5G Becomes the Revenue Growth Engine
After 2019 saw the first decline in more than a decade, RF GaAs device revenue returned to growth in 2020. The Strategy Analytics Advanced Semiconductor Applications (ASA) report “RF GaAs Device Technology and Market Forecast: 2020 – 2025” identifies 5G devices and networks as the primary reason for this growth. The report does go on to forecast that growth will resume, with RF GaAs device revenue approaching $9.5 billion by 2025. Wider deployment of millimeter wave-capable 5G handsets and networks will be the main contributors to future RF GaAs device revenue growth.
“In the early part of 2020, things looked pretty serious for the GaAs device market” noted Eric Higham Director of the Advanced Semiconductor Applications (ASA) and Advanced Defense System (ADS) service. “The market was starting to digest the impacts of the COVID pandemic and the US-China trade sanctions were weighing heavily on the entire electronics supply chain.” He went on to say, “As 2020 progressed, it became clear that 5G device and network deployments would propel revenue growth in GaAs devices. As millimeter wave 5G devices and networks become more widely deployed, the increased RF content will become the growth engine for the entire RF GaAs device market.”
