The global Silicon Wafer Market is characterized by the presence of many global and regional vendors. The market is highly competitive, with all the players competing to gain market share. The increasing demand for silicon wafers in consumer electronics and the demand for miniaturization of semiconductor devices are the growth factors for the global silicon wafer market. However, high manufacturing costs and design complexity are some of the few key factors that limit market growth.
According to Wantstats analysis, Shin-Etsu Chemicals Co., Ltd., SUMCO Corporation, Siltronic AG, Global Wafers Co., Ltd., and SK Siltron Co., Ltd. are the key players in the global silicon wafer market. Apart from technological innovations and the development of the existing product portfolios, these players have entered various partnerships and strategic alliances with local companies to expand their geographic presence.
Shin-Etsu Chemical Co., Ltd. is a manufacturer and supplier of synthetic resins and other chemical products such as fertilizers. The company employs both organic and inorganic growth strategies using its research, production, and sales capabilities for innovating new products according to customers’ needs.
Sumco Corporation is a leading manufacturer of electronic-grade silicon wafers for the semiconductor industry. The company’s product portfolio has polished wafers, annealed wafers, epitaxial wafers, junction isolated wafers, and silicon-on-insulator wafers. The company believes in providing products manufactured using new and updated technologies to fulfill consumers’ demand.
SK Siltron Co., Ltd. is a producer of semiconductor silicon wafers. The company is a vertically integrated SiC material supplier with technology and manufacturing expertise from crystal growth to wafer fabrication and epitaxy.
Global Wafers Co., Ltd. manufactures semiconductor substrate materials. The product portfolio offers Epi wafers, polished wafers, etched wafers, ultra-thin wafers, and deep diffusion wafers. It also provides superiority, ingot, wafering, and epitaxial services.
Siltronic AG (Siltronic) operates as a manufacturer of hyperpure silicon wafers and chips with diameters of up to 300 mm. The company follows an inorganic growth strategy by setting up new manufacturing plants in many countries. For instance, in September 2016, Siltronic AG inaugurated its crystal pulling hall in Freiberg which provided a home for state-of-the-art crystal growing equipment in an appropriate cleanroom environment, supporting the development of silicon wafers.
Threat of New Entrants
The threat of new entrants in the market of silicon wafers is low, as the initial cost required for establishing the manufacturing facilities is very high. The semiconductor manufacturing industry is highly capital-intensive. The rising cost of the extraction, purification, and making silicon useful for semiconductors also reduces the chances for new entrants to enter the market. However, the technology used in the production of the silicon wafer is moderate but requires expert knowledge for processing.
Bargaining Power of Suppliers
The suppliers in the silicon wafers market are the providers of raw material such as silicon, boron, phosphorus, arsenic, and Antimony. Various suppliers provide these materials such as Elkem Silicones, Alsil Material, Atecom Tech. Co., Topsil, ELMATECH, and others. There are various raw material suppliers present in the market which lowers the supplier concentration.
Bargaining Power of Buyers
The primary buyers of silicon wafers buy these by various semiconductor manufacturing companies such as Intel Corporation, Apple Inc., Xiaomi, Google’s Nexus, Semiconductor Manufacturing International Corporation, Dow Corning, EV Group, and others. Moreover, the presence of various suppliers in the market of Silicon Wafers increases the buyer’s concentration which moderates the bargaining power of the buyers. Similarly, the low product differentiation between the products also lowers the switching cost of the buyers which eventually leads to moderate the bargaining power of the buyers.
Threat of Substitutes
Silicon wafers play an important role in the electronics industry. However, the presence of other semiconductors such as germanium is a threat to the silicon wafers. Although the price of germanium is high which lowers the threat of substitutes for the silicon wafers market. Additionally, the cost for the development of the facility and technology to produce germanium wafers is high this leads to lower the overall threat of substitutes.
Rivalry
The rivalry in the market is high, as there are limited manufacturers of silicon wafers such as Wafer World Inc., Okmetic, SK Siltron Co., Siltronic AG, SUMCO. The market has a high entry barrier, resulting in high competition among the manufacturers and rising demand for silicon wafers from the electronic industries leads to an increase in the power of the rivalry. However, the low product differentiation made by the manufacturing companies lowers the rivalry. Thus, the overall power of rivalry in the silicon wafers market is moderate.
