Tantalum capacitor and multilayer ceramic capacitors (MLCC) are common components of electronics equipment, use easily with dozens, hundreds, even large market demand. Various kinds of capacitor, the capacitance MLCC about 10 ~ 100 uf, mainly used in NB, mobile phones, GPS; Tantalum capacitance of 47-400 uf, used in NB, mobile phones, industrial electronics and automobile, etc.

In terms of price, multilayer ceramic capacitors (MLCC) in the first place, because before each production capacity expansion, MLCC prices decline. Learned, Semco to rob the city share, MLCC significant expansion capacity to 48 billion, second only to Murata (Murata) of more than $600, the overall market supply, causing prices to fall. In 2011 third quarter MLCC under the Japanese take the lead, the price of quarterly decline even as high as 10%, the fourth quarter still did not stop falling, and the talks, the first quarter of 2012 the price seems not optimistic.

The Ultrabook, microminiature into mainstream demand

Industry pointed out that affected by fluctuations in the global economic situation, the present stage include notebook computer, television, mobile phone demand is slowing, even part of the terminal device manufacturing capacity utilization to fifty percent, and the current order visibility is too short, market demand and price changes is still uncertain. However, recently the laptop owners have launched the ultra-thin laptops (Ultrabook) but also for MLCC industry bring light. In 2012, ultra thin and light laptops Ultrabook and smart phones, tablet computer is expected to drive the application requirement of microminiature MLCC, relevant manufacturers have also introduced related products, such as global MLCC industry ranked first Murata manufacturing (Murata) facilitate recently published by high Q value for the world's smallest MLCC.

Murata manufacturing's newly minted GJM02 series size only 0.4 mm x 0.2 mm, is made of 100 layer thickness 1 mm ceramic membrane. Murata stressed that GJM02 series products of plate area is small, not only can achieve the whole machine is thin, and has the characteristics of high Q value and low ESR value to save power. At the same time by using W4P1 new packaging method, can improve the yield of SMT production line.

Traditional mobile capacitance dosage is 100 ~ 200, but it need to use smart phone 400 ~ 500, increasingly thin and smart phones, accommodate space is more limited, natural demand volume is more small capacitance. Capacitance unit price below $0.01, murata Japanese but can still share has ranked the first city, in addition to leading in technology, mainly is the company can master the upstream raw material barium titanate technology and homemade equipment, thus highly cost competitiveness.

The murata manufacturing city of MLCC share accounted for about 35% of the world, the south Korean company of second Semco has 15 to 20% of the city, the third and fourth of TDK and taiyo yuden, respectively. In front of the festival dragon's advanced on Semco, murata Lv Zhen time since production is director, said in an interview with Japanese media murata will continue developing the latest technology in the future, with the most advanced products in the market.

TDK corporation, a subsidiary of TDK - EPC has a total of 0402, 0603 and 0603 three sizes multilayer ceramic capacitor series, the series has C0G temperature characteristic, rated voltage 50 v. TDK, EPC, said the series of MLCC products under the equivalent capacitance is guaranteed, size shrink 60% compared with previous products. TDK - EPC ceramic dielectric thin layer technology and product to make use of the technology for the development of new ceramic dielectric materials, compared with the previous products, achieve product of ceramic dielectric layer clearance (thickness) fell by almost 30%. And because this series of products have C0G temperature characteristics (temperature range: - 55 ~ 125 degrees, the temperature coefficient: 0 + 30 PPM / ℃), can be used for high precision capacitance required fields.

Source materials limited, tantalum capacitor imbalance between supply and demand

In tantalum capacitor section, compared with other capacitors, tantalum capacitors with high reliability, high capacity, small volume, low impedance (ESR), and other advantages, therefore widely used in communications, automotive electronics, aerospace, industrial and military fields such as automatic control equipment. Different from the glut of MLCC, tantalum capacitor because of the material and a tight supply situation. This is mainly because the United States through the Dodd - Frank Wall Street reform bill in 2010, according to this law, manufacturers need to declare their products without the use of "conflict minerals", namely the democratic republic of Congo's mining of the mineral, and the Congo is one of the world's largest supplier of tantalum, many big companies, including apple, dell, HP, Microsoft also draw up a new mechanism of supply chain, to ensure that the company used in the device for use with no conflict minerals. To a reduction in supply of tantalum capacitor material sources.

Is the main purpose of tantalum capacitor production and high power resistance and can also be added into many metals, improve the strength and corrosion resistance of the metal. , according to a report metalprices tantalum prices rose 120% in 2010, the joint to the tantalum capacitor price, or even once a gain of 60% in early 2011, but this is after ten years of tantalum capacitor price continues to decline rose for the first time, and after the earthquake in Japan, tantalum capacitor prices began to fall, the current to stabilize.

Develop alternative products, niobium capacitor to the battle

However, in order to avoid prices lead to rising cost of tantalum capacitor, tantalum material existing industry began to develop other material of capacitance. Such as grain hall and positive development of niobium capacitor. Wo don said, because the tantalite rare and cost is high, led to the 2010 tantalum capacitor gap once the expanded, grain and hall to the customer delivery to a maximum of 20 ~ 30 weeks, although in 2011 fell to 10 weeks, but still is the longest delivery all capacitor products. To overcome the tantalite problems of high cost, it is not easy, grain and hall engaged in 'niobium raw material replace' tantalum raw material technology, has now developed, and have begun to deliver and certification.

Grain stretching hall for homemade special type MLCC manufacturers such as high capacity, high pressure, and at the same time agents including IC, system modules, passive components, such as products, grain and hall and in 2009 to buy Japan's Hitachi tantalum capacitor production line and assets, make the grain stretching of capacitor products from layout of multilayer ceramic capacitors (MLCC) to expand to the silver capacitance, grain and hall in comprehensive undertake Hitachi tantalum capacitance technology and quality certification, has officially become suppliers of APPLE, HP, DELL and other international companies. In addition, it is worth mentioning that the company product layer ceramic capacitor X8R series product has won the German professional magazine Elektronik to offer 2011 electronic components of the year. X8R series of products with high temperature (150 ℃) work environment ≦ 15% characteristics, thermal expansion coefficient can be used in automotive electronics, oil exploration, or other high temperature environment.

As the electronics industry market urgent aspic, capacitance, especially MLCC market quite poor recently, factory has news from layoffs, and even lead to bargain, various phenomena are reflected the MLCC bad. This is mainly because MLCC's largest application side belongs to the laptop and TV market, as the laptop and LCD TV market, MLCC nature alone. Although ultra thin and light notebook computers, however, as the 2009 financial tsunami, murata, acquisition of Panasonic MLCC career, this wave of recession could still be caused MLCC ecological adjustment, after the development potential is worth observing.