Do you recall when we could afford to live a simple life without all these electronic devices and other stuffs that we enjoy now?
Nowadays, we cannot even imagine living life without all these electronic devices!
But do you know that all these electronic devices and other digital products require Semiconductor to work?
Okay, so here we will learn about semiconductors and top semiconductor companies that manufacture them.
Keep reading, keep learning!
What is a Semiconductor?
Semiconductors serve as the basic components in most electronic equipment from which functions such as amplification, switching, and signal processing are carried out.
Its electrical conductivity falls between that of a conductor and an insulator. Such a characteristic of semiconductors makes it essential to regulate electrical current in modern electronics.
Semiconductors are usually produced from silicon; their electronic property can be modified by doping that introduces impurity into its material to enhance conductivity.
Key Characteristics of Semiconductors:
- Conductivity: Semiconductors can conduct electricity under certain circumstances; this is exactly what they provide as their purpose in the devices.
- Band Gap: They possess a band gap that enables them to act like insulators when at low temperature but conduct electricity when heated or exposed to light.
- Doping: The process through which impurities are introduced to change the electrical characteristics of the semiconductor
Top Semiconductor Companies in the World (2024)
There are certain companies that have a very dominating presence in the field of semiconductor. We have filtered 10 of them for you keeping various factors in minds such as their Revenue, Market Capitalization and which Stock Exchange lists them.
So here is the list of top semiconductor companies as of 2024:
1. NVIDIA:
NVIDIA was founded in 1993. It leads in the GPU and AI technology. NVIDIA is powering games, data centers, and automotive applications. The innovations in the company led to the advanced graphics processing and artificial intelligence capabilities.
- Revenue: $79.8 billion
- Market Cap: $3.35 trillion
- Exchange: NASDAQ
Related: Does Freesync work with Nvidia?
2. TSMC (Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company):
Established in 1987, the Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company is today’s largest independent dedicated semiconductor foundry that produces chips for several clients, which include Apple and AMD, and innovates advanced fabrication processes.
- Revenue: $71.5 billion
- Market Cap: $963 billion
- Exchange: NYSE
3. Broadcom:
Founded in 1991, Broadcom designs a wide range of semiconductor products for networking, broadband, and wireless communication, serving major tech companies like Apple and Samsung with its innovative solutions.
- Revenue: $39.0 billion
- Market Cap: $818 billion
- Exchange: NASDAQ
4. ASML:
Founded in 1984, ASML is one of the prominent companies engaged in providing photolithography equipment that is used for manufacturing small and powerful chips through advanced EUV technology.
- Revenue: $26.1 billion
- Market Cap: $421 billion
- Exchange: NASDAQ
5. Samsung Electronics:
Samsung was formed in 1969 and is the world’s biggest manufacturer of semiconductors, producing memory chips and processors for multiple devices, in addition to offering various consumer electronics products.
- Revenue: $202.2 billion
- Market Cap: $420 billion
- Exchange: Korean Exchange
6. AMD (Advanced Micro Devices):
Founded in 1969, AMD manufactures high-performance computing and graphics solutions for business and consumers alike while heavily competing against Intel and NVIDIA through its CPUs and GPUs, respectively.
- Revenue: $22.8 billion
- Market Cap: $287 billion
- Exchange: NASDAQ
Related: What is Vsync? How it impacts graphic performance?
7. Qualcomm:
Qualcomm was founded in 1985. It specializes in semiconductors related to telecommunication. Qualomars is mainly popular for its Snapdragon line of processors which power the majority of the world’s smartphones.
- Revenue: $38.0 billion
- Market Cap: $231 billion
- Exchange: NASDAQ
8. Applied Materials:
Applied Materials was founded in 1967. It provides equipment, services, and software to the semiconductor industry. All these things are very crucial elements that play a significant role in the chip fabrication process.
- Revenue: $23.2 billion
- Market Cap: $208 billion
- Exchange: NASDAQ
9. ARM Holdings:
ARM was founded in 1990. It designs microprocessor technology that goes inside the majority of mobile devices. Its architecture is utilized in most smartphones and tablets worldwide.
- Revenue: N/A (recently acquired by NVIDIA)
- Market Cap: $196 billion (pre-acquisition)
- Exchange: NASDAQ
10. Texas Instruments:
Founded in 1930, it designs analog and embedded processing chips that power the majority of electronic devices, from consumer goods to industrial innovation.
- Revenue: $20.0 billion
- Market Cap: $183 billion
- Exchange: NASDAQ
Where are Semiconductors Used?
Semiconductors constitute a key element in a wide array of applications in nearly every industry:
- Consumer Electronics: Used in smart phones, pads, and laptops.
- Automotive Industry: In electric vehicles, safety systems and infotainment.
- Telecommunications: This is used in most networking equipment and mobile communication devices.
- Industrial Applications: These are used in automation systems and robotics.
- Healthcare Devices: They form an important part in medical imaging equipment and diagnostic tools.
Benefits of Semiconductors
The lists of the benefits of semiconductors go on and on such as:
- Efficiency: These facilitate energy-efficient designs that minimize the power consumption of the devices.
- Miniaturization: Semiconductors aid in the design of much smaller components. As such, compact electronic devices can be designed.
- Versatility: Semiconductors can be developed for a wide range of applications, from consumer gadgets to industrial machinery.
- Performance Enhancement: They help provide faster processing speeds and enhanced functionality in the electronic systems.
Conclusion
Semiconductors are now a very crucial part of today’s technology since they have paved the way for tremendous innovation in various industries. Development in semiconductor technology today continues promising greater efficiency and capability for future application.
As the market continues to grow, companies such as NVIDIA, TSMC, and Broadcom will play an increasingly important role in setting the landscape of electronics and computing.