An interesting article about GaN, which as we know is currently being explored by Poet through the IMRE agreement (March 2016).
(my Bold)
"....Today, GaN is widely used in the production of LEDs. In addition, it is gaining steam in the radio-frequency (RF) market. And the GaN-based power semiconductor market finally appears ready to take off, after several false starts and disappointing results in the arena.
Now, though, GaN-based power semis are making inroads in the power supply market. And over time, the devices are expected to move into electric vehicles, fast-charging adapters for mobile devices, wireless charging and other systems.
“Demand for GaN is sprouting up everywhere,” said Alex Lidow, chief executive of Efficient Power Conversion (EPC), one of the pioneers in the GaN-based power semi market. “The biggest apps are LiDAR (light distancing and ranging), envelope tracking for 4G/5G LTE base stations, and DC-DC converters for servers and telecom equipment. Wireless charging is still small, but I anticipate it will be one of our top three applications by 2020.”
"The projected growth for GaN-based power semis has prompted a number of companies to enter the market. EPC, GaN Systems, Infineon, Panasonic and Transphorm have shipped these devices, according to Yole. In addition, Dialog, NXP, On Semiconductor, TI and others are developing them."
"In addition, two foundries, TSMC and Win Semiconductors, provide GaN processes. And now, Wavetek, a business unit of Taiwan’s UMC, plans to enter the GaN foundry business.
the full article can be found here http://semiengineering.com/gan-power-semi-biz-heats-up/
