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Its tough sledding when you not at leading edge , which is where the majority of Semicon companies are.
Non-Leading edge saturation is a real thing!
Renesas has abandoned plans to enter the SiC market. It was due to begin production this year.
The move may have been precipitated by the expected bankruptcy of Wolfspeed which was to have been Renesas’ supplier of SiC wafers.
In 2023, Renesas paid Wolfspeed an upfront sum of $2 billion to secure ten years’ supply of SiC wafers and it is possible that Renesas will not be able to get it back.
With the slowing in EV sales, demand for SiC chips has reduced while the Chinese chip companies have ramped up production of SiC devices and pushed down prices.
It's possible this is a sign the WBG market will go fabless over time - it is already happening with TSMC's GaN programs- the same could easily happen for SiC - the market downturns (like we've seen in the last 1.5 years) are especially costly for IDM model
It's possible this is a sign the WBG market will go fabless over time - it is already happening with TSMC's GaN programs- the same could easily happen for SiC - the market downturns (like we've seen in the last 1.5 years) are especially costly for IDM model
It's possible this is a sign the WBG market will go fabless over time - it is already happening with TSMC's GaN programs- the same could easily happen for SiC - the market downturns (like we've seen in the last 1.5 years) are especially costly for IDM model
I am not sure about this. Especially for SiC a lot of specialized manufacturing expertise is required. Best manufacturing process helps to create a better product in a market, which is otherwise highly commoditized.
Not sure what the added value of a foundry would be in such cases (unless of course if you consider Infineon/onsemi the foundry in such cases).
The SiC market sees some technology licensing, e.g.: https://newsroom.st.com/media-center/press-item.html/c3186.html. My understanding is this rather is a move to remain close to customers and perhaps also risk mitigation, instead of aiming at a foundry model.
I am definitely no expert in this area, but I have been told common silicon machines can be used to process GaN. This of course gives significant cost advantage for GaN production at existing foundries.
In 2023, Renesas paid Wolfspeed an upfront sum of $2 billion to secure ten years’ supply of SiC wafers and it is possible that Renesas will not be able to get it back.
