Semiconductor industry

The semiconductor industry is a specialized area of the electrical industry. The companies in this industry are engaged in the production and sales of semiconductor -based components and modules active, ie both manufacturers of these products, also known as semiconductor manufacturers, and suppliers for the semiconductor material or special production facilities, such as photolithography systems. Although the photovoltaic also uses semiconductor devices and manufacturing, these companies are not counted in general to semiconductor industry but for the photovoltaic industry.

Typical products in the semiconductor industry are both discrete semiconductor devices such as diodes, transistors, thyristors or diodes, as well as more complex microelectronic products such as semiconductor memory and integrated circuits (ICs ). In addition, include microsystems engineering components and assemblies such as sensors and actuators ( transducers ) for the semiconductor industry.

The following table shows the in 2010 the world's five largest companies and their market shares are given in the field of semiconductor industry.