Semiconductors

Thursday 3 March 2022 - Introduction to changes in telecommunications infrastructure; Choice of semiconductor technology for sub-6 GHz and mmWave 5G; Case studies of sub-6 GHz and mmWave antenna; Overview of die attach materials and methodology; and Thermal interface materials for infrastructure and smartphone

5G deployment is in full swing with mid-band infrastructure installed by the end of 2021 representing nearly 6 times what it was in 2019. However, this doesn't mean that all of the challenges have been solved. Much of the 5G infrastructure is repurposed 4G equipment at lower frequency bands. The real transition to 5G comes from the adoption of higher frequencies which have largely been categorized into sub-6 GHz and mmWave (> 20 GHz) bands. One of the key challenges is thermal management.

The mobility sector continues to see a rapid pace of change, enabled by technological leaps in the underlying componentry and materials, but there is still a long way to go. In this article Luke Gear, Principal Analyst at IDTechEx, explores six key future mobility trends, drawing from IDTechEx Subscription research.

The latest IDTechEx report, "Automotive Radar 2022-2042", showcases all the technology innovations that are propelling the performance of radar into new unchartered territory. Given all the benefits that radar can offer, why then would Tesla be moving away and focussing on a camera only sensor suite?

In automotive power electronics (inverters, onboard chargers, DC-DC converters), the transition to silicon carbide MOSFETs and high voltage systems above 800V has been increasing in pace in 2021.

With the pandemic still raging, supply chain disruptions, the chip shortage, climate catastrophes, and geopolitical turbulence, it is safe to say 2021 has not been smooth sailing. The materials and chemical sector provides the backbone of every industry and remains under pressure from all these challenges. In this article, IDTechEx highlights the key news from their independent perspective on this crucial industry.

Several billion dollars have been put on the table for 6G Communication so far. The IDTechEx report "6G Communications Market, Devices, Materials 2021-2041" reveals how Europe, North America, and East Asia are all strongly committed to this dream. So who is ahead in the race to mass deployment maybe in 2030?

Under US sanctions, Huawei's revenue in the first half of 2021 was RMB 320.4 billion, which despite COVID-19 is a 38% decrease from RMB 454 billion in the same period last year; Xu Zhijun, Huawei's rotating chairman, pointed out that Huawei's goal is to survive. IDTechEx has recently launched the new version of their market research report on 5G - "5G Technology, Market and Forecasts 2022-2032". Some of the findings from the new report are presented in this article.

Think of a temperature sensor - and a traditional glass thermometer, or perhaps a small thermistor would probably spring to mind. However, a new class of temperature sensors is rapidly emerging that offers spatial resolution together with a thin-film format.

For electric vehicles (EVs), efficiency is the name of the game. In the past few years, we have started to see wide bandgap semiconductors such as silicon carbide (SiC) adopted in EV inverters to replace the typical silicon insulated-gate bipolar transistors (Si IGBTs).