For 30 years, Soitec has been designing and manufacturing semiconductor engineered substrates. Soitec is addressing markets for three key megatrends such as 5G/6G, Electrical Vehicles (EVs) and Artificial Intelligence. We foresee EVs to become a significant new growth driver by capturing the two main trends in this market: the Digitalization of the car, and the Electrification of mobility.

By 2030, more than 45 million of cars sold will be EVs. Thanks to its performances, by 2025 it is expected that more than 50% of EVs will use Silicon Carbide (SiC) in their power electronics systems. Silicon Carbide brings several advantages over silicon when it comes to power electronic devices. These include a higher breakdown voltage, higher operating temperature, and higher thermal conductivity that helped imposing SiC as preferred option for inverter for leading EVs. Although amazing progress has been demonstrated past 15 years regarding silicon carbide substrate properties and processing, major limitations remain for a straightforward transition to large volume.

Smart-Cut™ applied to SiC, generating SmartSiC™ engineered substrates aims to accelerate silicon carbide adoption and brings best of SiC by combining high conductivity ultra-flat pSiC and high quality layer of mSiC for device.

Performance wise, this unique vertical structure allows a boost in electrical performance and efficiency of power devices such as MOSFETs and diodes. It brings as well flatness and process simplifications advantages that will be discussed.

On sustainability front, SmartSiC™ is a greener route to volume by targeting CO2 footprint equivalent to silicon wafers, mostly thru vast reuse of donor wafers, obtained at very high thermal budget, for more than 10 SmartSiC wafers for each donor.

This route is also lowering risk lowering capex intensity and speeding 200mm SiC wafers introduction by two years.

All these performances had been demonstrated for manufacturing and triggered the decision for a new fab in Soitec with first production in September 2023. .

The presentation will describe the SmartSiC process and latest results on wafers and devices and how SmartSiC™ is enabling major impacts on SiC business