Northeast: Silicon micro-powder triggers a surge in quantity and price, ushering in a new narrative. Domestic alternatives enter a period of high growth.

Northeast released a research report stating that as the performance of main materials approaches its limits, the strategic position of silicon micro-powder in copper-clad laminates has significantly increased. It is transitioning from a traditional filler to a core material. Technological upgrades are driving products from angular powder to spherical powder, and from chemical method high-order powder iteration, with the value per ton increasing exponentially. Domestic companies represented by Novoray Corporation have broken the monopoly of Japanese brands, achieved breakthroughs in sphericalization and low alpha-ray control, and are accelerating substitution with their advantages in near-field and customization. They are expected to achieve comprehensive positioning in the high-end market in the next three years. The main points of Northeast are as follows: - The importance of silicon micro-powder has significantly increased as the performance of main materials approaches its limits. - With the traditional cost structure of copper-clad laminates (CCL), copper foil, resin, and glass fiber cloth have long accounted for a high proportion. With the explosion of demand for AI servers and high-speed communication, substrates are evolving towards high-frequency and high-speed (M9 and above levels), and the physical modification space of the three main materials in terms of low dielectric (Low Dk/Df) and extremely low coefficient of thermal expansion (CTE) is gradually approaching physical limits. In the process of pursuing extremely low dielectric loss (Low Df) and coefficient of thermal expansion (CTE), silicon micro-powder (filling ratio of about 15%) that was previously only considered as a cost-reducing filler has become a key variable in breaking through performance bottlenecks. When the performance of main materials approaches its limits, the purity, particle size, and morphology of silicon micro-powder directly determine the completeness of signal transmission. Its strategic position has leaped from a passive additive to a core material that determines the grade of the substrate, and the filling ratio of high-performance spherical silicon powder is expected to gradually expand to 40%. - Technological upgrades are driving a significant increase in profit potential costs. - Silicon micro-powder is undergoing an upgrade from physical method to chemical method (VMC/sol-gel), leading to an exponential increase in the value per ton. Traditional angular powder, prepared through mechanical crushing, has a very low technological threshold, with a selling price of only thousands of yuan per ton. With the increase in demand for high-performance substrates, spherical silicon micro-powder prepared by physical flame method is gradually becoming more expensive due to its high fluidity and high filling rate, with an average price per ton gradually rising to the tens of thousands of yuan level. For AI chip matching substrates and applications above M8 level, chemical method high-order powder with extremely low alpha-ray and sub-micron particle size have seen a substantial increase in price. The high-end structure of products will drive a substantial increase in net profit margin. - Breaking the monopoly of Japanese brands, domestic replacements are entering a period of high-volume high-order applications. - The global high-end CCL silicon micro-powder stronghold has long been dominated by Japanese companies such as DDK and Nippon Steel. Japanese companies have control over pricing in the high-frequency and high-speed field due to their advanced chemical synthesis technology. Currently, domestic replacements have transitioned from a simple low-price strategy to supply chain security + synchronous development. Leading local companies represented by Novoray Corporation have achieved critical breakthroughs in sphericalization technology and low alpha-ray control, successfully entering the global top CCL supplier systems such as Shengyi Technology and Nanya New Material Technology. Leveraging the advantages of domestic AI computing clusters and high-end PCB industry clusters, domestic manufacturers are accelerating penetration through customized development. Guangzhou Lingwe Technology, with years of deep cultivation in the field of light extinction silica, is using its Sol-Gel technology to extend its lead in liquid phase synthesis, accelerating towards the high-purity electronic-grade silicon micro-powder sector. Guangzhou Lingwe Technology's chemical method can achieve precise control over the purity and particle size of the powder, highly meeting the stringent requirements of sub-micron level fillers for ultra-high frequency substrates like M8 and M9. With the gradual implementation of domestic chemical production capacity, domestic silicon micro-powder is expected to achieve comprehensive positioning from marginal filler to core supply in the next three years. Risks: Policy progress slower than expected; downstream demand lower than expected.