Peter Clarke EE Times (03/15/2010 8:46 AM EST)

LONDON — Silicon wafer annual demand will record a 29.5 percent increase in 2010, partly because of the rebuilding of inventory after a substantial stripping out in 2009, according to market research company Gartner Inc. (Stamford, Conn.).

In December 2009 the company said the silicon wafer would rebound by 23.4 percent in 2010.

Annual demand for 300-mm diameter wafers is now set to surpass 30 percent, and the average monthly consumption will reach 3.6 million wafers in the fourth quarter of 2010, Gartner predicts.

Overall wafer demand in 4Q09 was estimated to be up 7 percent compared with 3Q09. The pace of growth in wafer shipments is slightly higher than the pace of growth in semiconductor devices indicating wafer inventory build-up in the supply chain. As semiconductor unit demand continues to expand wafer demand in the second and third quarters of 2010 will record growth of 2 to 3 percent, the company said.

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