This photo taken on July 31, 2019, shows wafers displayed at an exhibition hall at Samsung Electronics Co.’s office building in Seoul. (Yonhap)
SEOUL, Feb. 12 (Korea Bizwire) — South Korea has the largest share of 300-millimeter (mm) wafer capacity in the world, a report showed Friday, underscoring its leadership in the chip manufacturing sector.
Based on factory location, the country, home to major chipmakers like Samsung Electronics Co. and SK hynix Inc., accounted for 25 percent of the global 300mm wafer, or 12-inch wafer, capacity as of end-2020, according to market researcher IC Insights.
Taiwan, home to the world’s largest foundry firm, Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co. (TSMC), came in second with 22 percent, followed by Japan with 16 percent.
If assessing data based on manufacturers’ headquarters location, IC Insights said South Korea’s capacity share goes up to 33 percent.
A wafer is a thin slice of semiconductor substance used as a base for fabricating integrated circuits. Wafer capacity is considered a gauge for chip production.
A larger wafer diameter allows chipmakers to produce more integrated circuits from a single wafer, enhancing their productivity and efficiency.
Meanwhile, IC Insights predicted the global monthly installed capacity for 200mm-equivalent wafers will reach 22.68 million units in 2021, up from 20.77 million units a year ago.
By product type, 9.01 million wafers are expected to be used for memory chips per month in 2021, followed by foundry products with 8.12 million wafers.
(Yonhap)
