According to EETimes,Dongguan Tianyu Semiconductor Technology Co. Ltd., a start up formed in 2009, has started to extend its supply of silicon-carbide epitaxial wafers outside China after the completion of three contracts in August 2012.
The company, located in Songshan Lake industrial development zone of Dongguan City in Guangdong province, China, can supply 4-inch, 3-inch and 2-inch diameter wafers with a production capacity of 10,000 wafers per month.
Silicon-carbide epitaxial wafers are used in the production of Schottky diodes, MOSFETs, JFETs, and BJTs over a wide voltage. These devices are in turn used for energy efficient power electronics in equipment ranging from air conditioning, solar conversion and wind turbines up to electric vehicles, high-speed trains and smart grid electricity distribution.
Cree Inc. (Durham, North Carolina) is offering larger diameters of n-type doped 4H silicon-carbide, namely 150-mm diameter (6-inch) wafers.
The 150-mm epitaxial wafers with highly uniform epitaxial layers as thick as 100 microns are available for immediate purchase.
“Cree’s ability to deliver high volumes of 100-mm epitaxial wafers is unrivaled in the SiC industry and our latest 150-mm technology continues to raise the standards for SiC wafers,” said Vijay Balakrishna, Cree materials product manager, in a statement. “Our vertically integrated approach assures customers of a complete solution for high quality 150-mm SiC epitaxial wafers, providing industry leaders within the power electronics market the stable supply they demand.”
In my opinion, if silicon carbide nanoparticle is used, the ability to deliver high volumes will be strengthened but the price will be much higher.