text: Taiwan-based Yageo Corporation is acquiring passives component supplier Kemet Corporation of the US in a $1.6 billion deal that will create a new global giant in the manufacture of capacitors, magnetic components and other electronic components.
  Both companies already have large worldwide operations, strong portfolios in magnetics technologies including power electronics components, sensors, inductors and actuators plus particularly extensive product focus in capacitors. Together they represent combined revenues of nearly $3 billion per year. The transaction is expected to close in the second quarter of 2020 with Kemet becoming an operating subsidiary of Yageo.
  The acquisition will expand Yageo’s product lineup and enhance its ability to be a one-stop global provider of passive components for a wide range of markets and mission-critical applications, said Yageo. Combined, the two companies currently operate 42 manufacturing plants and 14 dedicated R&D centers worldwide. Pictured at top is one of Yageo’s facilities in Suzhou, China.
  Pictured below, for example, is a new metal composite power inductor introduced by Kemet in June that represents some of its advanced products. In these types of inductors, careful surface treatments of the Fe-based metal powder establish a highly crystallized nano-scale oxide layer that provides high power density.
  Devices in the new Metcom series can be used by product designers to develop more efficient power-related applications including EMI filtering. The metal composite core offers high current saturation characteristics that allow the inductors to maintain function with the large ripple currents typically found in modern power applications.
  “Increasing power supply density and efficiency is a key challenge for many designers. When it comes to size, reliability and performance they offer very low losses in a small form factor, helping designers to develop modern, high-performance power solutions that meet increasingly stringent application requirements,” Dr. Philip Lessner, Kemet senior vice president and chief technology officer said.
  The inductors feature a shielded construction that contains the magnetic flux within the inductor body, increasing the efficiency of operation. This also improves EMI performance and eliminates interference with surrounding circuitry, simplifying the task of gaining power supply approvals. They are designed specifically for use in DC-DC converters that are utilized in a variety of commercial and consumer applications including notebook computers, tablets, servers and HDTVs.