GaN RF power semiconductor devices gained meaningful market share over the last two years, despite a lackluster 2016, with 2017 promising further growth. ABI Research forecasts GaN RF power devices will capture nearly 25 percent of all high power semiconductors for mobile wireless infrastructure in 2017. The Asia-Pacific region, including China, will drive revenue.

RF power amplifiers (PA) are integral parts of all base stations for mobile wireless infrastructure. They represent one of the most expensive component subassemblies in modern infrastructure equipment, with both performance and cost important drivers in base station design. The RF power semiconductors used in these PAs must keep pace with the economic and technical realities facing the designers and users of these RF PAs.

“The increasing and critical need for wireless data remains an important market driver,” says Lance Wilson, a research director at ABI Research. “LTE and the initial building blocks of 5G will fuel the market’s growth for the next five years. Efficiency, physical size, linearity and reliability are among the principal concerns, As price pressures become fiercer, new and innovative techniques and materials must be used to reduce the cost of this important component part, while still maintaining performance.”

These findings are from ABI Research’s RF Power Semiconductor Devices for Mobile Wireless Infrastructure report.