China's power semiconductor attack road

Text/Ding Jianyu, Chen Yu, Li Yu, Changxin Yue

Edit/Yi Junjiang, Yang Jiankai

The chip supply chain that broke out last year was tense, which touched the nerves of the downstream car dealers, which caused a mighty domestic replacement wave. The role of power semiconductor to play electric energy conversion is one of the most important chip components of new energy vehicles. It is a hard bone that is produced by domestic replacement and a commanding height of domesticization. One year has passed, what is the situation?

Yuanchuan Technology Review has a long -term attention to the domestic power semiconductor industry dynamics:

The article "Lian Po" China Resources Micro released in October 2020 reviews the process of the 742 factory of China Resources Micro, the former China Resources Micro of the Domestic Power IDM Factory, and Huijing. The founder and origin of industry talent training.

The shortage of car chips released in March 2021, who is the culprit? "One article, the shortage of car chips since the beginning of 2021 is attributed to car dealers and design plants to concentrate risks in the basket of TSMC.

After the recent two or three years of rising progress, China's power semiconductor industry has made great progress. This article is mainly divided into three parts for re -inventory:

1. Multiple dimensions of production capacity construction;

2. Opportunities for car electronic;

3. Two pillars of the third -generation semiconductor.

01

Multiple dimensions of production capacity construction

When it comes to production capacity, one thing that can't be bypassed is the trend of 8 rpm 12 inches. 8 -inch wafers are mainly used in products such as power devices, simulation ICs, display drivers and sensors, covering automotive electronics, industrial control/medical, consumer electronics and other fields. With the advancement of chip manufacturing technology, 8 -inch to a larger 12 -inch transfer production has become a trend. According to SEMI data, the number of newly built number of 12 -inch wafer fabs in 2020 to 2022 is twice asbeling.

On the one hand, the cost of 12 -inch units is lower. A 12-inch wafer-produced crystal capacity is 2.25 times that of 8-inch, and the mature 12-inch film process production power semiconductor products are only 70%-80%of the unit cost of 8 inches. Significantly.

On the other hand, the 12 -inch wafer production line has basically achieved fully automation, and there are few steps to participate in manual participation, and the production efficiency and yield are higher.

However, the construction of 12 -inch faces two problems:

First, the investment cost is high. Compared with 8 inches, 12 -inch requires higher cleanliness and precision of the cleaning room of the foundry, and the equipment is more expensive, which also means that it needs to pay higher depreciation costs.

Second, the income to 12 -inch is still to be verified. The chip production line requires the participation of high -end skill engineers and a large amount of capital investment. The uncertainty of future income will bring certain risks to the project.

8 -inch is obviously a more secure choice. As a mature process, the 8 -inch production line equipment built in the early years has basically been depreciated and the operating cost is extremely low. Compared with the 12 -inch production line that is higher and requires a lot of manpower and time verification s Choice.

Especially for the domestic market, power semiconductor factories should comprehensively balance 8 inches and 12 inches, each played with the strengths of the technology and cost.

In the distribution of 12 -inch production lines, several domestic manufacturers have been put into production, with uneven performance. Some production line gross profit margin is low, far lower than the mature 8 -inch production line. It can be seen that it is not easy to hold the 12 -inch production line at the beginning of domestic players. It is a strategy to consolidate the advantages of consolidating 8 inches.

China Resources Micro's movement in expansion is very representative.

As the largest power semiconductor IDM company in China, China Resources Micro's fundraising is planned to focus on the technical reform of the 8 -inch production line of Wuxi and Chongqing. The process platform construction project can increase the production capacity of BCD and MEMS process every month.

In terms of 12 -inch production lines, the 12 -inch production line invested by China Resources Micro in Chongqing has received strong support from the large fund. It is expected that the production capacity will begin in the second half of 2022. At that time Building a 12 -inch extension and thin slice process capability will be used in the future to produce its own power device products. The long -term goal of China Resources Micro is to increase the proportion of their own products to 60%or more. At present, this proportion is about 45%. Power devices will become the main contributor to the company's stimulating their own product revenue.

From the case of China Resources Micro, "8 -inch technical reform+12 -inch expansion" is the only way for the future development of the semiconductor industry.

China Resources Micro's 8 -inch production line has been completed for many years, operating well, the technical reform investment is relatively small, and the expansion of production is more stable. The cost of depreciation and amortization that needs to be assumed is also low, making the company's products more competitive in the market.

At the same time, the reasonable personnel structure and huge production and research and development teams ensure that they can meet the needs of the 12 -inch production line, and will not be diluted to make the manpower, which finally leads to the decline in the yield of the old production line.

In addition, the production capacity construction is often overlooked:

One point is to build a relatively complete industrial chain to fully reduce costs and ensure the advantages of the shortage of production capacity. Especially considering the demand for power semiconductors under the electrification revolution, it cannot be urgently relying on outsourcing. China Resources Micro has made full considerations in this regard. The new production line is invested in other industrial chain links such as extension and packaging testing, which can improve the synergy, security and economics of the industrial chain. Another point is that 8 rides 12 are not just wafer size, more machines, but the increase in research and development strength, and the investment in technology has also increased.

The expansion of China Resources Micro on the 12 -inch production line emphasizes advanced technology:

One is a thin sheet process. For core power semiconductors such as IGBT, how much a thin piece can be achieved is a core measurement indicator, which directly determines the core energy efficiency indicators such as power consumption and heat dissipation. The development of development has become slow, and advanced packaging has become a mainstream technical solution for improving PPA performance. However, how to efficiently and accurately test the advanced packaging scheme has become a core problem. China Resources Micro is very rare in power semiconductor manufacturers.

Therefore, the construction capacity construction cannot be just 8 rpm 12. On the surface, if it is not accompanied by the construction and production team's construction and the construction of the complete industrial chain, and the technical increase and catch -up, it will not significantly increase the gross profit margin and market performance of the product and market performance. Essence

02

Opportunities for car electronics

After the production capacity construction, the second highlight of the power semiconductor is car electronics.

Since the signing of the Paris Agreement, governments of various countries have introduced the "carbon neutralization" plan and vigorously promoted the development of new energy -related industries. In addition, the breakthrough of power battery technology has also paved the new energy vehicle companies that welcomed the light. the way.

Policy support plus technological progress, like "good horses with good knives", new energy vehicles ushered in a well -spraying volume: in 2021, global new energy vehicles sales reached about 6.75 million, an increase of 108%year -on -year, penetration in the automotive market, penetration in the automotive market The rate reaches 8.3%.

It is the rapid increase in the value of the components of the new energy vehicle and the market size.

The Yole report pointed out that the value of automobile semiconductors will increase from US $ 34.4 billion in 2020 to US $ 78.5 billion in 2026, with a compound annual growth rate of 14.75%. It will increase from the current $ 450 to $ 700, and the average value of power semiconductor will increase by 5.5 times! This growth is unprecedented.

2020-2035 Global Automobile C.A.S.E market size and pre-pre-pre-pre-

Looking at it again, IGBT, as the core component of the power drive system, is the key to electrification: IGBT accounts for about 37%of the cost of new energy vehicle electrical control systems, and the electrical control system accounts for 15%to 20%of the vehicle cost -20% - 20%—— As a result, IGBT accounts for 5.6%to 7.4%of the cost of new energy vehicles. The value of its bicycle main drive IGBT rose from 650 yuan to more than 2275 yuan.

The power semiconductor in the semiconductor of the vehicle regulations is the power semiconductor represented by IGBT.

The company with a power semiconductor grabs a lot, but it is not so simple to enter the car supply chain.

Motor semiconductor requires high reliability. It must not only meet the complex and harsh working environment such as high temperature, low temperature, but also maintain extremely low failure efficiency in the life expectancy of at least 15 years. Therefore, the verification threshold is high and the cycle is long. British Faying and other brands with deep technical accumulation and long -term cooperation are deeply trusted by the entire vehicle factory.

However, the supply pattern has quietly changed in the tide of core lack of 2021. The global chip industry chain has fallen into a shortage, Ying Feiling has limited capacity, expands production cautious, and has high prices. Therefore, domestic companies have been pushed to the table. Enterprises with good technology, low price, accurate definition, and fast iteration are more popular. Domestic -produced domestic -made enterprises are more popular. Acceleration.

So, what kind of power semiconductor company can satisfy domestic car manufacturers to be fed?

IDM is not allowed.

In view of the high requirements of car regulatory products for performance indicators, safety, reliability, and consistency, companies that fully grasp the product Know-HOW can only be favored by car manufacturers.

At this point, IDM has a natural advantage over Fabless. In the IDM mode, the manufacturer completes the entire process from design, manufacturing to seal testing, and has a strong vertical integration capability. Know-how is in his own hands to avoid the reason for no problem in which link. trouble.

At the same time, the IDM model can better integrate upstream and downstream resources, reduce costs, and accelerate product technology iterative speed.

Foreign -ranking power semiconductor faucets are basically IDMs, and their advantages are evident.

Among the top ten domestic power semiconductor manufacturers, the mature IDM manufacturers are the only China Resources Micro. At the moment when domestic replacement accelerates, China Resources Micro has relying on its technical, cost, and capacity advantages, and the domestic power semiconductor industry is rare.

The first is the experience of high -end products in other fields, laying the foundation for China Resources Micro's performance in the automotive field.

Generally, the mid -to -high -end MOSFET is ignored. In fact, the domestic market is still dominated by foreign manufacturers. China Resources Micro has made great efforts in this regard, and stabilized the heels in high -end power supply (such as base station power supply), inverters, communication equipment and other strict product scenarios to achieve stable shipments. Expressing performance in these areas means that he has the ability to gain a foothold in the automotive field. In the new energy vehicle industry, there are a large number of mid -to -high -end MOSFETs with a large number of automotive charging scenarios such as charging piles, and the growth space is huge. Then there are three major advantages of IDM: cost, production capacity and process platform.

In terms of cost, China Resources Microcappeed Line has depreciated, and the products are more cost -effective. The two 8 -inch production lines were produced in 2011. They are calculated by the depreciation period of 8 years. They have been depreciated in 2019. The remaining 3 6 -inch put into production earlier, and the depreciation has been completed. In the past four years, the proportion of China Resources depreciation revenue has continued to decline, and the cost -effective products have increased.

In terms of capacity, the capacity cannot climb uphill, the scale effect is not significant, and the variable cost cannot be reduced. Compared with the two major domestic IGBT manufacturers in China, as of the end of 2021, BYD semiconductor had only 1 6 -inch production line, and the times had only 2 electricals, while China Resources had 5 production lines, including 3 6 -inch 6 -inch, including 3 6 -inch inch Production line and 2 8 -inch production lines, 6 -inch total monthly production capacity of about 230,000 pieces, 8 -inch total monthly production capacity of about 120,000 pieces, and this year there will The advantage is obvious.

In terms of process platform, China Resources Micro has a complete BCD process technology platform with a wide voltage coverage (5700V). It has three types of BCD technology: high -density, high -voltage and SOI base. Level. At the end of 2021, a 0.18 microns medium -high voltage vehicle -level BCD process technology was also successfully launched, which made rapid progress.

In the end, China Resources Micro has completed three steps on automotive electronics: rapid layout, strengthening certification, and striving for large OEM customers.

In terms of layout, China Resources Micro cuts into the automotive electronics field from the extension mergers and acquisitions and internal research and development. On the one hand, China Resources Micro acquiring Jiequn Electronics 70%of the equity and deploying automotive -level electronic packaging. On the other hand, China Resources Micro was attracted to professional talents and continued to develop related products on the basis of existing technology accumulation. With both phases, China Resources Micro can be said to have played the advantages of the listing IDM platform to the extreme.

In terms of authentication, auto regulations are not to be ignored, and the hardest bone in the international market means that it really leveraged the market. China Resources Micro's power device business group takes the opportunity of international automobile manufacturers as an opportunity to refer to the project process of the automotive industry, promote the construction of the automotive electronic system, conduct product establishment research and development and the AEC-Q101 system assessment, and improve the automotive-level product system and supply capacity.

The internal skills of the auto regulations are often ignored in the Chinese semiconductor industry. In the context of lack of cores, some factories carry consumer -level chips to the car. Although they can make some fast money, they cannot last long. China Resources Micro's attention and investment in automobile regulations are worth learning.

In terms of large hosting customers, China Resources Micro passed several car manufacturers' verification, and some products have entered the application of the vehicle, such as obtaining the car regulatory IGBT orders from head customers such as BYD.

03

Two pillars of the third -generation semiconductor

The third -generation semiconductor material, also known as wide -band semiconductor material, is mainly different from traditional silicon materials.

The prohibited bandwidth is an important indicator to determine the height of a semiconductor material's breakdown voltage. The larger the width of the forbidden band, the stronger the high voltage resistance of the device. The third -generation semiconductor material represented by SIC and GAN often has a wider bandwidth, so it is also called a wide -ranging semiconductor material.

Compared with ordinary silicon -based and single crystal material devices, the third -generation semiconductor device is reflected in:

First, the impedance is lower, which can reduce the volume of the product and improve the conversion efficiency;

Second, the frequency is higher, reduce energy loss, work frequency of 10 times the silicon -based device to improve work efficiency;

Third, the thermal guidance is stronger and can withstand higher temperatures. The working temperature is 4 times the silicon -based device to expand the working environment.

At present, the third -generation semiconductor has become the best choice for high -performance device manufacturers, and SIC and GAN, as the representative materials of the third -generation semiconductor, have taken the lead in the application of electric vehicle high -voltage charging and base station amplifier scenes.

In SIC's actual application scenarios, electric vehicle high -voltage charging applications have gone ahead.

Mileage anxiety is a key factor for car owners to choose from new energy vehicles and fuel vehicles. Most new energy vehicles have a range of less than 600 kilometers, which is difficult to meet the long -range driving needs in intercity. With the development of technology, stronger power performance and fast charging performance have become the urgent pursuit of goals for car companies. Super fast charging and power improvement have prompted electric vehicles to update faster. There are two directions for improving fast charging efficiency on the market: one is high current, the voltage does not change to increase the current; the other is high voltage, the current does not change to increase the voltage.

High -voltage mode is a generally adopted mode of car manufacturers. In addition to reducing energy consumption and improving the mileage, it also has the advantages of reducing weight and saving space. Major car companies in the world have 800V products planning. For example, Porsche Taycan is the first mass -produced 800V architecture electric vehicle, and Xiaopeng also launched 400KW fast charging under the 800V platform.

In addition, high voltage can meet long -term fast charging, and its SOC range that meets the maximum power charging is wider, while high current cannot be satisfied. Therefore, compared with increasing current, high voltage is the future development trend, and car companies will eventually move towards the technical route of 800V high -voltage charging. High voltage is conceived from the ground, and the key material SIC station is on the stage.

Compared with the single crystal SI device, the SIC device has multiple advantages: ten times that of silicon in the breakdown field, the blocking voltage on the smaller naked chip area is higher than that of silicon. The current SIC can support up to 1700 V's MOFSET blocks voltage, while silicon -based super -knot MOSFET is usually below 900 V.

Compared with single crystal silicon, SIC has lower diversion resistance and disconnection current, which helps improve efficiency. In addition, SIC has three times high thermal conductivity and can withstand higher chip temperature, thereby reducing the heat dissipation requirements.

Therefore, SIC devices have become an indispensable part of high -voltage charging technology.

When it comes to GAN's application scenarios, it has a perfect combination with the 5G base station amplifier.

The popularity of 5G technology is tested on the power performance of the 5G base station that is matched with the 5G base station, which is easily resolved by the GAN device.

The GAN device can provide higher power and bandwidth, and the GAN chip is progressing in terms of power density and packaging every year, which can be better applicable to large -scale MIMO technology. The Gan HEMT (high -electronic migration field effect crystal tube) using this material has become an important technology for the 5G macro -based station power amplifier. At present, GAN mainly uses SIC substrates on the Hongji Station. Because SIC is used as a substrate material and GAN's lattice, and the heat loss rate is small, and the heat guidance rate is high. The extension of the GAN can meet the high -power application of the Hongji Station.

It is precisely because of the organic combination of GAN and MIMO technology that the power amplifier efficiency has improved. It is understood that the power of 5G base stations is 4700W higher than the 4G base station, an increase of about 67%. Because 5G base stations need to use Massive MIMO and other technologies, the AAU output power of 5G base stations has increased from 40W ~ 80W of 4G to 200W or even higher. At the same time, due to the significant increase in the amount of data processed, the power of the BBU has also increased significantly.

Although the third -generation semiconductor device is easy to use, the biggest pain point that hinders its large -scale application is that the price is too high, and the silicon -based devices that achieve the same effect are more than several times. For cost considerations, the third -generation semiconductor products are not high.

Specifically, the difficulty of SIC is mainly difficult to prepare on the substrate.

First of all, high -purity carbon powder purification technology requires high requirements, and synthetic formula technology needs to accumulate for a long time;

Secondly, the single crystal grows slowly, the crystal crystal breeding speed is slow, and the cost of silicon carbide base is high;

Third, the silicon carbide has high hardness, high brittleness, long processing time and low product yield;

Finally, the cost of high -precision digital simulation technology is high, and most of the factors are currently low.

In addition to the high cost of SIC, GAN also has a lot of difficulty preparing:

In terms of matching, the outer layer on the GAN is more complicated than the silicon MOSFET, and the impact of the dynamic electrical performance of the device on the device is more obvious. Different manufacturers use different power GAN devices. Each scheme has different grid drives, current collapse effects and packaging, causing matching problems.

In terms of manufacturing, due to the poor matching degree of lattice of nitride and substrate material silicon, collapse will occur during growth, resulting in a low rate of good products. In terms of design, the gate of nitride crystal tube requires driving to achieve normal switches, and the gate voltage threshold and maximum voltage of nitride are small, so it is very easy to open by mistake. It is very difficult in design. Essence

So, in the case of high costs and difficulties in manufacturing, what kind of model should China take to develop third -generation semiconductors?

As far as fast shipping, it seems to be Fabless. Because the domestic base extension is backward, manufacturers who use Fabless mode are more advantageous because they can find foundry from Taiwan and foreign countries.

However, long -term competitiveness is still IDM.

Why? The reason is very simple. For example, many companies in the field of RF PA in the mainland are looking for Taiwan foundry, but the gross profit margin is very low. %. The reason behind is that the design company has no bargaining power on the foundry and the seal test. As Fabless, the cost disadvantage of the raw material costs of Wei Caponic products is inevitable in the hands of the wafer factory. It accounts for more than a quarter of the total procurement cost.

In comparison, the IDM mode has super superiority in terms of autonomy.

The mode of the third -generation compound semiconductor in China Resources Micro -layout is in the same vein as the silicon -based device, and it still uses the IDM mode.

The third-generation semiconductor uses the key factor of IDM, mainly to prepare the most significant substrate preparation on the cost, and the foundry end to the company's production line, eat Know-How to reduce costs. The lower the cost of the device, the closer to the sweet point of the substitution of the silicon -based device, the amount of the car on the car is just around the corner.

Along this idea, China Resources Micro made a series of demonstration actions for the Chinese power semiconductor industry. At the same time, China Resources Micro is focusing on the development and development of its third -generation semiconductor materials, while actively deploying the SIC upstream and downstream industrial chain. The Runke Fund invested by the company invested around the upstream and downstream of the industrial chain. Participating companies include SIC chips and equipment companies. Good guarantee SIC product supply chain.

With the guarantee of the industrial chain, China Resources Micro has made a variety of scenes on the benchmarking science, multi -generation, and multiple scenes on silicon carbide products.

In terms of product performance, China Resources Micro's SIC JBS product performance is slightly better than Kerry's latest 6th generation product level, with an area of ​​5%.

In terms of product iterations, China Resources Micro -multi -6 -inch first -generation 650V and 1200V SIC JBS products realized mass production, with sales of 6.5 million yuan in 2021; the performance of the second -generation product reached the industry's advanced level, and multiple products realized mass production; The fourth -generation product achieved technological breakthroughs and completed productization.

In terms of application scenarios, China Resources Micro aimed at multiple scenarios such as charging piles, solar inverters, and communication power supplies, all of which were shipped.

In terms of nitride, China Resources Micro is based on the 6 -inch production line, making full use of the technical advantages of the 8 -inch production line, adopting self -developed technology and packaging technology to promote from substrate materials, device design and manufacturing technology, and the packaging process is comprehensively promoted to promote the comprehensive advancement of the packaging process. R & D of Silicon -based GAN.

At the same time, China Resources Micro acquired 34.56%of the core crown technology in May this year. The latter focuses on the research and development, design, production and sales of silicon -based nitrogen nitrogen -nitrogen, design, production, and sales, which is also a typical IDM.

With both hands inside and outside, China Resources Microchany's relatively scattered structure in the nitrogen -nitrogen industry has adopted a flexible posture in market development:

The first is to use simple and easy -to -use drivers to design high -reliability products;

The second is to cooperate extensively with the industry's downstream manufacturers, and there are development products in the new energy vehicle vehicle charging engine, data center server power supply and high -end motor driver. China Resources Micro 2021 shows that its GAN product panel -level packaging technology research and development has completed small batches of mass production, and the delivery volume is greater than 50K.

04

end

For Chinese power semiconductors, human factors are always the most critical.

In the article "Lian Po" China Resources Micro, we detailed the development history of China Resources Micro, and pointed out its valuable historical and cultural heritage and talent overflowing, and achieved the power semiconductor industry in the Yangtze River Delta.

Now, as the leading power IDM of the science and technology board, China Resources Micro has performed well in the three major areas of production capacity construction, automotive electronics and third -generation semiconductor, which is inseparable from the helm and the corporate culture of talents and the corporate culture of talents.

In March of this year, Li Hong took over President of China Resources Micro. As a rare doctoral manager in the domestic power semiconductor industry, he has devoted himself to the semiconductor industry for nearly 30 years, accumulated rich industrial experience, promoted a number of technology development and industrialization, and has rich research and development management experience.

There are those who are well -versed in technology, and there are a group of sophisticated soldiers who climb the peak.

China Resources Micro has held a science and technology conference each year, and has been held for four sessions. It commends outstanding science and technology workers and outstanding scientific and technological achievements, and has special awards for young scientific researchers. It is a batch of technical backbones and the hard work of leaders and leaders that have technical rapid iterations and steps forward.

It can be seen that in the highly competitive semiconductor industry, state -owned enterprises can play a long -term leading role, which is essentially different from the Internet and other model innovation industries. For state -owned enterprises, as long as the business management and technical talent echelon construction is proper, knowing where the target market is, and adopting appropriate strategies, you can close the sadness and lead the gap between the Chinese semiconductor industry to make up the technology and the market. Start with the banner of industry charge.

In fact, not only China Resources Micro played the leading charge of state -owned enterprises in the power semiconductor industry, the Yangtze River storage in the field of NAND Flash storage, Hefei Changxin in the field of DRAM storage, all played a similar role.

At the moment when China's semiconductor industry is facing extreme pressure and huge gaps, the reason why these state -owned enterprises can catch up with the historical heritage and talent accumulation with Huaying and China Resources Micro -Paiicai are in great relationship. At the end of the last century, the construction of the sixth and fifth project and the national project narrative of the "908 Project" still deeply affected the historical memory of Chinese semiconductor people; Fresh fuel.

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