Analysis of silane industry

Introduction of electronic special gas

Electronic gas is an indispensable raw material for semiconductor manufacturing industries such as integrated circuits, display panels, solar cells and so on. It is widely used in ion implantation, etching, vapor deposition, doping and other links, and is very important for the final yield and reliability of devices. Electron gas is an important branch of electron gas, which is the blood of semiconductor manufacturing. There are more than 300 kinds of electronic special gases, of which more than 80 kinds are required for integrated circuit manufacturing; At the same time, the purity of electronic special gas is required to be high, which usually needs to reach more than 6N. At present, China can only produce about 20% kinds of special gases for semiconductors, which are mainly concentrated in the process links such as cleaning, etching and photolithography. Only a small number of special gases for doping, deposition and other processes have made breakthroughs. There are four types of gases with large demand for electronic special gas, mainly Fluorine-containing electronic gas, ammonia, silane and nitrous oxide, which are widely used in a wide range of fields.

Introduction to silane

Silane is the compound of silicon and hydrogen, which is the general name of a series of compounds, including silane (Sih4), silane (si2h6) and some more advanced silicon hydrogen compounds, with the general formula of sinh2n+2. At present, the most widely used is silane, which is generally referred to as silane. As a gas source providing silicon components, silane has become an important special gas that cannot be replaced by many other silicon sources because of its high purity and the advantages of fine control. Silane is widely used in the manufacture of integrated circuits, display panels and photovoltaic cells, and is the only intermediate product in the world for large-scale production of granular high-purity silicon. In addition, with the large-scale application of silicon carbon anode for new energy vehicles and the rapid pull of downstream demand for silicon carbide powder, the silane industry will usher in greater development opportunities.

Typical application of silane in silicon carbon anode

Nano silicon mixed carbon based materials can improve the performance of silicon-based anode. Nano sized silicon particles can improve the first coulomb efficiency and cycle stability while releasing the stress generated in the process of lithium removal from some silicon anodes, and inhibit the generation of cracks. Nano silicon powder can be prepared from silane by chemical vapor deposition method, which has the advantage of smaller particle size and higher purity than mechanical grinding method.

Demand scale of silane industry

According to the calculation of Anxin investment, the demand of the domestic silane electronic special gas industry is expected to increase from 7305 tons in 2022 to 33000 tons in 2026. The main demand growth is expected to come from the fields of photovoltaic and silicon carbon anode.

Silane industry barriers

Electronic special gas has high technical requirements, and has strict requirements for gas source and its supply system, which belongs to a typical technology intensive industry. Industry barriers are mainly reflected in six aspects: technical barriers, certification barriers, qualification barriers, market barriers, talent barriers, and capital barriers.

1. Technical barriers

The production process of special gases involves synthesis, purification, mixture preparation, filling, analysis and detection, cylinder treatment and other processes and technologies, as well as customers' high requirements for purity and precision, which forms a high technical barrier for the industry's intended entrants.

2. Certification barriers

The product quality of special gases has a huge impact on the normal production of downstream industries, so for downstream industry customers with a very high degree of precision, the selection of gas suppliers is extremely prudent and strict.

3. Qualification barrier

Industrial gases are dangerous chemicals, and their production, storage, transportation, sales and other links need to pass strict qualification certification. The qualification review process is strict. The production environment, process, equipment and other elements of the enterprise need to accept multi-dimensional and multi-level qualification review. Production and management personnel need to obtain personal qualifications.

4. Market barriers

Most of the downstream customers of the gas industry are professional manufacturers, not end-user products, so it is difficult to establish market brands in the short term through conventional marketing means. Downstream customers' recognition of the quality, brand and service of gas products needs a long-term foundation.

5. Talent barrier

The production technology of electronic special gas has strong applicability and professionalism, and the risk in the production process is high. New entrants need to study and exercise in production and R & D practice for many years to be competent for technology research and development.

6. Capital Barrier

Production facilities in the industrial gas industry require large-scale investment in fixed assets, and a large number of precision monitoring and control equipment are required. Gas suppliers need to have professional transportation equipment and special transportation vehicles, and track, monitor and strictly control the whole process of transportation, resulting in large investment in transportation and monitoring equipment.

5、 Investment advice

Electronic specialty gas is a relatively important semiconductor material, with high industry barriers, healthy industry ecology and strong future growth certainty. It can choose domestic mature leaders for layout. Silane is a variety with large demand in electronic special gas and is widely used in panel, photovoltaic, integrated circuit, new energy and other industries. With the large-scale application of silicon carbon anode in photovoltaic and new energy vehicles, and the rapid pull of downstream demand for silicon carbide powder, silane will usher in a larger development opportunity.