UV Tapes Market: Demand from Semiconductor Industry Key for Growth

UV tapes are widely used for protecting semiconductor wafers against breaking and grinding. They are also used for wafer backgrinding, wafer dicing, and package dicing. UV tapes offer additional safety to semiconductor wafers during the backgrinding and dicing process, and this has been a strong factor for their increased demand in recent times.

UV tapes are a category of pressure sensitive adhesives (PSA). PSA tapes adhere to the surface when pressure is applied. UV tapes are different from conventional PSA tapes in the aspect that they are generally thinner. During the wafer dicing and grinding process, UV tapes settle the wafers seamlessly and after UV irradiation, these tapes can be easily peeled off from the semiconductor wafers.

Application Analysis of UV Tapes

The major applications of UV tapes are in the semiconductor industry, where they are used for wafer backgrinding and wafer dicing. Backgrinding is a process in which the thickness of the semiconductor wafers is reduced so that integrated circuits (IC) can be packaged over them. Prior to backgrinding, the semiconductor wafers are laminated with UV tapes to prevent them from exposure to grinding fluids. After backgrinding, the UV tape is easily removed by exposing the wafer to UV radiation. Irradiation to UV is an effective way of removing the UV tape from the wafer, as it does not leave any adhesive residues or stress.

UV tapes are also widely used for dicing semiconductor wafers. Dicing is a process through which dies are separated from the semiconductor wafers. Earlier, it used to be accomplished by using a dicing saw, however, the whole process is now automated to maintain precision and accuracy. Many manufacturers have started using UV tapes during the dicing process, as it helps minimise chipping. UV tapes provide manufacturers with many advantages, including non-contamination with ionic substances and easy die-pick-up.

Although UV tapes offer a host of benefits over conventional PSA tapes, they still form a miniscule percentage of the global revenue share of the PSA tapes market. According to the analysis by Future Market Insights, the UV tapes had a revenue share of less than 1% in 2014. One of the prime reasons for low adoption of UV tapes in the semiconductor industry currently is their high cost.

The demand for UV tapes is anticipated to witness a surge through 2020 as miniaturization becomes a key trend in the global consumer electronics industry. The demand for compact consumer electronics devices will prompt manufacturers to use lightweight ICs, which in turn will provide a boost to adoption of UV tapes. The application of UV tapes in the production of camera lenses is a case in point of how consumer preference can act as a catalyst for the global UV tapes market.

Asia Pacific Most Lucrative Market for UV Tapes

Demand for UV tapes is anticipated to be robust in the Asia Pacific region. China’s semiconductor industry is witnessing a boom thanks to the favourable government policies and the growth of the semiconductor industry will augur well for the prospects of the UV tapes market. In addition to China, Taiwan will continue to be a lucrative market for the UV tapes market. Taiwan is home to some of the world’s biggest semiconductor factories, such as the Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company Ltd. and UMC Powerchip. Other key regions for the global UV tapes market include North America and Europe.

Overall, FMI projects the UV tapes market to expand at a strong CAGR of over 9% through 2020. The worth of the global UV tapes market is projected to be worth US$ 437.9 Mn by 2020.

Browse Full: "UV Tapes Market : Global Industry Analysis and Opportunity Assessment 2015 - 2020" Market Research Report at http://www.futuremarketinsights.com/reports/details/uv-tapes-market