RFMD has introduced the world's first 6-inch GaN-on-Silicon Carbide (SiC) wafers for manufacturing RF power transistors for both military and commercial use. The company is converting all GaN production and development to 6-inch diameter wafers using its existing high-volume, 6-inch GaAs foundry to reduce platform cost for the growing GaN device market.
The GaN microelectronics market is expected to more than triple to $334 million by 2017, representing a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 28% (Source: Strategy Analytics). This market growth is led by growth in both military (radar, electronic warfare, communications) and commercial (power management, cellular, CATV, land mobile radios) applications.
GaN technology supports broad frequency bandwidths and high breakdown voltages in a small area. A 6-inch GaN wafer offers 2.5-times more useable area over competing 4-inch GaN wafer platforms currently available, resulting in 2.5 times more RF power devices per wafer. Larger area-per-wafer and subsequent lower cost per unit area (in dollars per square millimeter) is key to enabling affordable, high performance power monolithic microwave ICs (MMICs) for military and commercial applications. RFMD expects to complete qualification of its 6-inch GaN platforms in 2014.
