September 02, 2010

Opto, Sensor/Actuator, Discrete Records Will Tumble in 2010

Laser transmitters, CMOS image sensors, and MEMS-based sensors/actuators top the list

As the strong semiconductor industry recovery continues, more than a dozen new sales records for product categories will be set this year in the optoelectronics, sensors/actuators, and discretes (O-S-D) market segments, according to IC Insights' fifth-edition 2010 O-S-D Report. Laser transmitters are forecast to top the list of O-S-D products setting new record high sales, increasing 35% in 2010 to $358 million. CMOS image sensors and MEMS-based sensors/actuators--both markets with more than $5.0 billion in sales--are each forecast to grow 34% in 2010.

O-S-D sales are being driven by strong demand for solid-state lighting products (for backlit displays in portable computers, LCD-TVs, cellphones, and other handheld systems as well as emerging new high-brightness LED-based illumination applications), CMOS image sensors, optical network laser transmitters, MEMS-based accelerometers and other sensor/actuator devices, and power discrete semiconductors (Figure 1).

Figure 1

Though not forecast to set a new record in 2010, actuator sales are expected to increase 36% in 2010. Actuator sales fell three straight years, but are forecast to climb to $3.4 billion in 2010--about $50 million short of the all-time record of $3.45 billion set in 2006, according to the 2010 O-S-D Report. Built with microelectromechanical systems (MEMS ) technology, actuators are getting a much-needed boost from strong shipments of radio-frequency (RF) filters and switches as well as MEMS oscillators, and from recovery in microfluidic devices and micro-mirror chips, which are being used in small digital projectors in handheld devices and new 3-D movie systems for theaters. Actuator sales are expected to set a new record in 2011, when dollar volumes grow 19% to $4.1 billion, according to the report's forecast.

Total sales in each of these three semiconductor markets--opto, sensors, and discretes--are also expected to reach record-high levels in 2010 after falling in 2009. Optoelectronics sales are forecast to rise 27% in 2010 to $23.3 billion, while the total market for sensors/actuators is expected to surge by 33% to $6.8 billion. The commodity-filled discrete semiconductor market is projected to see its largest growth in 15 years with a 29% increase to $19.7 billion in 2010.

Detailed forecasts in the report show combined O-S-D revenues growing 29% in 2010 and reaching $49.8 billion (about 16% of total semiconductor sales with 84% coming from IC products). O-S-D sales growth is expected to slightly exceed the rate of increase in IC sales during the 2009-2014 forecast period. In five years, O-S-D revenues are expected to account for 17% of the semiconductor market.

IC Insights' O-S-D Report is a one-of-a-kind source for analysis and forecast data for some of the fastest growing segments in the semiconductor industry. Major optoelectronic, sensor/actuator, and discrete suppliers covered in the report include Analog Devices, Avago, Bosch, Cree, Fairchild, Freescale, Fujifilm, Fujitsu, Hitachi, HP, Infineon, IR, Kodak, Micron (and spin-off Aptina Imaging), MEMSIC, Microsemi, Mitsubishi, NEC, NXP, ON Semiconductor, Oki, OmniVision, Osram, Panasonic, Philips Lumileds, Rohm, Samsung, Sanyo, Seiko Epson, Sharp, Sony, ST, TI, Toshiba, Toyota, TSMC, and Vishay.

Report Source

O-S-D Report 2010 Edition

More Information Contact

Rob Lineback, sr. market research analyst with IC Insights, phone: +1-817-731-0424, e-mail: [email protected]