LG Chem, Noritake co-develop silver paste for automotive power chips

(LG Chem Ltd.)

South Korea’s LG Chem Ltd. announced on Monday that it has partnered with Japan’s Noritake Co. to jointly develop a high-performance silver paste used to bond silicon carbide (SiC) chips to substrates in automotive power semiconductors.

Noritake is a company with over 120 years of technological expertise in the field of precision ceramics, supplying grinding wheels, materials for electronic components, and sintering furnaces, or heat treatment equipment, to the semiconductor and automotive industries.

With the rapid rise in demand for power semiconductors that can handle high voltage and high current, driven by the electrification of vehicles and the advancement of autonomous driving technologies, there is a growing need for adhesives that can maintain stable performance even at high temperatures, compared to conventional soldering methods.

The silver paste co-developed by the two companies is a high-performance adhesive containing silver nanoparticles.

By combining LG Chem’s particle design technology with Noritake’s particle dispersion technology, they have achieved superior heat resistance and thermal conductivity, according to LG Chem.

Unlike conventional silver paste, which is difficult to manage due to the need for frozen storage and short shelf life, the newly developed product can be stored at room temperature for up to six months without freezing.

This improves transportation and storage efficiency and extends the usable time during customer processing, reducing product loss.

The two companies plan to continue developing next-generation products through their ongoing collaboration.

The global market for silver paste in automotive power semiconductors is expected to grow from approximately 300 billion won ($219.7 million) in 2025 to 850 billion won in 2030, according to industry estimates.

“Leveraging our accumulated technological expertise and advanced materials design capabilities, LG Chem has provided customized solutions across various industries, including automotive electronics,” said Shin Hak-cheol, chief executive officer of LG Chem. “Through our partnership with Noritake, we aim to strengthen our differentiated competitiveness in the global automotive materials market.”