SOPHIA ANTIPOLIS, France – June 26, 2026 │ KnowMade is pleased to announce the launch of two new patent monitoring services dedicated to SiC technology: the SiC Substrates & Epitaxial Wafers Patent Monitor and the SiC Power Devices & Modules Patent Monitor. These new solutions are designed to help R&D, IP, strategy and business-development teams continuously track the fast-evolving technology and competitive landscapes across the silicon carbide value chain.
As SiC technology continues to gain strategic importance in electric vehicles, charging infrastructure, renewable energy systems, industrial power electronics and high-efficiency power conversion, companies need more than static patent information. They need structured, regularly updated and expert-curated patent intelligence that can support technology scouting, competitive benchmarking, freedom-to-operate awareness and IP strategy.
To address this need, KnowMade’s new SiC technology patent monitors combine comprehensive patent datasets, quarterly updates and access to KnowMade’s new interactive dashboard. This dashboard enables users to explore patent landscape dynamically, identify key players, monitor technology trends, analyze geographic filing strategies and drill down to individual patent families.
SiC technology patent activity remains strong in Q1 2026
Patent activity in SiC technology remained particularly dynamic during the first quarter of 2026, both upstream in substrates and epitaxial wafers and downstream in power devices and modules.
In SiC Power Devices & Modules, more than 460 new patent publications were published during Q1 2026, describing more than 350 new inventions related to the technological development of SiC power devices and SiC power modules. The top 15 IP players contributed nearly 50% of the quarter’s IP activity, confirming the strategic concentration of patenting efforts among leading companies active in SiC power electronics.
Figure 1: Leading patent applicants in SiC Power Devices & Modules during Q1 2026. More than 460 patent publications and over 350 new inventions were identified, with the top 15 IP players contributing nearly 50% of quarterly IP activity.
The geographic distribution of patent filings also highlights the central role of China in the current SiC technology patent landscape. During Q1 2026, patenting activity for SiC power devices and modules was strongly oriented toward China, with 290 new patent applications shown in the country-level filing analysis, followed by the United States, Japan, Europe, South Korea and Taiwan. Among the top 15 patent applicants, filing efforts were concentrated in China, the USA and Japan.
Foreign players such as Toshiba and Infineon are actively protecting their inventions in China, while leading Chinese patent applicants, including Global Power Technology, BYD and Jilian Automotive Electronics, remain focused on the domestic territory. This confirms that China is not only a major market for SiC technology, but also an increasingly dense innovation and IP protection environment.
Figure 2: Countries of patent filings for SiC Power Devices & Modules in Q1 2026. The analysis shows strong patenting activity in China, followed by the USA and Japan, reflecting the high number of companies and research organizations active in SiC power electronics.
Strong innovation dynamics in SiC substrates and epitaxial wafers
The upstream part of the SiC technology value chain also showed significant patent activity in Q1 2026. In SiC Substrates & Epitaxial Wafers, more than 320 new patent publications were published during the quarter, describing nearly 250 new inventions related to the technological development of SiC substrates and SiC epitaxial wafers.
The top 12 IP players contributed to nearly 40% of the quarter’s IP activity, indicating a competitive but still diversified patent landscape. TankeBlue and Wolfspeed led IP activity in the bulk SiC and bare wafers segment, while ASM International and its Italian subsidiary LPE led patent filings related to SiC epitaxy, alongside Resonac, another well-established player in this segment.
Figure 3: Leading patent applicants in SiC Substrates & Epitaxial Wafers during Q1 2026. More than 320 patent publications and nearly 250 new inventions were identified, with TankeBlue, Wolfspeed, ASM International, LPE and Resonac among the notable players.
The geographic patenting activity for SiC substrates and epitaxial wafers also confirms China’s strong position in the current SiC technology patent landscape. In Q1 2026, the country-level filing analysis identified 202 new patent applications in China, followed by the USA, Japan, Europe, Taiwan and South Korea. Among the top 12 patent applicants, filings were particularly focused on China, the USA and Japan.
Foreign players such as Resonac, ASM and Toshiba are actively protecting their inventions in China, while leading Chinese patent applicants continue to focus strongly on their domestic market. This patenting behavior illustrates the strategic importance of China in the upstream SiC supply chain, from bulk crystal growth to epitaxy and wafer preparation.
Figure 4: Countries of patent filings for SiC Substrates & Epitaxial Wafers in Q1 2026. China remains the leading filing destination, confirming the country’s central role in the development and protection of upstream SiC technology.
Monitoring SiC technology from substrates to power modules
The two new KnowMade patent monitors provide complementary views of the SiC technology value chain.
The SiC Substrates & Epitaxial Wafers Patent Monitor covers upstream innovation, including crystal growth devices, SiC boules, bulk and bare wafers, wafer finishing, slicing processes and SiC epitaxial wafers. The patent dataset is structured into four main technical areas: Bulk & bare wafers, Epitaxy, Growth apparatuses, and Finishing & Slicing.
The SiC Power Devices & Modules Patent Monitor covers downstream innovation, from SiC power devices to packaging and module integration. Its patent dataset is segmented into five technical areas: Devices, MOSFETs, Diodes, Other devices such as IGBT and JFET, and Modules & Packaging.
Together, these two patent monitoring enable users to follow the evolution of SiC technology from materials and epitaxial wafers to devices, modules and packaging. This full-chain perspective is essential for understanding how companies position themselves, where innovation is accelerating and which players are strengthening their IP portfolios.
Interactive dashboards for strategic decision support
KnowMade’s new interactive dashboard brings an additional level of usability to SiC technology patent monitoring. Instead of working only with a static patent database, users can dynamically explore the patent landscape through visual analytics, filters and direct access to relevant patent families.
The dashboard enables users to analyze patent activity by assignee, technology segment, country, publication date and legal status. It supports rapid navigation from global trends to specific players, technical fields and patent documents. This helps R&D, IP and strategy teams quickly identify key developments, compare competitors, detect emerging players and monitor changes in the patent landscape over time.
For R&D teams, the dashboard can support technology scouting, competitor tracking and identification of innovation hotspots in SiC technology. For IP teams, it can support portfolio benchmarking, monitoring of newly granted patents, detection of expired or abandoned patents, and preparation of freedom-to-operate investigations. For strategy and business-development teams, it provides a structured view of competitive positioning across the SiC value chain.
A continuous SiC technology monitoring service for R&D and IP teams
Each SiC technology patent monitor includes a comprehensive patent database, quarterly updates and access to the interactive dashboard. The quarterly updates track new patent applications, newly granted patents, expired or abandoned patents and IP collaborations, while highlighting notable developments in terms of players, technologies and geographic filing strategies.
The SiC Substrates & Epitaxial Wafers Patent Monitor and the SiC Power Devices & Modules Patent Monitor are available as 12-month subscriptions and can be started at any time. They are designed for companies that need to remain continuously informed about the SiC technology patent landscape without spending internal resources on raw patent data collection, cleaning and classification.
By combining expert-curated patent data, quarterly updates and an interactive dashboard, KnowMade helps companies transform patent monitoring into strategic decision support. These new SiC technology patent monitors provide actionable intelligence for R&D, intellectual property, partnerships, investments and technology strategy across one of the most competitive semiconductor markets.
Press contact
contact@knowmade.fr
Le Drakkar, 2405 route des Dolines, 06560 Valbonne Sophia Antipolis, France
www.knowmade.com
About the author
Rémi Comyn, PhD. works at KnowMade as Senior Analyst in the field of Compound Semiconductors and Electronics. He holds a PhD in Physics from the University of Nice Sophia-Antipolis (France) in partnership with CRHEA-CNRS (Sophia-Antipolis, France) and the University of Sherbrooke (Québec, Canada). Rémi previously worked in compound semiconductors research laboratory as Research Engineer.
About KnowMade
KnowMade is a technology intelligence and IP strategy firm specializing in the analysis of patents and scientific publications. We assist innovative companies, investors, and research organizations in understanding the competitive landscape, anticipating technological trends, identifying opportunities and risks, improving their R&D, and shaping effective IP strategies.
KnowMade’s analysts combine their strong technology expertise and in-depth knowledge of patents with powerful analytics tools and methodologies to transform patent and scientific data into actionable insights to support decision-making in R&D, innovation, investment, and intellectual property.
KnowMade has solid expertise in Semiconductors and Packaging, Power Electronics, Batteries and Energy Management, RF and Wireless Communications, Photonics, MEMS, Sensing and Imaging, Medical Devices, Biotechnology, Pharmaceuticals, and Agri-Food.