement notices the NeoSemiTech decision to cut its SiC activity as well as the 100% acquisition of SiCed by Infineon (formerly owned jointly with Siemens)