Renesas Strengthens its Compound Semiconductor Business

Renesas Electronics expects the market of compound semiconductors to grow by an average annual growth rate of 8 percent from FY2010 to FY2012, and by achieving the objectives, the company aims to expand its compound semiconductor business by 11 percent, exceeding the market growth rate. The company also plans to increase its compound semiconductor sales in FY2012 by 1.2 times, targeting to become the industry-leading compound semiconductor supplier.



1) Acquire and maintain the world’s #1 market shares with photocouplers, RF switch ICs and



other focused products



Renesas Electronics aims to gain the largest shares of photocouplers and optical



storage devices (Note 2) and will further expand its worldwide top market shares of RF switch ICs and GaAs low-noise field effect transistors (FETs, Note 3).



[Photocouplers]



Renesas Electronics plans to accelerate its development of high-temperature operation, low-power and small-sized package to address the rising demand from the



“green” markets such as hybrid and electric vehicles, LED lighting systems and electric meters.



The company intends to further expand its sales of photocouplers by combining them with its IGBTs (insulated gate bipolar transistors), suitable for high-voltage and high-current output, and microcontrollers (MCUs), as one kit solution. In particular, the company will strengthen its overseas marketing function by doubling the headcount.



In addition, in anticipation of a rapid rise in demand, Renesas Electronics plans to double its production capacity from that of FY2009 Q4.



Based on these measures, Renesas Electronics is aiming to achieve the world’s #1 share in the photocoupler market in FY2011.



[RF Switch ICs]



For RF switch ICs that enable transmit-receive switching and 3G-GSM-mode switching and antenna switching on electric devices with an RF function such as mobile phones and notebook PCs, Renesas Electronics will adopt a new transistor that offer industry-leading low loss, and will also offer products in small-sized packages.



To be flexible for customers’ demands, Renesas Electronics will offer its RF switch IC products equipped in an ultras-mall package or as a bare die. The company also aims to expand its RF switch IC business through collaboration with chipset vendors in the U.S., Europe and Taiwan to provide reference designs for system manufacturers.



By achieving these objectives, Renesas Electronics intends to retain its current worldwide top share in the RF switch IC market.



(2) Launch GaN-based semiconductor products by March 2011



GaN is capable of operating at higher frequency, output power and temperatures compared to the existing semiconductor materials such as silicon (Si) and GaAs, and allows for far higher frequency of operation compared to SiC (silicon carbide), enabling higher breakdown voltage and high-speed operation for high-frequency applications.



Unlike other companies that apply the multi-layered fabrication method on a SiC substrate with a diameter of 3 to 4 inches, Renesas Electronics fabricates a circuit by stacking GaN layers on a Si substrate. This method brings a realization of larger wafers (6-inch wafers) and enables production of semiconductor devices at low-cost.



Renesas Electronics plans to first launch its highly reliable GaN-based products with high functionality for the market of CATV (cable television) amplifiers. Sample shipments of Renesas Electronics’ first GaN-based product, a module device for CATV incorporating multiple GaN FETs, condensers and other devices, is scheduled to begin by March 2011.



Renesas Electronics aims to further increase its shares in the market of its focused products such as photocouplers and RF switch ICs, and will expand its compound semiconductor business with the newly developed GaN-based products by cultivating markets that require high power and high frequency, such CATV amplifiers, microwave and millimeter wave devices.



(Note 1) Source: Renesas Electronics.



(Note 2) Visible laser diode, PDIC.



(Note 3) FET (field effect transistor): A transistor structure that is capable of high-speed switching.