Worldwide Silicon Wafer Shipments Edge Higher to New Record in First Quarter 2022, SEMI Reports

Worldwide silicon wafer area shipments in the first quarter of 2022 surpassed the previous record high set in the third quarter of 2021, rising 1% quarter-over-quarter to 3,679 million square inches, according to the SEMI Silicon Manufacturers Group (SMG) in its quarterly analysis of the silicon wafer industry. First-quarter 2022 silicon wafer shipments saw 10% growth from the 3,337 million square inches reported during the same quarter last year.

“This new silicon shipping milestone points to continued growth in all areas of the semiconductor market,” said Anna-Riikka Vuorikari-Antikainen, Chairman of SEMI SMG and Chief Commercial Officer at Okmetic. “Silicon wafer supply remains tight and may stay constrained with many new announced semiconductor fab investments.”

Silicon Area Shipment Trends – Semiconductor Applications Only

Source: SEMI (www.semi.org), May 2022

Data cited in this release include polished silicon wafers such as virgin test and epitaxial silicon wafers, as well as non-polished silicon wafers shipped to end users.

Silicon wafers are the fundamental building material for the majority of semiconductors, which are vital components of all electronics including computers, telecommunications products, and consumer devices. The highly engineered thin disks are produced in diameters of up to 12 inches and serve as the substrate material on which most semiconductor devices, or chips, are fabricated.

The SMG is a sub-committee of the SEMI Electronic Materials Group (EMG) and is open to SEMI members involved in manufacturing polycrystalline silicon, monocrystalline silicon or silicon wafers (e.g., as cut, polished, epi). The SMG facilitates collective efforts on issues related to the silicon industry including the development of market information and statistics about the silicon industry and the semiconductor market.