Make every effort to layout the pressure sensor market, see how FATRI seizes the opportunity

Sensing technology is the entrance to data collection and the foundation and core of big data analysis. With the accelerated implementation of technologies such as 5G, Internet of Things, artificial intelligence, and autonomous driving, the increasingly large and complex data demand will dramatically expand the sensor market, and the industry prospects are very good. According to data from the China Academy of Information and Communications Technology, the scale of my country's sensor market has maintained rapid growth in recent years, and it is expected that by 2021, the scale of my country's sensor market may exceed 200 billion yuan. 

There is no doubt that China's sensor industry is ushering in a golden period of development, which will also bring huge development opportunities to domestic sensor companies. In order to firmly grasp the opportunity to seize the market, a large number of sensor companies are quietly making efforts, among which a "dark horse" is particularly eye-catching, it is FATRI. Recently, FATRI successfully launched a series of piezoresistive pressure sensors and piezoresistive pressure chips, striving to gain a firm foothold in the pressure sensor market segment and seize the initiative.

Pressure Sensor Market 

Among the various sensor markets, MEMS pressure sensors have gradually become one of the largest market segments, with a wide range of applications in the automotive, industrial, consumer electronics, medical and civil aviation fields. According to research data from Yole Développement, the MEMS pressure sensor market will grow at an annual rate of 3.8%, and the market size will reach US$2 billion by 2023.

MEMS pressure sensors are sensors that measure changes in fluid pressure such as gas and liquid. Based on the operating principle, they can be divided into "piezoresistive" and "piezoelectric". Among them, piezoresistive sensors are sensors made using the piezoresistive effect of single-crystal silicon materials and integrated circuit technology.

 At the beginning of this year, the COVID-19 epidemic spread across the world at a lightning speed. The development of the epidemic has obviously exceeded expectations. Due to the obstruction of overseas supply and limited domestic production capacity, the ventilators necessary for the survival of severe patients with COVID-19 have been in urgent need in various places. To this end, FATRI responded quickly to market demand and launched a number of piezoresistive pressure sensors for ventilators, effectively solving the demand for sensors from ventilator manufacturers. From the perspective of application areas, in addition to being used in ventilators, piezoresistive pressure sensors are also the most widely used sensors in industrial automation, involving many industries such as water conservancy and hydropower, railway transportation, intelligent buildings, production automation, civil aviation, petrochemicals, oil wells, electricity, ships, machine tools, pipelines, etc. Although piezoresistive pressure sensors can be applied in many fields, they are relatively scattered. Therefore, in order to meet the market demand for different application scenarios, FATRI has been expanding its piezoresistive pressure sensor product matrix. Recently, FATRI has released six piezoresistive pressure sensors, including TYZV02, TYZV03, TYZV06, TYZV08, TYZV09 and TYZV10. These six series of products are all made by MEMS technology, and have different performance and packaging methods, suitable for different fields.

According to the sensor product director of FATRI, the entire industry chain of FATRI TYZV6 series sensors, from design, manufacturing, packaging to testing, has been completely independently developed. The products produced have excellent stability and sensitivity, and use unique compensation technology internally, with excellent accuracy, and can accurately measure tiny pressures. In addition, they have the characteristics of high reliability and high stability. The pressure range, accuracy, and use environment of the products can be very well matched to the use of various products.

Pressure sensor core - pressure chip 

Since the Magdeburg experiment, humans have discovered the existence of atmospheric pressure. Physicists have been trying to find a convenient and high-precision pressure testing method, from early mercury pressure gauges to mechanical pressure gauges, and MEMS pressure chips evolved from modern chip technology. After several generations of development, pressure measurement is becoming more accurate and more convenient. In addition to the evolution trend of technology, broad market prospects are also an important factor in promoting the rapid development of MEMS pressure chips. In 2015, the production capacity of China's pressure sensor industry was about 255 million units, and the compound annual growth rate of the MEMS market from 2020 to 2023 is expected to be 9%. Therefore, MEMS chips will usher in a stage of rapid development in recent years. For piezoresistive pressure sensors, the core must be pressure chips. The biggest advantage of FATRI in developing a series of high-performance pressure sensor products is that it has the ability to independently develop chips.

According to Jiwei.com, FATRI recently launched 8 piezoresistive pressure chips and 6 series of piezoresistive pressure sensors. All pressure chips are independently developed and produced by FATRI and processed on a 6-inch MEMS production line. The pressure chip consists of an elastic membrane and four resistors integrated on the membrane. The four piezoresistors form a Wheatstone bridge structure. When pressure acts on the elastic membrane, the bridge will generate a voltage output signal that is linearly proportional to the applied pressure.

 From the performance point of view, FATRI's pressure chip mainly works in two temperature ranges of -55~125℃ and -55~260℃, and the chip size ranges from 0.6mm*0.6mm to 2.0mm*2.0mm. In addition, the chip has good comprehensive accuracy and stability, small zero and full-scale temperature drift, excellent anti-interference and anti-static capabilities, strong overload capacity, high sensitivity, and convenient use of op amps or integrated circuits for output debugging. "A good MEMS pressure chip has very high requirements for pressure sensitivity, linearity, temperature and other characteristics. From early design simulation to meticulous process manufacturing, and to strict and comprehensive reliability and performance testing, all reflect the ultimate design concept of FATRI researchers." said Dr. Nie Yongzhong, founder and CTO of FATRI. 

Advanced Manufacturing Capabilities 

The industry chain of MEMS chips is mainly divided into design, manufacturing, packaging and testing. However, at present, most domestic chip manufacturers are in the downstream of chip production, that is, the packaging and testing stage, and there are very few in the upstream design and manufacturing process stage, and the chip manufacturing process is the most difficult of the difficulties. 

Dr. Nie Yongzhong, Chairman and CTO of FATRI

To this end, Dr. Nie Yongzhong has been working hard to develop the company's manufacturing capabilities in advanced MEMS chips and sensors since the establishment of FATRI in 2015. In October 2017, FATRI completed the construction of a new 8-inch MEMS production line and a high-end sensor packaging and testing line in Quanzhou that is backward compatible with 6-inch MEMS. It has a high-grade clean workshop of more than 6,000 square meters, with a brand-new plant design and advanced MEMS production equipment. With the completion of the construction of the manufacturing base, FATRI's competitive strength in the sensor field has been further enhanced. Dr. Nie Yongzhong's dream is to apply high-end sensors to more intelligent fields, develop and manufacture advanced technologies and products for improving human environment, health and safety, and make the world smarter.

In the future, FATRI will always focus on the core technologies of perception and artificial intelligence, including advanced material technology, advanced chip technology, advanced sensor technology and artificial intelligence algorithm technology, and through continuous and substantial investment in these fields, the number of patents will increase rapidly at a rate of hundreds each year. Under the leadership of Dr. Nie Yongzhong, FATRI is now creating a new world of its own in the field of sensors as a "dark horse". Although this is destined to be a long and arduous road, only companies that are not afraid of the rigorous test of the market can become truly successful companies. I believe that FATRI will bring us more surprises in the future.