PCB Prototype Assembly Creates Unique Boards

PCBs are important part of all electronic equipment that is used these days. The layout and design of a PCB is crucial for the entire product. This key element or components can define product’s success as well as failure, because this is what the product performance is dependent on. In the meantime, if pcb assembly make any mistakes such as wrong assembly, absent assembly etc, will occur big problem in product’s function!

Most (although not all) of firms only provide manufacturing services, so it's entirely on you to provide specifications for a quality device and to hope they are able to deliver it. If the specs were flawed, or if counterfeit parts sabotage it, there will be little you can do about it. Wonderful PCB Technology Co., Ltd is PCB manufacturer and has PCB assembly line in house, which provide you whole services of PCB! Wonderful PCB provide high quality PCB assembly prototype, which can often save you a lot further down the road.

The Benefits of PCB Prototype Assembly

Think of it as an insurance policy: If you spend a bit more money up-front, you'll save yourself a lot of hassle later on. After all, these days, you can't risk your company's reputation on dodgy electronics. Once a firm becomes known for poor products, it can be extremely hard to undo the damage without a full (and costly) rebranding effort.

With PCB prototype assembly services, you get the breathing room you need to thoroughly test your design before committing to a production run.

As an experienced electronics manufacturing Service Company, Wonderful PCB can often begin by improving your design right from the start. Many initial designs are overly-complex, or fail to take advantage of the latest manufacturing technologies on offer. Allowing the manufacturer to look over your design and suggest changes can very often result in simplified designs that reduce component use, making them both cheaper and more reliable.

PCB Prototype Assembly Builds Better Boards

Simply put, prototyping services help you create a better product. You'll be able to put items on shelves which are less expensive, more reliable, safer, and more compliant with health and environmental regulations.

Given that your reputation really is all you have on the Internet, why gamble with untested products? Put a little more money into prototyping, and you'll reap the benefits throughout your products' entire life cycle.

Aluminum PCB board Application

Led aluminum pcb thermal conductivity
Led aluminum board and thermal conductivity aluminum board in the middle of the insulating layer (generally is PP, now has a thermal conductive adhesive, etc.), it is one of the three major measure of aluminum plate quality, heat resistance and pressure value is another two performance).Aluminum plate thermal conductivity can be tested after plate bonding instrument tests data, the high value of thermal conductivity is generally ceramic, copper, etc., but due to the cost into consideration, is currently on the market mainstream electronic aluminum plate, aluminum plate thermal conductivity of the corresponding is parameters of people's concern, the higher the coefficient of thermal conductivity is one of the symbols of the better performance.

Led aluminum plate classification
Led fluorescent lamp aluminum plate is aluminum plate classification, street light aluminum plate, tube light aluminum plate, wall lamp aluminum plate, shoot the aluminum plate, energy-saving light aluminum plate, electrodeless lamp aluminum plate, aluminum board, ceiling aluminum plate, wash wall lamp aluminum plate, the ball bubble lamp aluminum plate, tunnel light aluminum plate, floodlight, aluminum plate, aluminum plate, wall lamp high-power aluminum plate, small power aluminum plate, guardrail tube aluminum plate, neon lights aluminum plate, corn lamp aluminum plate, the candle light aluminum plate, absorb dome light aluminum plate, kitchen lamp aluminum plate, corridor lights aluminum plate, buried lights aluminum plate, dared light aluminum plate, industrial and mining lamp aluminum plate, aluminum plate bridge lights, floor tile lamp aluminum plate, stair light aluminum plate.

LED aluminum plate insulating layer
LED aluminum plate insulation layer is one of the most core technology of aluminum plate, the main adhesive, insulation and thermal conductivity of the function.Aluminum base board insulation is a power module.
Structure of the largest thermal barrier.Insulation heat conduction performance, the better, the more conducive to the spread of the heat produced during the operation, will be conducive to reduce the operating temperature of the device, so as to improve the module of power load, reducing the volume and prolong life, improve the power output, etc.
LED aluminum plate
1, audio equipment: input, output amplifier, balanced amplifier, audio amplifier, preamplifier, power amplifier, etc.   
2, power equipment, switching regulator ` DC/AC converter ` SW regulator, etc.   
3, communication electronic equipment: high frequency increase ` filtering electrical ` transmitting circuit.   
4, office automation equipment, motor drives, etc.    
5, automobile, electronic regulator ` igniter ` power controller, etc.   
6, a computer: CPU board ` diskette drive ` power supply device, etc.   
7, power module, inverter ` solid relay ` rectifier bridge, etc

About PCB Service

1. Installation and welding of parts
the last step is the installation and welding the parts. Both THT and SMT parts use of machinery and equipment to install is placed on the PCB.
THT parts are usually called the Wave Soldering (Wave Soldering) way of welding. This allows all parts to a welding on the PCB.First to pin cut close to the board, and slightly bent so that parts can be fixed. Then the PCB will be moved to the co solvent on the waves of make contact to help at the bottom of the solvent, it can be on the base metal of the oxide to get rid of. After the heated PCB, the move to the melting of solder, at the bottom and contact after welding is completed.
Automatic welding of SMT parts way is called to flow back to welding (Over Reflow Soldering).Contains co solvent and solder paste in welding, the parts installed on the PCB after the first treatment time, was a PCB again after heating treatment. For PCB cooling after welding is completed, the next is to prepare the final test of PCB.

2. Proofing
PCB's Chinese name is called printed circuit board, also known as printed circuit boards; printed circuit board is an important electronic component is electronic components support body? The provider of the electrical connection in the electronic components. Because it is made of so called electronic printing "printed circuit board.
PCB proofing is refers to the pilot production of printed circuit board before mass production is mainly used for electronic engineers in the design of circuit? And complete the PCB Layout to the factory after small batch trial-produce process is the PCB proofing. And PCB proofing production quantity generally no specific boundary is an engineer in product design has been finished to confirm and complete the test before we call it PCB proofing.

Through Via

Through Via Mounting: This mounting technique involves different components which have lead wires that are led to the board through holes, hence the name. In this method, leads rely on holes in a multilayer Aluminum pcb. The leads are then finally soldered to offer permanent mounting. The technology finds usage in DIP aka Dual Inline Packaging and Pin Grid Array Package.
Surface Mounting: This is a relatively new mounting method worked out seeing a tremendous increase in the number of pins in Integrated Circuits. As demand for smaller weight and size of packaged weight increased, there was felt a need for a new, improved technology that came to be known as surface mount technology (SMT). In this leads are soldered on PCB surface directly rather than using hole mounting. The technology is used in Flatpack Packages and Chip Carrier Packages.
There are some points that make SMT different from Through Hole, which have been briefly summarized below:
1.    SMT has helped significantly in solving the space problems that were commonly noticed with the Through Hole mounting.
2.    The pin count has increased greatly in SMT when compared to its older counterparts.
3.    In SMT, the components are leadless and are directly mounted to the board surface. In Through Hole the components have lead wires that are taken to the wiring boards via
holes.
4.    The Pads on the surface in SMT are not used for connection of layers on the printed wiring boards.
5.    The components in the Though Hole Technology are larger which leads to lower component density per unit area. The packing density that can be achieved with SMT is very high as this allows mounting component on both sides, when needed.
6.    SMT has made possible applications that seemed impossible with through hole.
7.    SMT is suitable for high volume production that gives access to lowered cost of unit assemblies which is not possible with through hole technology.
8.    With SMT acquiring higher circuit speed is easier due to the reduced size. SMT fulfils one of the prime marketing requirements while assisting in making high performance circuits in a very small size.
9.    SMT has a disadvantage as the capital investment involved in its machinery and production is higher.
10.    Designing, production, skill and technology required in implementing SMT is very advanced when compared to through hole technology.

When comparing both, SMT surpasses Through Hole in advantages, which clearly define and justify the majority (90%) use of this technology in board assemblies. Through Hole however is anticipated to remain in use in testing and prototype applications that may need manual adjustments and replacements. Its complete disappearance from the scene seems to be ruled out. Contact wonderful02@wonderfulpcb.com if you have any inquiry about PCB.

How to chat with customers When they visit our factory

Dialogue 1

A: If you are staying here for a few days, we’d be delighted to see you at our factory.
B: It’s very kind of you to say so. My associate and I will be interested in visiting your factory.
A: Let us know when you are free. We’ll arrange the tour for you.
B: Thank you. I’ll give you a call this afternoon to set the time. There’s nothing like seeing things with one’s own eyes.
A: That’s for sure. You’ll know our products better after the visit.

Dialogue 2

A: I’ll show you around and explain the operation as we go along.
B: That’ll be most helpful.
A: That is our office block. We have all the administrative departments there. Down there is the research and development section.
B: How much do you spend on development every year?
A: About 3-4% of the gross sales.
B: What’s that building opposite us?
A: That’s the warehouse. We keep a stock of the faster moving items so that urgent orders can be met quickly from stock.
B: If I placed an order now, how long would it be before I got delivery?
A: It would largely depend on the size of the order and the items you want.

Dialogue 3

A: Put on the helmet, please.
B: Do we need to put on the jackets too?
A: You’d better, to protect your clothes. Now please watch your step.
B: Thank you. Is the production line fully automated?
A: Well, not fully automated.
B: I see. How do you control the quality?
A: All products have to go through five checks in the whole manufacturing process.
B: What’s the monthly output?
A: One thousand units per month now. But we’ll be making 1,200 units beginning with October.
B: What’s your usual percentage of rejects?
A: About 2% in normal operations.
B: That’s wonderful. Is that where the finished products come off?
A: Yes. Shall we take a break now?

Dialogue 4

A: It was very kind of you to give me a tour of the place. It gave me a good idea of your product PCB Application.
B: It’s a pleasure to show our factory to our customers. What’s your general impression, may I ask?
A: Very impressive, indeed, especially the speed of your NW Model.
B: That’s our latest development. A product with high performance. We put it on the market just two months ago.
A: The machine gives you an edge over your competitors, I guess.
B: Certainly. No one can match us as far as speed is concerned.
A: Could you give me some brochures for that machine? And the price if possible.
B: Right. Here is our sales catalog and literature.
A: Thank you. I think we may be able to work together in the future.

Shirley Xia
Oversea sales
Wonderful PCB

 A Floor 6, Nanyuan Fengye Mansion, Nanshan Avenue, Nanshan District, Shenzhen City 518054, China.
T +86-755-86229518-821 / Cell phone and whatsApp:008613480796172
F  +86 755 2607 3529|
e  wonderful25@wonderfulpcb.com |
w  www.wonderfulpcb.com  | Skype:wonderful-pcb02
Welcome to our trading shows:
Booth: 9G27, HK Globalsources Oct.11-14th,2014 AsiaWorld-Expo, Hongkong
Booth：A3.274-1，2014.11.11-2014.11.14，the Electronica in Munich, Germany

Designing Your Circuit

Before you can consider any physical designs or schematic connections you must have a clear idea of what you want your design to do. This means taking some time to sit down and define what you want to accomplish, consider the challenges, and pick the right components for the job.
Determining Your Goals
The first step in designing the perfect Multilayer pcb is to have a well-defined set of goals that you would like your design to accomplish. To steal a little bit from the business world, you should always set SMART goals for your project, this means:
Specific
Measurable
Attainable
Realistic
Time Bound
As a personal example, I have started working on another side project for my own use. The bathroom in my apartment is too dark in the evening for me to get around in, but when I turn the light on it is way too bright and wakes me up.
To fix this little issue I thought I would just go buy a small lamp. Unfortunately, I am a little bit too picky and couldn’t find a lamp that I liked. That is when I had the idea to design one of my own. Of course, I’m not talking about just any lamp. I wanted a multi-color, adjustable brightness, wirelessly controlled lamp.
Sounds cool right? Of course it does! So before the idea was able to leave my head I jotted it down in my notebook and began planning.
At this point, my goals were pretty broad, let’s take a look at what I had:

Multi-color lamp
Adjustable brightness
Wireless control
Unfortunately none of these goals are very specific at all. What do I mean by multi-color? Is that two colors, three, or any variable color? What is adjustable brightness? I mean technically on and off would be two different brightness settings right? Wireless control? What, do I want to use Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, infrared, RF, Zigbee, sound? Any of these options would be possible.

Following will be continued in next chapter.

Shirley Xia
Oversea sales
Wonderful PCB

 A Floor 6, Nanyuan Fengye Mansion, Nanshan Avenue, Nanshan District, Shenzhen City 518054, China.
T +86-755-86229518-821 / Cell phone and whatsApp:008613480796172
F  +86 755 2607 3529|
e  wonderful25@wonderfulpcb.com |
w  www.wonderfulpcb.com  | Skype:wonderful-pcb02
Welcome to our trading shows:
Booth: 9G27, HK Globalsources Oct.11-14th,2014 AsiaWorld-Expo, Hongkong
Booth：A3.274-1，2014.11.11-2014.11.14，the Electronica in Munich, Germany

About TG

TG is the glass transition temperature, i.e. the melting point. Circuit board must resist fire, just to say, at a certain temperature it does not burn, only to become soften. At this point the temperature is called the glass transition temperature (TG point), this value is related to the durability of the quick turn PCB size.
What is a high TG PCB circuit boards and what is the advantages of high TG PCB?
High TG printed circuit board means when the temperature of the substrate increased to a certain degree then the board will become "rubbery" from the "glassy" , this temperature is called the glass transition temperature (TG). That is, TG is the highest temperature of the substrate to maintain rigidity (℃). When PCB substrate material at a high temperature, it will be continuously softened, deformed, melting or the similar phenomenon, and also sharply decreased in mechanical, electrical characteristics, this will influence the life of the product.
The general sheet TG is above 130 ℃, high TG is above 170 ℃, medium TG is above 150 ℃; usually PCB whose TG≥170 ℃, called high TG PCB; If TG of substrate is higher, the heat resistance of the printed circuit board, moisture resistance, chemical resistance, stability and other characteristics will be improved.

From  Shirley Xia
PCB manufacturer 
Wonderful PCB company
www.wonderfulpcb.com
Email: wonderful25@wonderfulpcb.com

PCB Classification

According to the circuit layer classification: divided into single panel, double panel and laminated. Common sandwich plate is commonly 4 layer board or 6 layer boards; complex sandwich plate can reach dozens of layers.

1. Single – Sided PCB
http://www.wonderfulpcb.com/Single-Sided-PCB.html

Single panel (Single - Sided Boards) in the most basic on the PCB of parts on one side, the conductor is focused on the other side (have SMT components with lead to one side, the plug-in device to the other side).Because the wires in only one side, so this kind of PCB is called Single panel (Single sided).Because single panel in the design of lines, there are many restrictions (because only one side, wiring must around the path alone cannot cross between), so only use this kind of early circuit board.


2. Double - Sided PCB
http://www.wonderfulpcb.com/Double-Sided-PCB.html
Double panel (Double - Sided Boards) to both sides of the circuit board wiring, but it took two wires, must have the appropriate circuit connection between two sides. This circuit is called the "bridge" between the guide hole (via).Guide hole is on the PCB, or coated with metal small hole, it can be connected to both sides of the wire. Because the area of the double panel a times larger than a single panel, double panel solved because wiring of the difficulty in the single panel (can be conduction through the hole to the other side), it is more suitable for use in more complex than a single panel circuit.

3. Multi - Layer PCB
http://www.wonderfulpcb.com/Multilayer-PCB.html
Sandwich plate (Multi - Layer Boards) in order to increase the area of the wiring, a multilayer wiring board using the more single or double. With a double lining, two one-way for outer layer or two double lining, two blocks of single outer layer of the printed circuit board, through the positioning system and alternate insulation adhesive materials and conductive graphics interconnection according to design requirement of printed circuit board becomes four, six layer printed circuit board, also known as multilayer printed circuit board. Layer number of the board does not mean that there are several independent wiring layer, under special circumstances will join empty layer to control board thickness, layer number usually is even, and contains the outer two layers. Most of the motherboard is 4 to 8 layer structure, but technical theory can be nearly 100 layers of PCB. Large supercomputers are used quite layers of the motherboard, but because this kind of computer can replace with many ordinary computer cluster, super sandwich plate has not been used gradually. Because each layer of PCB are closely combined, the actual number is generally not too easy to see, but if you look closely at the motherboard, can still see it.

Designing Your Circuit

Before you can consider any physical designs or schematic connections you must have a clear idea of what you want your design to do. This means taking some time to sit down and define what you want to accomplish, consider the challenges, and pick the right components for the job.
Determining Your Goals
The first step in designing the perfect circuit boards is to have a well-defined set of goals that you would like your design to accomplish. To steal a little bit from the business world, you should always set SMART goals for your project, this means:
Specific
Measurable
Attainable
Realistic
Time Bound
As a personal example, I have started working on another side project for my own use. The bathroom in my apartment is too dark in the evening for me to get around in, but when I turn the light on it is way too bright and wakes me up.
To fix this little issue I thought I would just go buy a small lamp. Unfortunately, I am a little bit too picky and couldn’t find a lamp that I liked. That is when I had the idea to design one of my own. Of course, I’m not talking about just any lamp. I wanted a multi-color, adjustable brightness, wirelessly controlled lamp.
Sounds cool right? Of course it does! So before the idea was able to leave my head I jotted it down in my notebook and began planning.
At this point, my goals were pretty broad, let’s take a look at what I had:

Multi-color lamp
Adjustable brightness
Wireless control
Unfortunately none of these goals are very specific at all. What do I mean by multi-color? Is that two colors, three, or any variable color? What is adjustable brightness? I mean technically on and off would be two different brightness settings right? Wireless control? What, do I want to use Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, infrared, RF, Zigbee, sound? Any of these options would be possible.

Following will be continued in next chapter.

Shirley Xia
Oversea sales
Wonderful PCB

 A Floor 6, Nanyuan Fengye Mansion, Nanshan Avenue, Nanshan District, Shenzhen City 518054, China.
T +86-755-86229518-821 / Cell phone and whatsApp:008613480796172
F  +86 755 2607 3529|
e  wonderful25@wonderfulpcb.com |
w  www.wonderfulpcb.com  | Skype:wonderful-pcb02
Welcome to our trading shows:
Booth: 9G27, HK Globalsources Oct.11-14th,2014 AsiaWorld-Expo, Hongkong
Booth：A3.274-1，2014.11.11-2014.11.14，the Electronica in Munich, Germany

Multilayer PCB design method (I)

11.2.1 General principles of components layout
7). The serial number of components should be close to the components of the border to decorate, uniform size, direction and tidy, not with components, holes and overlap welding plate. Components or connector pins 1 said direction; Is the sign of the cathode should be clearly marked on the PCB, not allowed to be covered; power conversion components (such as DC/DC converter, linear transformation power supply and switching power supply) side should have enough heat dissipation space and installation space, with sufficient welding outer space, etc.

11.2.2 General principles of the components wiring
Design personnel in the process of Multilayer pcb wiring needs to follow the general principles are as follows.
1)Components printed line spacing of setting principles. Amount of space between different network constraints are produced by electric insulation, process and component size and other factors. Such as a pin spacing is 8 mil chip components, then the chip of the [Clearance Constraint] cannot be set to 10 mil, designers need to separate this chip set a 6 mil design rules. At the same time, the distance between set to take into account the manufacturer's production capacity.
In addition, the influence of components is an important factor in electrical insulation, if two components or network of potential difference is bigger, be considered for electrical insulation problems. In general environment, clearance safe voltage of 200 V/mm, or 5.08 V/mil. So when the same piece of circuit board when there are both high voltage circuit and low voltage circuit, you need to pay special attention to enough safe distance.

WonderfuI Printed Circuit Board

From the number of layers and the development direction of PCB board to points, the PCB industry into a single panel, double panel, conventional multilayer flexible board, HDI (high density interconnect) board, package substrate and other six major product segments . From the product life cycle "lead-in period - growing - maturity - a recession" and four-cycle dimension view, where a single panel, double panel electronics products because they do not fit the current trends in the application of thin short, is in recession, its value gradually reduce the proportion of developed countries and regions such as Japan, Korea and Taiwan has been very little in the local production of such products, many manufacturers have made it clear that no longer meet single and double panel. Conventional multilayer and HDI products, process capability maturity are more sophisticated, higher value-added products, is currently the most major PCB factory full Zhugong direction, Chinese manufacturers are only a handful of ultrasound and electronic production techniques; scratch plates, especially high-density flexible and rigid PCB board, due to the current technology is not yet mature, a lot of manufacturers failed to achieve mass production of products are growing, but because it has more than a rigid plate adapted to digital products features flexible plate growth is high, is the future direction of the various manufacturers.
     
IC package substrate used, whether it is R & D or manufacturing in the electronics industry in developed countries such as Japan, South Korea, more mature, but in the country is still in the exploratory stage technology, only Ibiden (Beijing) Co., Ltd., Advanced Semiconductor (Shanghai) Co., Ltd., Zhuhai Doumen Chao Yi Electronics Co., Ltd., one of the few manufacturers in small batches. This is because of China's IC industry is still underdeveloped, but with the multinational electronics giant will continue to move to China IC R & D institutions, and improve China's own R & D and production levels of IC package substrate will have a huge market, is a big vision plant development. China's hard board (single-sided, double-sided, multilayer, HDI board) share reached 70%, of which 5 percent share of the plywood accounted for the largest proportion, followed by soft board with 15.6% of the proportion of second place. Due to the pressure of oversupply, most manufacturers to enter the price war, output growth is lower than expected.      
        
PCB domestic product from the future development trend, output growth is slightly lower than the sales growth was mainly the product gradually to the multilayer structure, the development of high precision. Our multilayer and HDI board is in the business of growing, expanding, increasingly mature technology. MLB is still the mainstream market development; and HDI board by the downstream electronic information products upgrading demand-pull, is in a period of rapid development.

Sophie Deng
_______________________________________
Wonderful PCB Limited
NO.32A,Building NO.1, XianDaiC hengHuaTing,ChuangYeRoad|NanShan District,ShenZhen City 518054|  China  T +86-755-86229518-806 | F  +86 755 2607 3529|  e  wonderful08@wonderfulpcb.com |
w  www.wonderfulpcb.com  | Skype:wonderful-07   |                                                   
Welcome to our trading shows:
1.Booth: L32,Expo Electronic 2013,Apr.10-12th in CROCUS EXPO,Moscow,Russia
2.Booth: 11J36, HK Global sources  Apr.12-15th, 2013 Asia World-Expo, Hong Kong
3.Booth: 9J35, HK Global sources Oct.12-15th,2013 Asia World-Expo, Hong Kong
4.Booth: 70206, CES  2014  Jan,8th-11th in Las Vegas, USA

Drilling in Printed Circuit Board

    A circuit board drilling is just like a common drill, except that it is optimized for drilling holes in the printed circuit board as opposed to drilling holes in other materials such as wood. Holes are normally drilled in circuit boards which made from tungsten because of its mechanical properties. Another difference of circuit board drilling from wood drilling is that, the size of this type of drill can vary greatly because it typically is very small. Sometimes, this drill is made by people, but it more often is combined with a drill press for automated drilling by the machines.

   There are two main drilling holes in the pcb board. One is NPTH hole, another is PTH hole. All the holes in the single sided printed circuit board are NPTH hole. That’s because no need for electronic conduction between layers in single sided PCB. It has just one copper foil layer. PTH hole will appear in double sided or multilayer PCB.
These holes exist for the electronic conduction among layers. So it may have Copper in these holes.
   While as explained, circuit board drilling holes must be very small. We usually use unit mil to indicate it. What’s more tungsten is a very hard metal. So circuit board drilling holes are made by drill bits. The PCB drill bits are made of micro grain carbide. They are used primarily in CNC machines for drilling printed circuit boards for electronics, but their toughness and accuracy lend them to uses in other industries. When a hole has to be drilled through a circuit board, the bit must go through copper traces, which are sturdy and hard. That’s a subtle work. A piece of printed circuit board may have several thousand of drilling holes including NPTH and PTH holes, so many PCB boards are finished drilling by machines!
   One thing we should pay attention to is the smear when drilling holes in a PCB. For multilayer boards, those with three layers or more, drilling typically produces a smear of the high temperature decomposition products of bonding agent in the laminate system. We should remove the smear before plating through these holes. So we need to have a chemical de-smear process, or plasma-etch. The de-smear process remove smear to ensure that a good connection or electronic conduction among layers when the holes are plated through. If smear remains in the PTH holes, it may cause short cut in the printed circuit board. Some bad PCB products are rejected just because the smear of the holes!

Worldwide Semiconductor Sales Expected to Reach $358 Billion in 2015

Worldwide semiconductor revenue is forecast to reach $358 billion in 2015, a 5.4 percent increase from 2014, but down from the previous quarter's forecast of 5.8 percent growth, according to Gartner, Inc. The market is being driven by strong growth in application-specific standard products (ASSPs) in smartphones, along with DRAM and NAND flash in ultramobiles and solid-state drives (SSDs).

"Semiconductor revenue growth in 2015 is expected to slow from the 7.9 percent growth experienced in 2014 as DRAM returns to more traditional price reductions and the industry burns off excess holiday inventory," said Jon Erensen, research director of Gartner. "DRAM pricing was unusually firm in 2014 due to short supply, which propelled DRAM to be the fastest-growing device type in 2014 with 31.7 percent revenue growth. DRAM supply and demand will be in line in 2015, driving bit pricing down a more traditional 16.8 percent and reducing annual DRAM revenue growth to 7.7 percent."

From an application point of view, smartphones, SSDs and ultramobiles will see the largest dollar increases. In 2015, compute applications will continue to be the largest market for semiconductors, followed by wireless and consumer applications. Combined, these three device categories represent more than two-thirds of total semiconductor revenue and have the most influence on the overall strength of the semiconductor market.

However, in 2015, the industrial electronics segment is expected to outperform overall semiconductor market growth and other electronic application categories with revenue growth of 9.1 percent. The growth will be driven mainly by LED lighting applications for industrial and residential purposes and smart city projects. In addition, the Internet of Things (IoT) will continue to drive very strong unit growth in 2015 and beyond.

Following industrial applications, wireless applications — driven mainly by mobile phones — will be the next biggest growth market for semiconductors in 2015. However, the 2015 revenue growth forecast for wireless applications, and specifically mobile phones, remains the same as the previous quarter's forecast.

"While mobile phone semiconductor sales will remain robust, driven by the accelerating shift to smartphones and 4G Long Term Evolution, there is concern that weak sell-through for other electronic equipment categories will result in higher inventory levels and drag down semiconductor sales in the first quarter of 2015," said Mr. Erensen.