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RF Power for Wireless Infrastructure Flat to Slightly Down, but Other Segments Up |
NEWS |
RF power semiconductor devices continue to be a nearly US$1.5 billion business (<4 GHz, >3 W) despite the variability with the wireless infrastructure segment. Wireless infrastructure accounts for nearly two-thirds of total revenue and has been flat to slightly up and then slightly down in recent years. The other major segments are:
All are showing solid mid-single-digit growth except for broadcast, which is anemic but still moving upward.
Technology Is Starting to Drive the Market |
IMPACT |
Gallium Nitride (GaN) devices are making strides in all segments except for broadcast. Improvements in manufacturability and attempts to fully commercialize GaN on Si all indicate that wireless infrastructure could be in the cards for GaN as its share in this important segment improves several percentage points each year.
The pulsed RF power marketplace, especially for military/defense and commercial avionics/air traffic control, is starting to be overcome by the newer technology, and several other segments are also falling under GaN’s influence as well. Look for this trend to continue for the next several years.
A Strategy for Moving Ahead |
RECOMMENDATIONS |
Moving forward, it will soon be important that RF semiconductor vendors stake out positions along several important paths.
The above is discussed in detail in the recent ABI Research market data RF Power Semiconductors (MD-RFPS-18) and the ABI Research report RF Power Semiconductors (AN-4910).