Silicon Wafer Market Looking To A Brighter Future
Worldwide silicon wafer area shipments increased slightly during the first quarter 2012 compared to Q4 2011 area shipments.
This is according to the SEMI Silicon Manufacturers Group (SMG) in its quarterly analysis of the silicon wafer industry.
Total silicon wafer area shipments were 2,033 million square inches during the most recent quarter, a 1 percent increase from the 2,009 million square inches shipped during the previous quarter. New quarterly total area shipments are 11 percent less than first quarter 2011 shipments.
Having said that, this is not including the solar market for silicon which is currently one of the most dominant technologies.
"The first quarter of the year tends to be a time for seasonal softness for silicon shipment volume, though quarterly shipments did improve some compared to the fourth quarter" says Bruce Kellerman, chairman of SEMI SMG and senior director of Semiconductor Product Marketing at MEMC.
"With modest growth forecasted for the semiconductor industry in 2012, we are optimistic that positive momentum will continue for silicon shipments."
Silicon wafers are the fundamental building material for semiconductors, which in turn, are vital components of virtually all electronics goods, including computers, telecommunications products, and consumer electronics. The highly engineered thin round disks are produced in various diameters (from 1 inch to 12 inches) and serve as the substrate material on which most semiconductor devices or "chips" are fabricated.
SEMI's data takes into account polished silicon wafers, including virgin test wafers, epitaxial silicon wafers, and non-polished silicon wafers shipped by the wafer manufacturers to the end-users.
