UMC, DENSO ally on automotive power semiconductors

Shanghai (Gasgoo)- Japanese auto parts supplier DENSO Corporation (“DENSO”) and United Semiconductor Japan Co., Ltd. (“USJC”), a subsidiary of the semiconductor supplier United Microelectronics Corporation (“UMC”), announced on April 26 that they had agreed to team up on the production of power semiconductors, in a bid to meet the global rising demands in electric vehicle (“EV”) field.

UMC fab's exterior; photo credit: UMC

According to DENSO's press release, the cooperation will see an insulated gate bipolar transistor (“IGBT”) production line build at USJC's wafer fab, which will be the first one in Japan to manufacture IGBTs on 300mm wafers. The fabrication plant is scheduled to start production in the first half of 2023.

Under the collaboration, DENZO will provide its IGBT device and process technologies, while USJC will use its ability to bring 300mm IGBT process into mass production.

Companies used to manufacture IGBTs on 200mm wafers in small scale. As the development of EVs accelerates amid a global effort to reduce carbon emissions, the demands for EV-used semiconductors are also surging. To lift outputs, many semiconductor suppliers are racing to use the lines that allow power semiconductors to be produced on 300mm wafers. For instance, Infineon Technologies inaugurated a chip factory for power electronics on 300-mm thin wafers in Villach, Austria on September 17, 2021. Toshiba said in February this year it would construct a new 300-milimeter wafer fabrication facility for power semiconductors, with the production start of the first phase scheduled for within fiscal 2024.

“We are confident that our foundry services certified by automotive customers combined with DENSO's expertise will produce high quality products to power the automotive trends of tomorrow,” said Michiari Kawano, President of USJC.

Headquartered in Taiwan, UMC provides high quality IC fabrication services, focusing on logic and various specialty technologies to serve all major sectors of the electronics industry. It has manufacturing facilities in Japan, Chinese mainland, and Singapore.