Abstract:
The compound semiconductor industry was created by Department of Defense (DoD) funding efforts more than three decades ago. Despite the defense industry influence, these efforts paved the way for today’s communications market. Revenue in the compound semiconductor market has grown to more than $9 billion and the technology has expanded from gallium arsenide (GaAs) and indium phosphide (InP) to include gallium nitride (GaN), silicon germanium (SiGe) and silicon carbide (SiC). Market applications have expanded into most every area of RF, power and solid-state electronics, but the communications market remains the driver for the entire segment.
This presentation will review the revenue performance of the GaAs RF device market, along with the trends and drivers that have shaped that growth. We will also explore forecasts, trends, drivers and threats for the broader compound semiconductor industry. The presentation will close with some thoughts on how existing industry drivers and challenges, opportunities and timing of the emerging 5G network will shape the future of the compound semiconductor industry.