Micronics Japan 6871

Micronics Japan Co., Ltd. (MJC) is the No. 3 probe card manufacturer in the world with a market share of 14%. It is second only to market leader FormFactor, Inc. (US), which boasts a share of 30% (according to Electronic Device Industry News). Probe cards are jigs used for electrical testing of integrated circuits (ICs) on semiconductor wafers before the wafers are diced into dies. As consumable products, they have a life ranging from several months to two or three years depending on the type and application. They are one of the key components in the testing process for semiconductor wafers, along with testers and probers. Probe card can be classified into two categories by application: 1) memory such as DRAM and NAND flash, and 2) non-memory such as microprocessor and logic ICs for computing applications that perform computing. MJC has some competitive advantage in memory probe cards (which account for roughly 80% of its probe card sales). It is the leading global supplier of memory probe cards with a share of about 33%, and develops and manufactures its products in-house. It collaborates with and supplies products to major memory manufacturers and other semiconductor companies around the world. It also provides equipment related to probe cards such as probers and testers.