In the ongoing wave of innovation in semiconductor materials, 12-inch silicon carbide (SiC) single crystal substrate technology has emerged as a critical battleground for numerous manufacturers. Recently, foreign media reported that Wolfspeed has made significant progress in 12-inch SiC single crystal substrates. Concurrently, several domestic manufacturers are also intensifying their efforts in this technological field, continuously achieving new breakthroughs that are creating fresh development opportunities for industries such as artificial intelligence, virtual reality, and high-voltage devices.
Wolfspeed has recently completed the demonstration of its 12-inch silicon carbide (SiC) single crystal substrate, marking a major step forward in its R&D. This achievement is expected to inject strong momentum into the development of key sectors, including the AI ecosystem, immersive virtual reality systems, and numerous high-voltage device applications. Wolfspeed's 12-inch platform innovatively integrates large-scale SiC manufacturing technology for power electronics with the advanced technology of semi-insulating substrates used in optical and RF systems. This unique fusion enables novel wafer-level integration across multiple domains such as optics, photonics, thermal management, and power, providing a broader scope for innovation in related technologies.
Analyzing the demands from a practical application perspective, the material properties of silicon carbide align perfectly with the technical advantages offered by the 12-inch platform. Taking the AI sector as an example, the continuous increase in data processing workloads has led to a corresponding, significant rise in the power load of data centers. Against this backdrop, market demand for higher power density, superior thermal performance, and greater energy efficiency is becoming increasingly urgent. Silicon carbide, with its excellent thermal conductivity and good mechanical strength, precisely meets this upgraded demand, providing robust support for the stable operation and performance enhancement of AI infrastructure.
In the next-generation augmented reality (AR) and virtual reality (VR) fields, devices require compact and lightweight structural designs, along with functionalities like high-brightness displays, wide fields of view, and efficient thermal management. The unique properties of silicon carbide in terms of thermal conductivity and optical refraction control make it an ideal material choice for building multifunctional optical architectures, promising to drive AR/VR devices towards thinner, lighter, and higher-performance designs.
Beyond its crucial role in AI infrastructure and AR/VR, the practical application of the 12-inch silicon carbide platform will further expand the application scope of advanced power devices. It will not only provide key core support for scenarios such as grid-level high-voltage energy transmission and next-generation industrial systems but will also leverage its technical advantages to drive the continuous upgrade of related components towards smaller size, better performance, and lower heat generation, thereby fostering technological breakthroughs and innovative development in related industries.
While Wolfspeed achieves results in 12-inch SiC single crystal substrate technology, domestic manufacturers are also showing vigorous development momentum in this field. At Semicon China held in March 2025, TianYue Advanced displayed a full series of 300mm (12-inch) silicon carbide substrates, including not only N-type conductive substrates for power devices but also high-purity semi-insulating substrates for RF and optical applications.
In September 2025, Jingsheng Mechanical & Electrical announced the official start of operations at its first pilot line for processing 12-inch silicon carbide substrates. Industry observers believe this signifies that the domestic supply chain can not only "grow" 12-inch crystals but has also preliminarily acquired the capability for downstream processing such as cutting, grinding, and polishing, thereby establishing a complete manufacturing loop from material to wafer.
In October 2025, Tiance Semiconductor announced the successful development of 12-inch high-purity semi-insulating SiC single crystal material and 12-inch N-type SiC single crystal material using its independently developed 12-inch SiC crystal growth equipment, with the effective crystal thickness of the 12-inch N-type material breaking through 35mm.
In December 2025, Jingsheng Shares announced that its independently developed 12-inch silicon carbide single crystal furnace had completed small-batch shipments and was officially delivered to customers for application. This progress not only fills a gap in domestic 300mm SiC crystal growth equipment but also lays the "material foundation" for the application of 12-inch SiC substrates in emerging scenarios like advanced packaging and AR glasses.
Also in December 2025, Hantian Tiancheng made a global debut of its 12-inch silicon carbide epitaxial chip. This product boasts an epitaxial layer thickness uniformity of ≤3%, a doping concentration uniformity of ≤8%, and a remarkable yield of over 96% for 2mm×2mm chips, meeting the mass production requirements for high-end power devices.