Hon Hai Precision Industry Co (鴻海) is to produce new-generation silicon carbide (SiC) chips used in electric vehicles (EVs) as it seeks to resolve key choke points in global EV supply chains, company chairman Young Liu (劉揚偉) told a technology forum yesterday.
Long battery charging times, relatively short driving distance and higher sales tags than vehicles powered by gasoline hinder the swift uptake of EVs, Liu told the virtual forum arranged by SEMI, an association that represents the global semiconductor sector.
“We want to help our customers solve those problems. That is why we bought a 6-inch fab in Hsinchu from Macronix International Co (旺宏) in August,” Liu said.
Photo courtesy of Hon Hai Precision Industry Co
Company research showed that SiC technology would solve those problems, Liu said, adding that semiconductors comprise about 30 percent of the manufacturing cost of EVs and power chips are the key semiconductors in EVs.
SiC chips are recognized by EV manufacturers for their thermal conductivity, low thermal expansion, lower power usage and high energy efficiency.
The Hsinchu fab is to be converted into a manufacturing facility for SiC chips, as well as a research and development center for SiC semiconductors, Liu said.
The converted fab would have an installed capacity of 15,000 wafers per month, which obviously lags behind future demand, he said.
Hon Hai has also expanded into different regions, including Japan, with a share in an 8-inch fab in Fukuyama, and Malaysia, with a share in an 8-inch fab owned by Silterra Malaysia Sdn Bhd.
Hon Hai also plans to make power chips, radio frequency chips and complementary metal-oxide semiconductor image sensors at the fabs, he said.
The company is discussing collaborations with some of the top semiconductor firms, Liu said.
SiC semiconductors have the potential to replace silicon, the leading material, on many power fronts, as SEMI’s Power & Compound Fab Report to 2024 shows.
Capital investments of nearly US$7 billion would this year be made in compound semiconductors, such as SiC chips, SEMI Taiwan president Terry Tsao (曹世綸) said yesterday.
The investment total marked a new record, he added.
With demand growing rapidly, investment next year is expected to reach US$8.5 billion, as compound semiconductors are used in EVs, the green energy industry and 5G communications applications, Tsao said.
SEMI and the Hon Hai Research Institute (鴻海研究院) are to jointly hold a forum on compound semiconductors for EVs, called the NExT Forum, on Thursday.
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