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A major bottleneck in the commercialization of Micro LED displays is the mass transfer of micron-size LEDs to a display backplane. Research by LEDinside, a division of TrendForce, reveals that many companies across industries worldwide have entered the Micro LED market and are in a race to develop methods for the mass transfer process. However, their solutions have yet to meet the standard for commercialization in terms of production output (in unit per hour, UPH), transfer yield and size of LED chips (i.e. Micro LED is technically defined as LEDs that are smaller than 100 microns). These research findings can be found in LEDinside’s 3Q17 Micro LED Next Generation Display Industry Member Report: Analyses on Mass Transfer and Inspection/Repair Technologies.

Currently, entrants in the Micro LED market are working towards the mass transfer of LEDs sized around 150 microns. LEDinside anticipates that displays and projection modules featuring 150-micron LEDs will be available on the market as early as 2018. When the mass transfer for LEDs of this size matures, market entrants will then invest in processes for making smaller products.

Development of mass transfer solutions faces seven major challenges

“Mass transfer is one of the four main stages in the manufacturing of Micro LED displays and has many highly difficult technological challenges,” said Simon Yang, assistant research manager of LEDinside. Yang pointed out that developing a cost-effective mass transfer solution depends on advances in seven key areas: precision of the equipment, transfer yield, manufacturing time, manufacturing technology, inspection method, rework and processing cost.

LED suppliers, semiconductor makers and companies across the display supply chain will have to work together to develop specification standards for materials, chips and fabrication equipment used in Micro LED production. Cross-industry collaboration is necessary since each industry has its own specification standards. Also, an extended period of R&D is needed to overcome the technological hurdles and integrate various fields of manufacturing.

Mass transfer has to achieve five-sigma level before mass production of Micro LED displays is feasible

Using Six Sigma as the model for determining the feasibility of mass production of Micro LED displays, LEDinside’s analysis indicates that the yield of the mass transfer process must reach the four-sigma level to make commercialization possible. However, the processing cost and the costs related to inspection and defect repair are still quite high even at the four-sigma level. To have commercially mature products with competitive processing cost available for market release, the mass transfer process has to reach the five-sigma level or above in transfer yield.

As progress on mass transfer solutions continues, true Micro LED products are expected to first enter applications such as indoor displays and wearables

Even though no major breakthroughs have been announced, many technology companies and research agencies worldwide continue to invest in the R&D of mass transfer process. Some of the well-known international enterprises and institutions working in this area are LuxVue, eLux, VueReal, X-Celeprint, CEA-Leti, SONY and OKI. Comparable Taiwan-based companies and organizations include PlayNitride, Industrial Technology Research Institute, Mikro Mesa and TSMC.

There are several types of mass transfer solutions under development. Choosing one of them will depend on various factors such as application markets, equipment capital, UPH and processing cost. Additionally, the expansion of manufacturing capacity and the raising of the yield rate are important to product development.

According to the latest developments, LEDinside believes that the markets for wearables (e.g. smartwatches and smart bracelets) and large indoor displays will first see Micro LED products (LEDs sized under 100 microns). Because mass transfer is technologically challenging, market entrants will initially use the existing wafer bonding equipment to build their solutions. Furthermore, each display application has its own pixel volume specifications, so market entrants will likely focus on products with low pixel volume requirements as to shorten the product development cycle.

Thin film transfer is another away of moving and arranging micron-size LEDs, and some market entrants are making a direct jump to developing solutions under this approach. However, perfecting thin film transfer will take longer time and more resources because equipment for this method will have to be designed, built and calibrated. Such an undertaking will also involve difficult manufacturing related issues.

The global active-matrix organic light-emitting diode (AMOLED) panel market is forecast to surge 63 percent in 2017 from a year ago to $25.2 billion on growing demand for AMOLED panels in the smartphone and TV industries, according to IHS Markit (Nasdaq: INFO).

“Growing use of AMOLED panels in smartphones and rising sales of AMOLED TVs will mainly drive the growth of the AMOLED panel market,” said Ricky Park, director of display research at IHS Markit. “A steady rise in demand from head-mount displays and mobile PCs would also prop up the market.”

AMOLED_shipment_revenue_forecast_2

The demand for AMOLED displays has rapidly risen in the smartphone market in particular as the flexible substrate allows phones to be produced in various designs with a lighter and slimmer bodies. This year, leading smartphone makers have competitively rolled out premium phones that boast a very narrow bezel or nearly bezel-less designs.

“The AMOLED display market is also expected to get a boost from Apple’s decision to use an AMOLED screen in its iPhone series to be released later this year, and Chinese smartphone makers’ moving to newer applications of AMOLED panels,” Park said. “To meet the burgeoning demand, South Korean and Chinese display makers have been heavily investing in Generation 6 AMOLED fabs.”

According to Display Long-term Demand Forecast Tracker from IHS Markit, the TV industry, the second biggest market for AMOLED panels, will also play a major role in fostering the growth of the AMOLED panel market this year. LG Display, which currently dominates the AMOLED TV panel market, is set to embark on the operation of its second AMOLED TV panel line E4-2 with an aim to mass produce panels in the latter half of this year.

Bumped up by an increase in output, the AMOLED TV panel market is forecast to grow from 890,000 units last year to 1.5 million units this year. By 2021, the AMOLED panel market is projected to expand at a compound annual growth rate of 22 percent to exceed $40 billion.

As active-matrix organic light-emitting diode (AMOLED) displays quickly displace liquid crystal displays (LCDs) in smartphones, panel makers are rapidly adding new production capacity, accelerating the demand for the fine metal mask (FMM), a critical production component used to manufacture red-green-blue (RGB) AMOLEDs. The FMM market is forecast to grow at a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 38 percent from $234 million in 2017 to $1.2 billion in 2022, according to IHS Markit (Nasdaq: INFO).

 

AMOLED_FMM_revenue_forecast

In the AMOLED manufacturing process, FMM is a production component used to pattern individual red, green and blue subpixels. A heating source evaporates organic light-emitting materials, but vapor deposition can only be controlled precisely with the use of a physical mask. FMM — a metal sheet, only tens of microns thick, with millions of very small holes per panel — is the only production-proven method of accurately depositing RGB color components in high-resolution displays.

“FMM has become a bottleneck in the supply of AMOLED panels due to the manufacturing technology challenges posed by increasing resolutions and a limited supply base. As pixels per inch (PPI) increase, thinner FMMs with finer dimensions are required, which reduce mask production yield and useable lifetime,” said Jerry Kang, senior principal analyst of display research at IHS Markit.

Dai Nippon Printing (DNP) is the dominant FMM supplier, owing to its proprietary etching technology for very thin metal foils and mass production experience. Currently, DNP’s FMMs are used to fabricate the vast majority of AMOLED smartphone panels, and exclusively for high-end quad high definition (QHD) resolutions. “Most panel makers are now trying to procure DNP’s FMM in hopes of being able to quickly ramp new fabs to high yields,” Kang said.

The critical nature of FMM and rapid demand growth are encouraging a number of companies to develop alternative FMM technologies and enter the market. Panel makers are also encouraging new players as a second source to mitigate supply chain risk and create price competition. As the supply of FMM is a determinant factor in the AMOLED display market to meet its projected growth rates, and with the FMM market forecast to grow five times its current size by 2022, FMM is garnering intense interest from both set and panel makers alike and creating new opportunities for suppliers.

The AMOLED Shadow Mask Technology & Market – 2017 report from IHS Markit provides a comprehensive analysis of the latest technology and market trends for FMMs and open masks, as well as mask and panel supplier status updates, including forecasts of revenues, units, area and prices from 2014 to 2022.

 

By Dave Lammers

Keynote speakers Terry Higashi of Tokyo Electron Ltd. and Tom Caulfield of GlobalFoundries took the stage at the Yerba Buena Theater Tuesday morning to predict major changes in the goals and operations of the semiconductor industry.

higashi2013_11_600px_0 ThomasCaufieldSized

In many ways, 2017 has been marked by intense interest in the capabilities of neural networks and other forms of artificial intelligence (AI). Higashi, now a corporate director at TEL, predicted that AI and virtual reality are among the applications that will propel demand for semiconductors “almost without limit.” Neuromorphic processors, the veteran TEL executive said, “are one of the promising devices to enhance human creativity. They will be improved step by step, just as logic and memory devices were improved.”

Looking toward a future in which AI and human skills combine to resolve problems, Higashi predicted that today’s Von Neumann-based architectures and neuromorphic device will complement each other. “Artificial intelligence solutions will be proposed, and the challenges and problems will be solved by scientists and engineers. The combination of Von Neumann and neuromorphic computing gets us closer to true intelligence,” he said.

AI also will play a role in enhancing the immersive experiences promised by virtual reality, experiences which visionaries have predicted but which thus far mankind “has never fully experienced.”

Higashi said that by combining VR and AI, “we can attain a suspension of disbelief, and simply enjoy the experience. If we can provide the technologies, consumers will experience excitement and a form of happiness.”

Caulfield, the general manager of the Malta fab near Albany, agreed with Higashi’s assessment that that the semiconductor industry is seeing “new buds” that will bloom into large semiconductor markets.

However, Caulfield said that to achieve anything like the rate of technological progress seen over the first half century of the semiconductor industry, companies and customers will have to take collaboration to new levels. And he offered the collaboration between GlobalFoundries and AMD as an example.

“Collaboration, potentially, is the biggest thing we need to do. We need strategic partnerships, and not only among semiconductor manufacturers but also with equipment suppliers.”

At its Malta fab, GlobalFoundries builds all of AMD’s leading-edge discrete graphics engines and CPUs. “The AMD and GlobalFoundries engineering teams are so embedded with each other, one can hardly tell” which company an engineer works for, he said.

Noting the resurgence of AMD, Caulfield said “we are all proud to be part of that partnership.” And he pointed to another collaboration, between Samsung and GlobalFoundries, which allows customers to take the same 14nm design and choose whether to manufacture it at Samsung’s Austin fab or at Malta. “Customers can run photomasks in Austin or in Malta, New York and have the product look the same,” he said.

Government role

In such a collaboration-rich business environment, governments also have a role to play, Caulfield said.

“Public-private investments must imply a return to governments as well as to companies. Otherwise, they send the wrong message.” By investing several billion dollars in the Malta fab, GlobalFoundries and the state of New York put to work the well-educated young people who otherwise would have left the state in search of technology jobs. When Malta began operations, only 20 percent of the staff were educated in New York. Now, fully half of the workforce has benefited from a New York education.

“We were exporting talent. Now, the workforce has great opportunity within the state,” he said.

Both Higashi and Caulfield said major challenges face the industry. Higashi noted that innovation will be required to keep flash memory costs under control. “As data is captured by sensors and is transferred via the appropriate networks and stored in data centers, demand for NAND will be high. We must make huge efforts to reduce the overall cost, as the semiconductor industry is expected to provide enough volumes to support the Internet of Things.”

Caulfield said the performance of logic transistors has struggled to keep pace, even as density increases have continued. When the industry moved from 28nm to 14nm technologies, performance increased by fully 50 percent. But from 14nm to 10nm, speeds improved by about 18 percent, making shrinks primarily a cost improvement.

With the industry now focused on brining 7nm logic to the market, the question arises whether 5nm CMOS will provide enough performance to justify that node. While the jury on technology scaling is still out, Caulfield said the industry may have to move to gate all around (GAA) structures, or to non-silicon channel materials, in order to gain the kinds of performance improvements that customers expect from a new node.

Higashi said systems must get faster. “Real-time processing is crucial in the cyber world. And with robotic hands, there should be no delays in physical operations.”

“Memory, logic, and sensing make it possible for AI systems to solve problems much faster than a team of geniuses. We are now in a new era, one of super integration. In addition to improved specialty devices – based on logic, memory, and sensors – we must take these separate devices and put them together into fully integrated systems. It is time to make a pizza, with some of the best ingredients,” he said.

By Pete Singer

Luc Van den Hove, president and CEO of imec

Luc Van den Hove, president and CEO of imec

Speaking at imec’s International Technology Forum USA yesterday afternoon at the Marriott Marquis, Luc Van den Hove, president and CEO of imec, provided a glimpse of society’s future and explained how semiconductor technology will play a key role. From everything the IoT to early diagnosis of cancer through cell sorters, liquid biopsies and high-performance sequencing, technology will enable “endless complexity increase,” he said.

Other developments, almost all of which are being worked on at imec, include self-learning neuromorphic chips, brain implants, artificial intelligence, 5G, IoT and sensors, augmented and virtual reality, high resolution (5000 ppi) OLED displays, EOG based eye tracking and haptic feedback devices. He also acknowledged the critical importance of security issues, but suggested a solution. He noted that each chip has its own fingerprint due to nanoscale variability. That’s been a problem for the industry but we could “turn this limitation into an advantage,” he said, with an approach called PUFs — Physical Unclonable Functions (Figure 1).

Figure 1. Nanoscale variability has been a problem for the industry but we could be turned into an advantage with PUFs -- Physical Unclonable Functions.

Figure 1. Nanoscale variability has been a problem for the industry but we could be turned into an advantage with PUFs — Physical Unclonable Functions.

At the forum, imec also announced that its researchers, in collaboration with scientists from KU Leuven in Belgium and Pisa University in Italy, have performed the first material-device-circuit level co-optimization of field-effect transistors (FETs) based on 2D materials for high-performance logic applications scaled beyond the 10nm technology node. Imec also presented novel designs that would allow using mono-layer 2D materials to enable Moore’s law even below 5nm gate length. Additionally, imec announced that it demonstrated an electrically functional 5nm solution for Back-End-of-Line interconnects.

FETs based on 2D materials

2D materials, a family of materials that form two-dimensional crystals, may be used to create the ultimate transistor with a channel thickness down to the level of single atoms and gate length of few nanometers. A key driver that allowed the industry to follow Moore’s Law and continue producing ever more powerful chips was the continued scaling of the gate length. To counter the resulting negative short-channel effects, chip manufacturers have already moved from planar transistors to FinFETs. They are now introducing other transistor architectures such as nanowire FETs. The work reported by imec looks further, replacing the transistor channel material, with 2D materials as some of the prime candidates.

Figure 2. 2D materials, with the atomically-precise dimension control they enable, promise to become key materials for future innovations.

Figure 2. 2D materials, with the atomically-precise dimension control they enable, promise to become key materials for future innovations.

In a paper published in Scientific Reports, the imec scientists and their colleagues presented guidelines on how to choose materials, design the devices and optimize performance to arrive at circuits that meet the requirements for sub-10nm high-performance logic chips. Their findings demonstrate the need to use 2D materials with anisotropicity and a smaller effective mass in the transport direction. Using one such material, monolayer black-phosphorus, the researchers presented novel device designs that pave the way to even further extend Moore’s law into the sub-5nm gate length. These designs reveal that for sub-5nm gate lengths, 2D electrostatics arising from gate stack design become more of a challenge than direct source-to-drain tunneling. These results are very encouraging, because in the case of 3D semiconductors, such as Si, scaling gate length so aggressively is practically impossible.

“2D materials, with the atomically-precise dimension control they enable, promise to become key materials for future innovations. With advancing R&D, we see opportunities emerging in domains such as photonics, optoelectronics, (bio)sensing, energy storage, photovoltaics, and also transistor scaling. Many of these concepts have already been demonstrated in the labs,” says Iuliana Radu, distinguished member of technical staff at imec. “Our latest results presented in Scientific Reports, show how 2D materials could be used to scale FETs for very advanced technology nodes.”

5nm Solution for BEOL

The announced electrically functional solution for 5nm back-end-of-line (BEOL) is a full dual-damascene module in combination with multi-patterning and multi-blocking. Scaling boosters and aggressive design rules pave the way to even smaller dimensions.

As R&D progresses towards the 5nm technology node, the tiny Cu wiring schemes in the chips’ BEOL are becoming more complex and compact. Shrinking the dimensions also reduces the wires cross-sectional area, driving up the resistance-capacitance product (RC) of the interconnect systems and thus increasing signal delay. To overcome the RC delay challenge and enable further improvements in interconnect performance, imec explores new materials, process modules and design solutions for future chip generations.

One viable option is to extend the Cu-based dual-damascene technology – the current workhorse process flow for interconnects – into the next technology nodes. Imec has demonstrated that the 5nm BEOL can be realized with a full dual-damascene module using multi-patterning solutions. With this flow, trenches are created with critical dimensions of 12nm at 16nm. Metal-cuts (or blocks) perpendicular to the trenches are added in order to create electrically functional lines and then the trenches are filled with metal. Area scaling is further pushed through the introduction of fully self-aligned vias. Moreover, aggressive design rules are explored to better control the variability of the metal tip-to-tips (T2Ts).

Figure 3. Dense-pitch blocks enabled by a dual damascene flow and multi-patterning. The pattern is etched into the low-k and metallized.

Figure 3. Dense-pitch blocks enabled by a dual damascene flow and multi-patterning. The pattern is etched into the low-k and metallized.

Beyond 5nm, imec is exploring alternative metals that can potentially replace Cu as a conductor. Among the candidates identified, low-resistive Ruthenium (Ru) demonstrated great promise. The imec team has realized Ru nanowires in scaled dimensions, with 58nm2 cross-sectional area, exhibiting a low resistivity, robust wafer-level reliability, and oxidation resistance – eliminating the need for a diffusion barrier.

“The emergence of RC delay issues started several technology nodes ago, and has become increasingly more challenging at each node. Through innovations in materials and process schemes, new BEOL architectures and system/technology co-optimization, we can overcome this challenge as far as the 5nm node”, said Zsolt Tokei, imec’s director of the nano-interconnect program. “Imec and its partners have shown attainable options for high density area scaled logic blocks for future nodes, which will drive the supplier community for future needs.”

For the longer term, imec is investigating different options including but not limited to alternative metals, insertion of self-assembled monolayers or alternative signaling techniques such as low-energy spin-wave propagation in magnetic waveguides, exploiting the electron’s spin to transport the signal. For example, the researchers have experimentally shown that spin waves can travel over several micrometers, the distance required by short and medium interconnects in equivalent spintronic circuits.

A new type of semiconductor may be coming to a high-definition display near you. Scientists at the Department of Energy’s Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory (Berkeley Lab) have shown that a class of semiconductor called halide perovskites is capable of emitting multiple, bright colors from a single nanowire at resolutions as small as 500 nanometers.

A 2-D plate showing alternating cesium lead chloride (blue) and cesium lead bromide (green) segments. Credit: Letian Dou/Berkeley Lab and Connor G. Bischak/UC Berkeley

A 2-D plate showing alternating cesium lead chloride (blue) and cesium lead bromide (green) segments. Credit: Letian Dou/Berkeley Lab and Connor G. Bischak/UC Berkeley

The findings, published online this week in the early edition of the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, represent a clear challenge to quantum dot displays that rely upon traditional semiconductor nanocrystals to emit light. It could also influence the development of new applications in optoelectronics, photovoltaics, nanoscopic lasers, and ultrasensitive photodetectors, among others.

The researchers used electron beam lithography to fabricate halide perovskite nanowire heterojunctions, the junction of two different semiconductors. In device applications, heterojunctions determine the energy level and bandgap characteristics, and are therefore considered a key building block of modern electronics and photovoltaics.

The researchers pointed out that the lattice in halide perovskites is held together by ionic instead of covalent bonds. In ionic bonds, atoms of opposite charges are attracted to each other and transfer electrons to each other. Covalent bonds, in contrast, occur when atoms share their electrons with each other.

“With inorganic halide perovskite, we can easily swap the anions in the ionic bonds while maintaining the single crystalline nature of the materials,” said study principal investigator Peidong Yang, senior faculty scientist at Berkeley Lab’s Materials Sciences Division. “This allows us to easily reconfigure the structure and composition of the material. That’s why halide perovskites are considered soft lattice semiconductors. Covalent bonds, in contrast, are relatively robust and require more energy to change. Our study basically showed that we can pretty much change the composition of any segment of this soft semiconductor.”

In this case, the researchers tested cesium lead halide perovskite, and then they used a common nanofabrication technique combined with anion exchange chemistry to swap out the halide ions to create cesium lead iodide, bromide, and chloride perovskites.

Each variation resulted in a different color emitted. Moreover, the researchers showed that multiple heterojunctions could be engineered on a single nanowire. They were able to achieve a pixel size down to 500 nanometers, and they determined that the color of the material was tunable throughout the entire range of visible light.

The researchers said that the chemical solution-processing technique used to treat this class of soft, ionic-bonded semiconductors is far simpler than methods used to manufacture traditional colloidal semiconductors.

“For conventional semiconductors, fabricating the junction is quite complicated and expensive,” said study co-lead author Letian Dou, who conducted the work as a postdoctoral fellow in Yang’s lab. “High temperatures and vacuum conditions are usually involved to control the materials’ growth and doping. Precisely controlling the materials composition and property is also challenging because conventional semiconductors are ‘hard’ due to strong covalent bonding.”

To swap the anions in a soft semiconductor, the material is soaked in a special chemical solution at room temperature.

“It’s a simple process, and it is very easy to scale up,” said Yang, who is also a professor of chemistry at UC Berkeley. “You don’t need to spend long hours in a clean room, and you don’t need high temperatures.”

The researchers are continuing to improve the resolution of these soft semiconductors, and are working to integrate them into an electric circuit.

With the increasing sophistication of future vehicles, new and more advanced semiconductor technologies will be used and vehicles will become technology centers.

BY DR. JEAN-CHARLES CIGAL and GREG SHUTTLEWORTH, Linde Electronics, Taipei, Taiwan

Large efforts are being deployed in the car industry to transform the driving experience. Electrical vehicles are in vogue and governments are encouraging this market with tax incentives. Cars are becoming smarter, capable of self-diagnostics, and in the near future will be able to connect with each other. Most importantly, the implementation of safety features has greatly reduced the number of accidents and fatal- ities on the roads in the last few decades. Thanks to extensive computing power, vehicles are now nearing autonomous driving capability. This is only possible with a dramatic increase in the amount of electronic devices in new vehicles.

Recent announcements regarding acquisitions of automotive electronics specialists by semiconductor giants and strategic plans from foundries highlight the appetite from a larger spectrum of semiconductor manufacturers for this particular market. Automotive electronics has become a major player in an industrial transformation.

Automotive electronics is, however, very different from the consumer electronics market. The foremost focus is on product quality, and the highest standards are used to ensure the reliability of electronics components in vehicles. This has also an impact on the quality and supply chain of materials such as gases and chemicals used in the manufacturing of these electronics devices.

Automotive electronics market: size and trends

When you include integrated circuits, optoelectronics, sensors, and discrete devices, the automotive electronics market reached around USD 34 billion in 2016 (FIGURE 1). While this represents less than 10% of the total semiconductor market, it is predicted to be one of the fastest growing markets over the next 5 years.

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There are several explanations for such growth potential:

• The vehicle market itself is predicted to steadily grow on an average 3% in the coming 10 years and will be especially driven by China and India, although other developed countries will still experience an increase in sales.
• The semiconductor content in each car is steadily increasing and it is expected that the share of electronic systems in the vehicle cost could reach 50% of the total car cost by 2030 (FIGURE 2).

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While it is clearly challenging to describe what the driving experience will be in 10 to 15 years, some clear trends can be identified:

• Safety: The implementation of integrated vision systems, in connection with dozens of sensors and radars, will allow thorough diagnoses of surrounding areas of the vehicles. Cars will progressively be able to offer, and even take decisions, to prevent accidents.
• Fuel efficiency: The share of vehicles equipped with (hybrid) electrical engines is expected to steadily grow. For such engines, the electronics content is estimated to double in value compared to that of standard combustion engines.
• Comfort and infotainment: Vehicle drivers are constantly demanding a more enhanced driving experience. The digitalization of dashboards, the sound and video capabilities, and the customization of the driving and passenger environment should heighten the pleasure of time spent in the vehicle.

In order to coordinate all these functions, communication systems (within the vehicle, between vehicles, and between vehicles and infrastructures) are critical and large computing systems will be necessary to treat large amount of data.

Quality really makes automotive electronics different

Automotive electronics cannot be defined by specific technologies or applications. They are currently characterized by a very large portfolio of products based on mature technologies, spanning from discrete, optoelectronics, MEMS and sensors, to integrated circuits and memories.

Until now, the automotive electronics market has been the preserve of specialized semiconductor manufacturers with long experience in this field. The reason for this is the specific know-how required for quality management.

A component failure that appears harmless in a consumer product could have major safety consequences for a vehicle in motion. Furthermore, operating conditions of automotive electronics components (temperature, humidity, vibration, acceleration, etc.), their lifetime, and their spare part availability are differentiators to what is common for consumer and industrial devices (FIGURE 3).

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Currently, some of the most technologically advanced vehicles integrate around 450 semiconductor devices. As they become significantly more sophisticated, the semiconductor content will drastically increase, with many components based on the most advanced semiconductor technology available. Introducing artificial intelligence will require advanced processors capable of computing massive amount of data stored in high-performance and high capacity memory devices. This implies that not only the most advanced semicon- ductor devices will be used, but that these will need to achieve the highest degree of reliability to allow a flawless operation of predictive algorithms.

It is expected that smart vehicles capable of fully autonomous driving will employ up to 7,000 chips. In this case, even a failure rate of 1ppm, already very low by any standard today, would lead to 7 out of 1,000 cars with a safety risk. This is simply unacceptable.

The automotive electronics industry has therefore introduced quality excellence programs aimed at a zero defect target. Achieving such a goal requires a lot of effort and all constituents of the supply chain must do their part.

The automotive electronics industry is one of the most conservative in terms of change management. Longestablished standards and documentation procedures ensure traceability of design and manufacturing deviations. Qualification of novel or modified products is generally costly and lengthy. This is where material suppliers can offer competence and expertise to provide material with the highest quality standards.

What does this mean for a material supplier?

As a direct contact to its customer, the material supplier is responsible for the complete supply chain from the source of the raw material to the delivery at the customer’s gate. The material supplier is also accountable for long-term supply in accordance with the customer’s objectives.
There are essentially two fields where the material supplier can support its customer: quality and supply chain (FIGURE 4).

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Given the constraints of the automotive electronics market, material qualification must follow extensive procedures. While a high degree of material purity is a prerequisite, manufacturing processes are actually much more sensitive to deviations of material quality, as they potentially lead to process recalibration. Before qualification starts, it is critical that candidate materials are comprehensively documented. This includes the manufacturing process, the transport, the storage, and, where appropriate, the purifi- cation and transfill operations. Systematic auditing must be regularly performed according to customers’ standards. As a consequence, longer qualification times are expected. Any subsequent change in the material specification, origin, and packaging must be duly documented and is likely to be subject to a requalification process.

Material quality is obviously a critical element that must be demonstrated at all times. This commands the usage of high-quality products with a proven record. Sources already qualified for similar applica- tions are preferred to mitigate risks. These sources must show long-term business continuity planning, with process improvement programs in place. Purity levels must be carefully monitored and documented in databases. State-of-the-art analysis methods must be used. When necessary, containment measures should be deployed systematically. Given the long operating lifetime of automotive electronic compo- nents, failure can be related to a quality event that occurred a long time before.

Because of the necessary long-term availability of the electronics components and the material qualification constraints, manufacturers and suppliers will generally favor a supply contract over several years. Therefore, the source availability and the supply chain must be guaranteed accordingly.

Material suppliers are implementing improved quality management systems for their products in order to fulfill the expectations of their customers, in terms of quality monitoring and trace- ability. Certificate of analysis (COA) or consistency checks are not sufficient anymore; more data is required. In case deviation is detected, the inves- tigation and response time must be drastically reduced and allow intervention before delivery to the customer. Finally, the whole supply chain must be monitored.

Several tools must be implemented in order to maintain a reliable supply chain of high-quality products (FIGURE 5): statistical process and quality controls (SPC/SQC), as well as measurement systems analysis (MSA), allow systematic and reliable measurement and information recording for traceability. Imple- menting these tools particularly at the early stages of the supply chain allows an “in-time” response and correction before the defective material reaches the customer’s premises. Furthermore, some impurities that were ignored before may become critical, even below the current detection limits. Therefore, new measurement techniques must be continuously inves- tigated in order to enhance the detection capabilities.

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Finally, a robust supply chain must be ensured. It is imperative for a material supplier to be prepared to handle critical business functions such as customer orders, overseeing production and deliveries, and other various parts of the supply chain in any situation. Business continuity planning (BCP) was introduced several years ago in order to identify and mitigate any risk of supply chain disruption.

Analyzing the risks to business operations is fundamental to maintaining business continuity. Materials suppliers must work with manufacturers to develop a business continuity plan that facilitates the ability to continue to perform critical functions and/or provide services in the event of an unexpected interruption. The goal is to identify potential risks and weakness in current sourcing strategies and supply chain footprint and then mitigate those risks.

Because of the efforts necessary to qualify materials, second sources must be available and prepared to be shipped in case of crisis. Ideally, different sources should be qualified simultaneously to avoid any further delay in case of unplanned sourcing changes. Material suppliers with global footprint and worldwide sourcing capabilities offer additional security. Multiple shipping routes must be considered and planned in order to avoid disruption in the case, for instance, of a natural disaster or geopolitical issue affecting an entire region.

Material suppliers need to be aware and monitor regulations specific to the automotive electronics industry such as ISO/TS16949 (quality management strategy for automotive industries). This standard goes above and beyond the more familiar ISO 9001 standard, but by understanding the expectations of suppliers to the automotive industry, suppliers can ensure alignment of their quality systems and the documentation requirements for new product development or investigations into non-conformance.

Future of automotive electronics

With the increasing sophistication of future vehicles, new and more advanced semiconductor technologies will be used and vehicles will become technology centers. These technologies will allow communication and guidance computing. Most of these components (logic or memory) will be built by manufacturers relatively new to the automotive electronics world— either integrated device manufacturers (IDM) or foundries.

In order to comply with the current quality standards of the automotive industry, these manufacturers will need to adhere to more stringent standards imposed by the automobile industry. They will find support from materials suppliers like Linde that are capable of deliv- ering high-quality materials associated with a solid global supply chain who have acquired global experience in automotive electronics.

For more information about this topic or Linde Electronics, visit www.linde.com/electronics or contact Francesca Brava at [email protected].

With consumers already accustomed with using smartphones and tablet PCs in their everyday lives, touch screens are now increasingly making their way into their vehicles, too. Automotive touch panel shipments are expected to top 50 million units in 2017, up 11 percent from 45 million units in 2016, according to IHS Markit (Nasdaq: INFO). More importantly, capacitive-touch screen shipments are forecast to surpass that of traditionally-dominated resistive-touch screens in vehicles in 2017.

“Projected capacitive-touch technology is commonly found in consumer smartphones and tablet PCs, which consumers have grown very comfortable using,” said Shoko Oi, senior display analyst at IHS Markit. “Although there are safety concerns about operating touch screens while driving, automotive touch panels are becoming a standard feature in new vehicles entering the market.”

Automotive screens now display content from a variety of sources coming from both inside and outside the car. However, many newer applications now require touch screen panels, which shifts the role of in-car displays from simply revealing information visually to becoming an actual human-machine interface. This shift, along with the increased volume of displayed data, is driving a growing need for easy-to-see designs of displays that incorporate larger sizes, non-rectangular or curved shapes, as well as higher resolutions.

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According to the IHS Markit Automotive Touch Panel Market Report, as vehicle models are updated, projected capacitive-touch technology is replacing resistive-touch technology as the mainstream touch solution for automotive displays despite the higher module costs.

“The latest trends towards connected cars and telematics are prompting more car manufacturers to consider the adoption of projected capacitive-touch screens that can provide a similar user experience found in touch displays of smartphones and tablet-PCs,” Oi said.

As panel makers are increasingly targeting the premium TV market, active-matrix organic light-emitting diode (AMOLED) TV panel shipments are expected to exceed 10 million units by 2023, growing at a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 42 percent from 2017, according to IHS Markit (Nasdaq: INFO).

Panel manufacturers are continuously increasing AMOLED TV panel line-up with differentiated picture quality and figure, targeting the premium TV market. However, high manufacturing cost of the AMOLED TV panel will remain a hurdle to its shipment increase, according to IHS Markit analysis.

“LG Display is the only AMOLED TV panel supplier continuously increasing ultra-high definition (UHD) AMOLED TV panel shipments, while planning to discontinue the mass production of full HD AMOLED TV panel in 2017,” said Jerry Kang, principal analyst of display research at IHS Markit.

“This indicates most TV brands recognize that AMOLED TV will be more competitive in the premium TV market, which is less price-sensitive than even the high-end TV market, considering the relatively high manufacturing cost of AMOLED TV panels.” The 65-inch UHD TV panel will account for 48 percent of the total AMOLED TV panel shipments in 2017.

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According to the IHS Markit Large Sized AMOLED Technology & Market report, most of AMOLED panel manufacturers are trying to develop an ink-jet AMOLED process, seen as a viable way to reduce manufacturing costs. However, they are facing challenges with the soluble emitting materials used in the process, resulting in low-performance yields.

“The panel manufactures are now associating themselves with a few equipment and material suppliers to develop and optimize the ink-jet AMOLED process, with an aim to mass produce AMOLED TV panels utilizing essentially an ink-jet printer by 2019,” Kang said.

The IHS Markit Large Sized AMOLED Technology & Market report covers the latest market trend and the forecast of AMOLED displays of 9.7 inches and larger, technologies analysis and panel makers’ strategies by region.

The primary automotive display systems market will reach $11.6 billion in tier one supplier revenue globally in 2017, according to new analysis from business information provider IHS Markit (Nasdaq: INFO).

The market is set to increase drastically over the next few years, says the latest Automotive Display Systems Forecasts from IHS Markit. The most valuable are the Center Stack Displays and Instrument Cluster Displays, representing global revenues of $6.1 and $4.8 billion respectively. Head-Up Displays (HUD) account for only $731 million today, but show the largest growth potential in terms of percentage going forward through 2022. In 2022, combined value from the Center Stack Display, Instrument Cluster Display and Head-Up Display system markets total more than $20.8 billion, an increase of $9.2 billion in annual revenue in just five years, according to IHS Markit.

“There are a few different sources of this increase in display value within the automotive sector,” said Brian Rhodes, automotive technology analyst for IHS Markit. “First are simple volume increases, with more vehicles adding new displays to the instrument cluster and center stack, along with Head-Up Display deployments becoming more common. The second area of growth is in the technology value itself, as these displays are becoming larger and more capable – and therefore more expensive.”

Continental leads display system suppliers

Continental is expected to be the top supplier of primary automotive display systems in 2017 based on global revenue forecasts, the IHS Markit research says. Visteon follows closely behind, as the only other supplier with a double-digit market share in this space. Panasonic, Denso and Bosch round out the remaining market share leaders in the top five. Combined, these suppliers account for more than $6 billion in revenue resulting from Center Stack Display, Instrument Cluster Display and Head-Up Display systems in 2017.

“The top five primary display system suppliers command more than half of the total automotive display systems market,” Rhodes said. “While this is certainly a large portion of revenue for a handful of large players, it still means there is an incredible amount of fragmentation left over offering opportunity for the rest of the supply base — both in today’s market and in the foreseeable future based on our forecasts.”

Safety information related display panels offer strong growth potential

Thin film transistor liquid crystal display (TFT LCD) automotive display panel market shipments are expected to grow from 135 million units in 2016 to 200 million units in 2022. This technology will represent more than 67 percent share of total automotive display shipments, according to the Automotive Display Market Tracker from IHS Markit.

“The market growth momentum has shifted from center stack display, rear seat entertainment and other infotainment displays, to safety system displays, namely instrument cluster display, head-up display and eMirror systems,” said Stacy Wu, principal analyst for IHS Markit. While today’s volumes are large for infotainment display panels, safety-critical display panels will see double-digit growth through 2022, according to IHS Markit forecasts.

Japan Display, Innolux top tier two automotive display panel manufacturers

Based on the latest findings from IHS Markit, Japan Display, Innolux, Sharp, AU Optronics and LG Display are the top five TFT LCD automotive display panel manufacturers, representing more than 65 percent of the market in 2016.

“However, we expect to see increasing share gains from new entrants and possible ranking switches as well,” Wu said. “Stagnant panel demand from consumer electronics segments like notebooks, tablets, and smartphones, together with excess production capacity, is forcing display panel makers to enter the fast growing automotive market.”

IHS Markit experts covering various aspects of the global displays market will be attending SID’s Display Week in Los Angeles, May 23-25. In addition, IHS Markit will present in these three upcoming display events in the fall:

  • IHS Markit Global Display Conference on September 19-20 in San Francisco, CA
  • IHS Markit Automotive Conference on September 26 in Detroit, MI
  • SID Vehicle Display Symposium on September 26-27 in Detroit, MI