This is the recent, STMicroelectronics (ST) held in Beijing for the theme of MEMS media communication, ST Greater China and South Asia, analog and MEMS product marketing director Wu Weidong on the future to judge the past ten years ST in the consumer level MEMS market has been successful, domestic, including Huawei, OPPO, vivo, millet and so almost all mobile phone manufacturers have cooperation with ST.However, with the growth of smart phones into the saturation period, MEMS growth began to turn to the field of industrial networking and smart cars. ST said the company will continue to seize the opportunity to develop new MEMS market growth space.
The diversified portfolio of products and the whole industry chain is the advantage of ST
Unlike many semiconductor companies with a single advantage, ST is a product line with a wide range of products including MEMS products, power devices, RF devices, microcontrollers, discrete and advanced analog products.
In the MEMS product portfolio, ST now mainly to do five categories of products: optical anti-shake gyroscope, accelerometer + gyroscope / 6-axis IMU module, ultra-low power accelerometer, high-precision pressure sensor, accelerometer + Inertial measurement unit. These product lines, now more than 60% of the market share.
The whole industry chain also has the obvious advantages of ST. MEMS is divided into two parts: one is the sensor, that is, we are familiar with the acceleration, gyroscope; the other is the actuator, the English is Actuator, which is an important part of MEMS. , ST one of the advantages is that both have these two technologies.As ST as an IDM semiconductor company, has a complete R & D and production, although these two principles are positive and negative relations, but in the real design and process, Can be reused.
Actuator Actuator is the main principle of electricity, magnetic way to promote small objects.Wu Weidong predicted that the next few years will usher in a second outbreak, and we can also see ST and partners in the market mature products. Cited four examples of co-development with partners.
First, the piezoelectric actuator, using PZT Technology, can achieve fast focus function. Partner PoLight is a European company, his solution, like a pupil, with a piezoelectric way to allow the lens to shrink and deform , To achieve the focus function.This way compared to the previous program quality upgrade.Then there will be a lot of camera manufacturers with the introduction of such technology into the market to quantify.
Second, the ultrasonic range, and Chirp company. ST provided to the company a MEMS mirror technology, can be achieved so that all-round ultrasonic launch. The future of the technology will include automatic driving, industrial areas, special industries In a more reliable application areas.
Third, the microscope projection, in cooperation with familiar MicroVision. ST provides different technical mirror, piezoelectric, electrostatic, electromagnetic type. MicroVision through its overall solution to the market, the first quarter of this year, the domestic There is a mobile phone officially launched based on MicroVision solution, with a miniature projector phone, this phone at least in the market also caused a certain response.
Fourth, MEMS speakers, ST and U-Sound in cooperation with this year's Barcelona MWC has launched a prototype products for Ali will be introduced to the market based on MEMS propeller products.
'For these partners, ST is doing the wafer process and system solutions with.' Wu Weidong said.
Speaking of cooperation in the Chinese market, Wu Weidong said that in the past few years, ST in China is not only human resources and investment in the increase, the business has grown very fast.Current main business from mobile customers, including Huawei, OPPO, vivo, millet and so on the number of the same and ST have cooperation in the same field in the car, there are many partners in China, including UMC, Desai and so on.
MEMS growth is turning to the automotive and industrial markets
ST in the consumer electronics market in the field of great success, but the market is also entering the mature period, the total increase is slow. ST that, with the Internet of wisdom industry, intelligent automotive industry to accelerate the rise of the MEMS market To new vitality.
Wu Weidong said that once talking about the industry and the car must have RF RF connection. The ST has the advantage to provide a complete solution.We can connect all the partners of the sensor, the sensor data is valid, the quality of transmission To the background to the many customers and applications in terms of such a step-by-step solution, today only a few semiconductor suppliers on the market can do.
Industrial and automotive areas in addition to a complete program, but also high reliability, high precision, etc. For example, the current automatic driving field requires sensor to work when the time to 20 cm below. Virtual enhancement requires optical image stabilization, the deviation between the screen 10 Centimeters. 'Google from the current Android 5.0, the provisions of the sensor in some parameters of the specifications, only the sensor first check, the whole system will have a good effect.' Wu Weidong said.
In addition, Wu Weidong also mentioned that, unlike consumer electronics, industrial and automotive-grade products are facing a more complex environment, which requires a very high reliability of the product.Only in the agricultural testing do not even know the specific location of the sensor, Many of the use of the scene takes ten years or even longer, which should not only have a good precision, while power consumption can not increase, this is the real challenge.
In terms of accuracy, Wu Weidong gives three important considerations:
1, noise. There is a mechanical structure caused by their own; there are high-frequency noise, sensor in the application is a digital output, in any electronic circuit will have electromagnetic coupling phenomenon. Manufacturers need to have enough experience to help customers in the algorithm to avoid or To suppress out and eliminate such noise.
2, stability. Have the stability of time to solve the aging problem. There are temperature stability, under a variety of conditions to balance.
3, to improve the accuracy. In addition to considering the design and manufacturing process, 80% of the test and calibration. The same a MEMS sensor, if the test, calibration done more fine, it can be fully improved from only 5% to 1% Even lower. Consumers because one day to ensure that the shipment of 1 million, production lines, production capacity can not support each device to be calibrated, tested, I spend time in seconds to count. Industrial level is different, a chip test Hundreds of times, you can adjust this sensor is very accurate, which can be calculated in a few weeks. According to the concept of unit 1, the consumption level is multiplied by 10, industrial grade multiplied by 100, the strategic level multiplied by 1000 concept This, MEMS sensor is more unique.
Wu Weidong said, ST in the field of testing has a lot of experience, and even a lot of patented technology.In addition, ST spent huge sums of money to invest in manufacturing equipment, test equipment.
In addition to the above three points, Wu Weidong that security is also the focus of the process and automotive customers to consider, the current ST has a total solution.For example, in the automotive field ST has ADAS system, the overall solution. ST also promised customers to ensure that the product market supply Time for more than 10 years.
Wu Weidong said that the current MEMS products in the field of ST shipments have more than 13 billion in the future we will continue to grow from the consumer to expand into industrial and automotive categories, will also extend to the radio and other aspects, for the wisdom of the city to provide a whole s solution.