This article uses diagrams and commentary to introduce the strength of Japanese companies in the semiconductor materials sector. It focuses in particular on the current global market shares of Shin-Etsu Chemical and SUMCO, as well as impurities in silicon wafers.
The article presents the view that Japanese companies account for nearly half of the global semiconductor materials market, explaining that Shin-Etsu Chemical and SUMCO, the two companies based in Japan, hold a substantial share of the global market.
Alongside a basic explanation of what silicon wafers are, the article discusses the extremely low proportion of impurities they contain and shows that managing impurities is central to advanced miniaturization technology.
The article uses diagrams to explain why Japanese companies have a relative advantage in the semiconductor materials sector.