Outlook 2020: Taking miniaturization, performance up a notch

The electronic components industry in China leverages advancements in materials and fabrication to push for small but powerful configurations.

Suppliers of electronic components in China take advantage of developments in materials and fabrication processes to continue bringing core technologies up to date with the miniaturization and performance trends in the electronics industry. Transitions to more advanced specifications are also being followed through alongside greening efforts for materials, components and manufacturing.

In discrete components such as EMI filters, some companies have started introducing SMD versions, which are typically based on 1012 and 2012 packages, while a few more push the limit to 0603, 0805 and 1008. Others approach this through balanced dual-line kinds, which have two Y capacitors and one X capacitor, but are improved with two parallel reference electrodes G1 and G2 forming a Faraday shield. The structure converts into a capacitor with two nominally identical values, and minimizes the filter ESR and ESL. Such variants come in sizes as small as 0603.

In the future, EMI filter makers will consider the use of nanocrystalline soft magnetic alloy as a core material alternative to ferrite to realize better magnetization and permeability, and low loss. The technology requirement, however, is high so local adoption has yet to become widespread.

In crystal resonators and oscillators, SMD types now represent 50 percent of production and will have a bigger share in the next one or two years as more manufacturers gain capability for such ultrasmall dimensions. Prohibitively high MEMS technology, on the other hand, is pursued by large local suppliers only.

A number of companies turning out diodes and diode modules have ventured into advanced kinds adopting silicon-carbide or SiC from mainstream silicon- and germanium-based units. The first semiconductor enables production of smaller units with higher efficiency and lower loss. More suppliers are expected to follow suit.

Further miniaturization and performance enhancements in passive components have yielded chip resistors in smaller packages such as 0201, 0402, 0603 and 0805, which now account for the bulk of makers' shipments. The next sizes to be made broadly available are 0102 and 01005. In terms of precision, ±0.1 percent tolerance can be realized and will be improved further to ±0.01 percent in coming years.

In multilayer ceramic capacitors, the trend continues with 01005 initial availability and 008004 development, while efforts to raise capacitance beyond 100µF have begun amid rising requirement in high-end terminal products and as 5G deployment begins.

Upstream developments have led to the use of soft magnetic materials in high-frequency transformers. The resulting cores can be turned into flat, chip or film form, and ensure low loss, wide operating temperature range and reduced cost. Manufacturers are looking to adopt these new cores to achieve smaller configurations for switching power supplies in smart lighting, smart home and automotive applications.

Nanocrystalline cores are also eyed for future high-frequency transformers. These are said to boost product performance because of their high permeability and saturation induction, and low coercivity and core loss.

Brighter

In LEDs, releases in conventional SMD packages remain a strong category despite the rise of rival COB and chip scale package or CSP types. The first is expected to still be the default encapsulation technology in lights, backlighting and LED displays in the next one or two years. More China companies will develop 0505, 0606 and 0808 units, targeting small-pitch LED displays with high definition and contrast.

Still, a few local players have released CSP LEDs. In LED lighting and backlighting, such types are gaining attention not only because these are comparatively smaller and have higher luminous efficacy.

Suppliers of high-power LEDs, meanwhile, look to the potential market in more lighting applications for COB types. The encapsulation method allows a single circuit to support more LEDs, offering a compact yet brighter solution with low thermal resistance, and that is also easier and less costly to use.

There are makers that are turning out Mini-LEDs and MicroLEDs for small-pitch LED displays as well. These diodes are expected to replace SMD and COB LEDs in this application in coming years, and will gain traction in TVs and car infotainment. Mini-LEDs will be widely adopted in smartphones and advertising displays, while MicroLEDs will find a market in AR/VR devices, smart watches and wearable electronics.

A developing trend toward system in package or SiP variants is likewise under way. This configuration integrates the diode chips and various components, including power supplies and sensors, for an all-in-one solution. One China maker that has presented such products is Crescent.

Lighter

In interconnects, light weight without effect on performance is a development and production priority. In cable assemblies for portable, wearable and remote-controlled applications in the medical field, suppliers highlight smaller cross sections to allow greater flexibility that can withstand repeated bending and tugging. These need to display enhanced resistance to shock, vibration and water, and better adaptability to temperature and humidity changes indoors and outdoors.

Automotive wire harnesses R&D focuses on materials for lightweight designs because these help improve fuel or energy efficiency. Local makers are opting for copper alloy conductors as an alternative to mainstream copper types in their current selections, while the next-generation aluminum alloy category is on the agenda. Only a few large local companies, including the THB Group, have started offering aluminum alloy-based products.

The same weight and performance parameters drive efforts in multilayer PCBs, including HDI, flexible and rigid-flex types. Companies emphasize capability to turn out boards that support increasingly complex circuits in smaller and thinner applications.

Slimmer

Microspeaker development continues to revolve around advanced methods to achieve greater miniaturization. Local initiatives in the SMD category include piezoelectric or ceramic variants and integrated solutions as well, while makers prepare to undertake MEMS R&D in the next one or two years.

In microswitches, initiatives have led not only to units with a longer mechanical life span but likewise to low-profile types with less than 6.5mm in height.

For drones, switches makers match the size and weight requirements, and highlight rugged features that can withstand vibration and heat, and are up to IP68-rated.

More powerful

Suppliers of brushless motors in China continue to tailor development work to fill the requirement for smaller but more powerful and reliable units. The key applications are the consumer electronics, home appliances, and automotive and medical industries, while drones, robotics and electric vehicles or EVs are eyed as potentially high-growth sectors.

In AC gear motors, especially for industrial control uses, companies upgrade product performance using advanced digital signal processors or DSPs. This can lower parasitic inductance for better energy-saving units, in addition to reducing the motor size.

Digital management technologies are also helping local makers of DC-DC converters develop types with higher power density and longer operating life in more compact sizes. Besides DSPs, these include MCUs, and pulse-frequency and pulse-width modulation.

Thinner

Improvements in thin-film technology bode well for the solar cell sector, encouraging tiers 1 and 2 China makers to direct efforts toward realizing slimmer units. This involves using III-V and II-V semiconductor materials such as cadmium telluride or CdTe, copper indium gallium diselenide or CIS/CIGS and gallium arsenide or GaAs. The last is typically less than 10µm and has a conversion efficiency of 13 percent.

In the mainstream silicon-based category, there are initiatives to continue reducing thickness to between 80 and 100µm from 180 to 280µm in current releases.

Green objective

Initiatives to improve the power density and life span of Li-polymer batteries and packs have pushed China makers to adopt alternative cathode materials more broadly. From this, NCA and NCM types are now part of their mainstream selections, along with those that use LiFePO₄ and LiMn2O₄ inputs.

While R&D continues, suppliers also eye developments in solid polymer electrolytes, which have yet to reach commercialization. The resultant next-generation solid-state batteries can pack in as much as 400Wh/kg power density and support up to 3,000 cycles.

A number of domestic companies, including Pingmei National, Ganfeng and the Vision Group, have been engaged in the research and production of such products. Another maker, Fujian Super, is investing $441 million in a 420,000sqm factory that will churn out 1 billion Ah of high-capacity solid-state Li-polymer power batteries.

Research on battery concepts that will harness renewable energy sources and make their benefits far-reaching and sustainable has led to the emergence of new chemistries. The last includes lead-carbon, sodium-sulfur and sodium-nickel as alternatives to traditional lead-acid and mainstream lithium kinds. Some large manufacturers in China have already begun the development and production of these variants. They include one of the major battery suppliers, the Chilwee Group, which has a cooperation with GE on sodium-nickel units.

PCB assemblies & EMS

To meet high-density interconnects and miniaturization requirements amid updates in terminal electronics applications, suppliers of PCB assemblies in China improve production and testing techniques further.

Enhancing SMT remains the key goal, which is the reason makers continue to modernize their facilities with advanced machines from foreign companies such as Samsung and Fujitsu. Some local manufacturers are also beefing up DIP production lines to keep them up-to-date.

While the industry's focus is on capability to place components, there are makers that have turned into EMS providers. These companies extend services to design, product development, material and components sourcing, testing, logistics and aftersales. Many are expected to adopt this strategy to establish a more stable relationship with customers.

Still a few others cover the entire EMS spectrum and include the manufacture of finished products. They invest in equipment such as those used in injection molding and metalworking.

In the electronics manufacturing services sector itself, there is steady investment in equipment to fulfill demand for higher product quality, and reduced manufacturing lead time and cost. This is all the more so in China, where a number of global EMS players converge and crowd the market. More than a thousand companies now make up this major force in the electronics industry.

To maintain a niche, local EMS providers keep up by purchasing advanced manufacturing and testing equipment and aim for long-term cooperation by accommodating small and mixed orders and offering integrated services.

Nurturing a client base outside the intensely competitive consumer electronics market has been working well for domestic EMS businesses. In fact, products for the communications, industrial, automotive, medical and new energy sectors account for more than two-thirds of shipments.

Transitions

Counting on increasing demand as the EV industry grows, makers of charging cable assemblies sustain initiatives to meet the trend for fast and safe charging. They will introduce more 32A units in the AC category and target up to 250A in the DC segment from 20 and 200A in widely offered products. Some manufacturers are integrating active solutions such as temperature control modules to prevent overheating and ensure safety during operation.

In USB Type-C connectors and cable assemblies, manufacturers will keep pace with device upgrades and boost supply based on the USB 3.1 specifications.

Over at the HDMI segment, the 2.1 version is projected to find its niche in high-end TVs in the next two years. To get a head start on this future trend, a few China interconnects suppliers have commenced manufacture and more are expected to follow.

In fiber-optic patch cords, boosting fiber count continues as bandwidth requirement increases, especially in data centers. More companies now turn out up to 24-core units, with a few developing types with 72 cores.

Eyeing the booming 3D printing market, local makers of stepper motors will focus on types with a closed-loop control system. Compared with the more widely available open-loop variant, the former integrates a feedback encoder, and rates higher in terms of precision, response time, speed, reliability and stability.

In AMOLED displays, the venture to high-technology flexible variants will be initiated by a few large suppliers in the next one or two years.