
Mitsubishi to use Coherent SiC for its $1bn 200mm wafer fab
Mitsubishi Electric is to scale production of silicon carbide chips in Japan with 200mm wafer technology from Coherent, formerly II-VI.
Mitsubishi is spending $1bn (¥100bn) on a SiC fab in Japan to boost production for electric vehicles and industrial power and signed a memorandum of understanding (MOU) with Coherent to collaborate on scale manufacturing of SiC power electronics
The new fab is part of a $2.6bn (¥260bn) investment until 2026 and Coherent will develop a supply of 200 mm n-type 4H SiC substrates for Mitsubishi Electric’s future SiC power devices manufactured at the fab.
Coherent demonstrated the world’s first 200 mm conductive substrates in 2015 having licensed SiC technology from GE as II-VI. In 2019, Coherent began to supply 200 mm SiC substrates under REACTION, a Horizon 2020 four-year program funded by the European Commission.
- II-VI bets a billion dollars on SiC
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- II-VI expands SiC processing in China
“Coherent has been for many years a reliable supplier of high-quality 150 mm SiC wafer substrates to Mitsubishi Electric,” said Masayoshi Takemi, Executive Officer, Group President, Semiconductor & Device at Mitsubishi Electric. “We are delighted to enter into this close partnership with Coherent to scale our respective SiC manufacturing platforms to 200 mm.”
Mitsubishi Electric has led the SiC power module markets for high-speed trains, high-voltage industrial applications, and home appliances, having launched the world’s first SiC power modules for air conditioners in 2010, and became the first supplier of a full SiC power module for Shinkansen high-speed trains in 2015.
“We are excited to build on our relationship with Mitsubishi Electric, a pioneer in SiC power devices and a global market leader in SiC power modules for high-speed trains, including the famous Shinkansen in Japan,” said Sohail Khan, Executive Vice President, New Ventures & Wide-Bandgap Electronics Technologies at Coherent. “We have a long track record of supplying SiC substrates to Mitsubishi Electric and are looking forward to expanding our relationship with them to scale their new 200 mm SiC platform.”
www.MitsubishiElectric.com; www.coherent.com
