semiconductor metrology and inspection Market

The Semiconductor Metrology and Inspection market is projected to reach US$ 11,102.53 million by 2028, growing at a CAGR of 6.6% from 2022 to 2028. In the last few years, the consumer electronics industry has been continuously increasing and evolving.

The surge in disposable income, technological advancements, and internet accessibility has led to an increase in the adoption of electronic devices, such as smartphones, smartwatches, earbuds, washing machines, and air conditioners. Additionally, the demand for smart home devices has been growing rapidly in recent years. The rising demand for consumer electronics is driving the demand for semiconductors. Many countries are taking measures to reduce their reliance on other countries for procuring semiconductors and are developing policies to promote their domestic semiconductor industry. For instance, the US has agreed to assist Mexico in boosting its semiconductor production to reduce its dependency on China. Similarly, the European Union (EU) announced the Chips Act in February 2022 to increase semiconductor production in the region. This renewed interest in semiconductor production is expected to drive the demand for semiconductor metrology and inspection equipment in the coming years, thereby fueling the growth of the semiconductor metrology and inspection market during the forecast period.

Impact of COVID-19 Pandemic on Semiconductor Metrology and Inspection Market Growth

The COVID-19 pandemic had a significant impact on the semiconductor industry in Asia Pacific, which is the largest producer and consumer of semiconductors. The pandemic caused severe disruptions, leading to delays and cancellations of shipments, especially in China, Taiwan, and South Korea, which are major manufacturing hubs. As a result, the semiconductor metrology and inspection market suffered a setback due to the huge backlog of orders among key players in the market. However, the situation changed after Q3 of 2020, as the global semiconductor shortage forced manufacturers to adopt advanced metrology and inspection equipment to optimize resource usage and reduce material wastage. This boosted the demand for semiconductor metrology and inspection equipment and positively impacted the market growth. Moreover, several countries that heavily relied on semiconductor imports started taking measures to boost their internal semiconductor production, resulting in a surge in demand for semiconductor metrology and inspection equipment in Q3 2020 and beyond. Companies such as ASML Holding N.V. witnessed significant YoY growth for their metrology and inspection segment from 2020 to 2021. Hence, despite the reduced revenue generation in the early periods of 2020, the semiconductor metrology and inspection market was positively impacted by the pandemic.

According to the study of the semiconductor metrology and inspection market, China holds the largest share in Asia Pacific due to its strong manufacturing base in electronics and semiconductors. The country is a leading producer of consumer electronics, industrial electronic components, and electric vehicles. It is also the largest consumer of semiconductors globally. HiSilicon, SMIC, OmniVision, UNISOC, ZTE, and Nexperia are some of the prominent semiconductor companies in the country. Additionally, the Chinese government's initiatives, such as Made in China 2025, are expected to enhance the country's self-reliance on semiconductor manufacturing. All these factors are likely to propel the revenue generation for semiconductor metrology and inspection market players in China during the forecast period.

The demand for semiconductors is increasing in various applications, such as aerospace, automotive, manufacturing, and military & defense sectors, due to the adoption of artificial intelligence (AI), deep learning, and big data analytics. As a result, there is a need for complex semiconductors in a compact form with high accuracy, precision, sensitivity, and throughput. This demand is driving the need for flexible measurement and inspection systems that can control a wide range of parameters, including two-dimensional (2D) and three-dimensional (3D) geometries and can adapt to new requirements as they arise. To keep up with the industry's roadmap, equipment providers need to focus on unique requirements of advanced packaging (AP) operations and provide novel solutions. For instance, KLA Corporation offers the Kronos 1190 patterned wafer inspection system with high-resolution optics for advanced wafer-level packaging (AWLP) applications such as 3D IC and high-density fan-out. The system provides sensitivity to critical flaws for process development and production monitoring. The growing demand for such solutions globally is driving the growth of the semiconductor metrology and inspection market.

Few of the key players considered during the semiconductor metrology and inspection market study are KLA Corporation; ASML Holding N.V.; Applied Materials, Inc.; Onto Innovation, Inc.; and Hitachi High-Technologies Corporation.

The semiconductor metrology and inspection market size has been determined using a combination of primary and secondary research methods. Initially, comprehensive secondary research was conducted using both internal and external sources to gather qualitative and quantitative information related to the market. This helped in obtaining an overview and forecast of the semiconductor metrology and inspection market size across all market segments. Additionally, multiple primary interviews were conducted with industry experts and commentators to validate the data and gain further analytical insights. The participants of this process included key personnel such as VPs, business development managers, market intelligence managers, national sales managers, as well as external consultants such as valuation experts, research analysts, and key opinion leaders with specialized knowledge in the semiconductor metrology and inspection market.