Toshiba Materials Co., Ltd. and Kyocera Corp. recently announced that they have agreed to start full-scale collaboration on the development and production of nitride ceramic components. Used as heat-dissipating and insulating parts in power semiconductors, demand is increasing for nitride ceramic components possessing excellent thermal conductivity and mechanical properties, as energy-saving requirements heighten in the automotive and railway industries. It is also expected that adoption of nitride ceramics will expand in semiconductor production equipment (SPE), since these components enable precise temperature control at higher temperatures in the production process.

The two companies reportedly decided to work together in order to blend the material technologies on nitride ceramics possessed by Toshiba Materials with the special ceramic processing technologies possessed by Kyocera. The goal of the collaboration is to achieve higher competitiveness in the ceramics market by providing highly functional products such as power semiconductor components with high heat-dissipating properties, as well as components for SPE that allow precise temperature control under high temperatures—both of which cannot be realized with conventional technologies.

The two companies have been working on joint development of power semiconductors and components for SPE since 2014. Having obtained good results from trial products developed out of the joint project, the companies have decided to launch full-scale collaboration. Based on this agreement, the companies will seek further possibilities through collaboration and synergy to accelerate development and commercialization by organizing a working team and joint investment. 

For more information, visit www.toshiba-tmat.co.jp/eng or http://global.kyocera.com.