Stefan Mileschin

Power management semiconductor products are predicted to reach $8 billion in the second quarter of this year according to new research.

Power management semiconductors are used in a broad range of products, with devices ranging from computers, to mobile, to energy systems all requiring management of their electrical supplies

IHS iSuppli has said in a new report that the rise will be an increase of 6.7 percent from the $7.5 billion in the first quarter. It added that the increase also marked the first clear sign of growth since industry revenue plunged sharply at the end of last year after seven straight e quarters of growth.

It said the fourth quarter of 2011, was when things went downhill for the industry when sequential revenue plummeted by 10.7 percent.


Since that quarter, IHS iSuppli said the industry had been static, posting flat revenue at the start of the year but not declining further.

It added that its projected increase for the second quarter was also expected to continue in the second half of this year giving the 2012 power management semiconductor a revenue of around $32.8 billion, up 2.8 percent from the $31.9 billion last year.

Unlike previous years, there were no losses currently predicted for 2012.

The company said the growth was down to a rising emphasis on portable electronic devices, including the booming sales of media tablets and smartphones, which highlighed the importance of power management semiconductors, which were essential for achieving the heat dissipation, weight and size requirements for such products.

It added that the power management market usually experienced a decline in the fourth quarter of each year as part of normal seasonal trends. However, the scale of the contraction in the fourth quarter last year was a serious indication of an especially depressed market for these semiconductors.

According to the company there were a few conditions that had forced this decline. This included the disruption to manufacturing after the Japan earthquake-tsunami disaster in March and then the heavy floods in Thailand during October.

A worldwide slowdown in consumer spending and a pullback in many government-run and supported programs also had a knock on effect.

However, there now seems to be light at the end of the tunnel. As well as predicting growth in this market, IHS iSuppli has also predicted further revenues in areas where power management semiconductors have been strong. This includes the industrial electronics and alternative energy governing wind, solar and geothermal markets.

It said that the leading power management products in the consumer space will be insulated gate bipolar transistor (IGBT) modules, used as a device to switch electric power in many modern appliances. In the consumer segment, power management integrated circuits will be the foremost product driving growth.

http://news.techeye.net/chips/power-...ke-in-the-cash