Samsung's preliminary Q3 operating profit is KRW 107.4 trillion, up 782.5% YoY. If confirmed, it would be the first Korean company to top KRW 100 trillion in a quarter. Q3 revenue was KRW 195 trillion, with full results due this month. The source does not state the cause of the profit increase.
Renesas is sampling what it says is the industry's first 650-V GaN FET with dual-side cooling for high-density power conversion in 800-V HVDC AI data centers, part number TP65H020G4PLSGBD, with a 20-mΩ on-resistance that Renesas says is among the lowest in its class. Unlike conventional top-side-cooled packages, the device dissipates heat from both the top and bottom, lowering top-side thermal impedance by 10%; its 8×8-mm PQFN package reduces footprint by 57% compared with the 10×15-mm TOLT package. The D-mode FET is built on the Gen IV Plus GaN architecture for systems operating at up to 700 V, targeting the 800-V DC/DC intermediate-bus converter stage, which steps down to 48 V, 12 V, or 6 V, as well as the battery-backup and capacitor-bank stages of the sidecar power rack. The device can be driven with a standard silicon gate driver and is pin-to-pin compatible with E-mode GaN devices, and its higher 4-V typical threshold voltage provides improved noise immunity. Mass production of the TP65H020G4PLSGBD is planned for mid-2027 and therefore remains a plan, not achieved volume production.
Samsung Electronics reported a record 783% YoY operating profit surge to 107.4 trillion KRW in Q3 2026, driven by HBM4 demand and memory price gains. HBM bit shipments jumped nearly 50% QoQ, while DRAM prices rose amid tight supply. Bullish: Supply constraints and price uptrends are confirmed.
Samsung's upcoming HBM4E memory has reportedly passed testing for NVIDIA's next-generation "Rubin Ultra" AI GPU accelerator family. This is a reported test-pass result and does not confirm volume production or supply. As background, Samsung's previous HBM3E did not meet NVIDIA's requirements, leading NVIDIA to choose Samsung for GDDR7 only instead of HBM3E. On specifications, Samsung's HBM4E designs are currently running at 14 Gbps per pin and 2,048 pins per stack, achieving a maximum bandwidth of 3.6 TB/s per stack; at 16 Gbps, the maximum memory bandwidth will increase to 4 TB/s for a single stack, with about a dozen memory stacks per AI accelerator or GPU. Samsung currently offers this memory in a 12-layer (12-high) configuration with a memory density of 48 GB per stack, while future customer requirements will also include 8-layer 32 GB and 16-layer 64 GB stacks.
Toshiba Electronics Europe launched the IX800FXF2YMS4, a 3300V/800A SiC MOSFET module featuring third-generation technology and silver sintering. This product targets high-power applications including railway traction and UPS. The launch indicates Toshiba's product expansion but does not currently affect supply or pricing.
SiC MOSFET ModuleSilicon Carbide MOSFETToshiba Electronics EuropePower Electronics NewsProduct Launch
Micron's Taoyuan union in Taiwan secured the legal right to strike via a vote held between October 1 and 6, in which 1,994 of 2,258 registered members voted in favor, representing 88.3% of total membership and exceeding the required majority; Taoyuan is the first of Micron's separate Taoyuan and Taichung enterprise unions to secure the right to strike. The Taichung union is scheduled for a second labor-management mediation session on October 22 and could proceed to a strike vote if no agreement is reached. Union chairman Lin Che-jui called on Micron to present concrete proposals and negotiate as the company's board meets on October 8 and 9; without meaningful progress the union will discuss further action, and members will be notified by text message once the timing of any surprise strike is confirmed. The union is also planning a demonstration on Ketagalan Boulevard on October 19, encouraging employees to take leave to participate. Its demands include a profit-sharing system tied to 15% of Micron's operating profit: an additional one-time FY2026 bonus based on 15% of global operating profit, estimated at about 83 months of pay per Taiwan employee; an overhaul of the IPP system from FY2027 to distribute 15% of operating profit quarterly; plus 'no free-rider' and 'non-retaliation' clauses. The backdrop cited is compensation disparity: in 2025, Micron's global employee IPP performance factor was 93.9%, translating into about 2.3 months of performance bonuses for Taiwan employees before being adjusted to 2.6 months, while the CEO received annual cash performance compensation equivalent to 32.4 months of pay; only about 40% of Micron Taiwan employees had previously received stock awards. TrendForce notes that Micron's Taoyuan fab primarily produces DRAM; if a strike takes place and disrupts equipment maintenance and process monitoring by engineers, production yields and stability could decline, potentially affecting output, and the impact on supply could gradually increase if the strike is prolonged; however, the actual impact will depend on the scale and duration of the strike as well as Micron's contingency measures, and the outcome of labor-management negotiations still requires close attention.
On October 7, 2026, the Global Electronics Association announced the August 2026 findings from its North American Electronics Manufacturing Services (EMS) Statistical Program: the 3-month book-to-bill ratio stands at 1.39 and the 1-month book-to-bill at 1.33. Total North American EMS shipments in August 2026 were up 1.0% year-over-year, up 5.5% from the preceding month, and August's year-to-date shipments increased by 1.0% YoY. EMS bookings in August increased 53.5% year-over-year and were down 29.2% from the previous month, with August's YTD bookings up 15.5% versus the same period last year. The Association's chief economist, Dr. Shawn DuBravac, said EMS manufacturers are working to fulfill strong order flow that continues to outpace shipments and build a pipeline of future production, but tight availability of certain components and extended supplier lead times may be limiting how quickly some manufacturers can convert orders into deliveries, and securing the materials needed to fulfill those orders remains a challenge. The statistics are based on a representative sample of companies selling in the USA and Canada.
TDK expands the MLJ1608-G series multilayer inductors for automotive power-over-coax (PoC) circuits, with mass production starting in October 2026; the component provides 1.7 to 2 times higher impedance than conventional parts in the 100–700 MHz range, achieves high impedance up to 2 GHz, and has a 1608 footprint.
Cellnex Poland has selected Ericsson as one of its suppliers for the modernisation and expansion of its 5G radio access network. The scope covers radios, RAN compute modules, microwave links, antennas and enclosures, and several of the products are being deployed at scale for the first time. The equipment is based on Ericsson's own chips and, according to an Ericsson press release, is designed to deliver better energy performance, a smaller physical footprint and lower tower load than earlier generations. Cellnex becomes the lead customer for Ericsson's new high-power E-band microwave radio, MINI-LINK 6356, used for high-capacity backhaul, and is carrying out the first large-scale deployment of Ericsson's Transport Automation Controller, which uses AI to automate management of the microwave backhaul. In addition, the AIR 3229 radio, which combines two frequency bands in a single unit, is being introduced in Poland for the first time. Cellnex has also selected Ericsson's energy and enclosure platform for its sites. Cellnex Poland's infrastructure is used by operator Polkomtel, which sells mobile services under the Plus brand. Leszek Lis, Director for Operations and Member of the Management Board of Cellnex Poland, said the growing demand for mobile data transfer requires not only the modernisation of active equipment but also an increase in quantity to densify the service while improving energy efficiency, equipment optimisation, network resiliency and environmental effects. Ericsson has around 2,000 R&D engineers in Kraków and Łódź, and its production for the European market takes place in Tczew, Poland, together with contract manufacturer Flex.
5G radio access network equipmentradiosRAN compute modulesEricsson, Cellnex Poland and 4 totalEvertiqPartnership/M&A
Littelfuse has introduced the AK-FL Series FlatSuppressX™ transient voltage suppression (TVS) diodes for aviation and eVTOL high-voltage DC power systems. The devices offer 6 kA, 8 kA, and 10 kA surge-current ratings for an 8/20 μs waveform, feature a flat clamping voltage characteristic, are 100% screened per MIL-STD-750, meet RTCA DO-160 environmental qualification, are halogen‑free, RoHS‑compliant, Pb‑free axial‑leaded parts, and are supplied in bulk packaging of 56 devices per box.
SK hynix faces HBM hybrid bonding challenges, delaying sample production behind Samsung. This threatens its market leadership and risks losing high-capacity customers. Bearish for SK hynix supply chain competitiveness.
Samsung Foundry may be on the verge of securing a deal to manufacture Anthropic's AI ASIC on its SF2 2 nm node, with an initial volume of around 200,000 chips, designed by Broadcom targeting approximately 4,000 TOPS of INT8 compute and a TDP of 1,300 W per chip, supported by either 192 GB or 288 GB of HBM3E, using I-Cube 2.5D packaging; the chips are currently produced in South Korea and a new facility is planned in Taylor, Texas.
Anthropic AI ASIC on 2 nm nodeSamsung Foundry, BroadcomTechPowerUpPartnership/M&A
ETRI researcher Bae Sung-beom highlights that AI data center growth is causing global power shortages, necessitating a shift to high-voltage power networks and compound semiconductors like SiC and GaN for efficiency. NVIDIA's 800V DC architecture is accelerating this transition. Traders should monitor SiC/GaN adoption rates as a long-term demand driver.
This is a technology overview article on engineered (synthetic) diamond for data center power electronics. The AFCOM State of the Data Center report indicates average rack density has reached 27 kW per rack, making thermal bottlenecks the main limiting factor, while operators migrate to 800 V DC bus architectures. Diamond's thermal conductivity is ~2,200-2,400 W/m·K (up to 3,300 W/m·K for isotopically enriched samples), with a 5.5 eV bandgap and theoretical breakdown field of about 5–10 MV/cm; laboratory Schottky diodes have reached close to 8 MV/cm. Coherent Corp. introduced next-generation bondable diamond thermal management solutions, allowing direct fusion, hybrid, or metallic bonding to silicon, silicon carbide, and gallium nitride, reducing interface thermal resistance by as much as 99 percent for die sizes up to 100 mm². In June 2026, Element Six (part of the De Beers Group) and Tokyo-based precision components maker Orbray announced a reproducible process for 3-inch wafer-scale single-crystal diamond, with 4-inch substrates in development; Element Six is also preparing 2-inch wafers for thermal-bonding volume production at its CVD facility in Gresham, Oregon. Diamond Foundry opened a commercial production facility in Trujillo, Spain, in 2025 and is slowly ramping up production. Japan's Ookuma Diamond Device has built what it calls the world's first diamond semiconductor factory in Ōkuma, Fukushima, and is planning to mass-produce diamond-based semiconductor and power devices for nuclear decommissioning. Power Diamond Systems gave the first public verification of packaged diamond semiconductor performance at SEMICON Japan 2025, showing diamond-based power MOSFETs, and hopes to bring the technology to market in the 2030s. Diamond Quanta reported electron mobility greater than 555 cm²/V·s in polycrystalline diamond. The article states that diamond's function today is best viewed as a thermal enabler placed over proven GaN and SiC switches, not a drop-in replacement device.
engineered (synthetic) diamondGaN-on-diamonddiamond-bonded SiCCoherent Corp., Element Six and 7 totalPower Electronics News
Related manufacturers
Coherent Corp., Element Six, Orbray, Diamond Foundry, Ookuma Diamond Device, Power Diamond Systems, Diamond Quanta
AMD CEO Lisa Su announced plans to substantially increase chip supply in 2027, acknowledging current demand exceeds supply. She emphasized the need for more advanced wafer capacity to meet future needs. Bearish sentiment driven by future supply expansion plans.
Advanced Wafer CapacitySemiconductor ChipsAMD, TSMC and 4 totalTechPowerUpCapacity Change
Renesas Electronics launched its first 100V enhancement-mode GaN FETs, targeting high-power-density applications such as AI data centers and industrial automation.
GaN FETsGallium Nitride FETsDiscrete Power TransistorsRenesas Electronics CorpSemiconductor TodayProduct Launch
Intelligent Memory partners with Sourceability to distribute DRAM, NAND flash, and modules for industrial customers facing DDR3/DDR4 end-of-life. This collaboration aims to secure supply continuity and manage allocation risks amidst market volatility.
Altera Corporation and Rutronik have signed a strategic distribution agreement to expand access to Altera's FPGA portfolio across the European market. This partnership enhances technical support and system-level design capabilities for customers in industrial automation, smart mobility, and edge AI sectors. Neutral impact on immediate spot prices, but positive for long-term channel ecosystem.
JEDEC released JESD264, the first industry-wide reliability standard for silicon photonics, covering modulators and waveguides. This addresses the lack of optical-specific testing protocols compared to CMOS. TSMC is also advancing mass production of 200Gbps modulators, signaling industry progress.
Silicon PhotonicsModulatorsPhotodiodesJEDEC, TSMC and 4 totalTrendForceTechnical