Sanan Semiconductor and Luminus Devices partner to bring chips to the Americas

This strategic partnership is a natural fit, as both entities are subsidiaries of Sanan Optoelectronics, a renowned compound semiconductor innovator and the largest LED chip manufacturer globally. The timing of this alliance is particularly opportune, addressing the extended lead times experienced in power-related industries, especially for Silicon Carbide (SiC) wafers, Schottky diodes, and MOSFETs.

Sanan's recent completion of a $2 billion "Megafab" in Changsha, China, marks a significant milestone, positioning the company to offer products and services with remarkably short lead times, potentially as low as eight weeks for most products. This development establishes Sanan as the largest vertically integrated SiC manufacturer in China and the third largest in the world. The company's focus will be on providing foundry services to established semiconductor firms needing a reliable supply of SiC substrates, epi wafers, or bare die, alongside turnkey solutions of SiC Schottky diodes and SiC MOSFETs for emerging customers in renewable energy and various high-power applications.

Tony Chiang, CEO of Hunan Sanan Semiconductor, commented: "We are excited to leverage the well-established Luminus sales team in the Americas, including their regional manufacturers' reps and distributors, to deliver our wide bandgap technology and products to customers who have been suffering from limited allocation and long lead times in recent years."

The SiC Megafab of Sanan Semiconductor represents a new pinnacle in vertical integration, encompassing the entire production process from raw powder to final testing and packaging. The sheer scale of this facility is highlighted by a 1.6-kilometer-long window tour. In a move to further expand capacity, Sanan is constructing a facility adjacent to the Megafab, expected to more than double the capacity by early 2025. This expansion is in addition to the $3.2 billion SiC joint venture announced earlier this year with ST Microelectronics in Chongqing, China.

Mark Pugh, CEO of Luminus Devices, added: “Since we became part of the Sanan family 10 years ago, our worldwide customers have benefitted from the massive scale and advanced technology of our parent company. Now, customers in the Americas will enjoy local service, rapid delivery, and technical support from Luminus as we expand into the high-growth SiC and GaN power semiconductor materials, foundry, and components markets.”