Critically short supply of some analog, logic, memory and power management ICs is resulting in rising prices and delivery delays of "worrying lengths," according to market research firm iSuppli Corp.

"When lead times enter the 20-week range, they indicate a major schism between component supply and demand," said Rick Pierson, senior analyst for semiconductors and component price tracking at iSuppli (El Segundo, Calif.).

While supply constraints for components might not be a surprise amid the current market rebound, specific market and pricing trends are spurring varying degrees of short supply depending on the component market, Pierson said.



According to iSuppli, supply remains extremely tight for widely used analog and memory ICs, while some standard logic ICs and power management discretes such as low-voltage MOSFETs and tantalum capacitors are effectively on allocation status, meaning suppliers are unable to respond to un-forecasted demand, iSuppli said.

Lead times across the board are longer than forecasters indicated a month ago, iSuppli said. The lead time in June was 20 weeks for power MOSFETs and small signal transistors and 18 weeks for bipolar power devices and rectifiers, iSuppli said. Normal lead times for such products are about 10 to 12 weeks, the firm said.

Analog IC suppliers have been in a position to increase average selling prices (ASPs) for the past three months because of tight supply, iSuppli said. The imbalance is expected to continue through the end of the year, with lead times and ASPs expected to continue rising, iSuppli predicted.



Supply also remains constrained for capacitors and standard logic ICs, both of which have been swept by strong demand, iSuppli said. For standard logic ICs, allocation is continuing for the fourth month and likely to persist until the end of the third quarter, according to the firm.

In the discretes market, lead times have doubled since July 2009 and are expected to continue to extend through the end of the year, iSuppli said.

The situation is not as bad in memories, iSuppli said, expected future demand and inventory rebuilding efforts are being balanced off by currently soft sales as well as falling prices. But signs point to possible severe shortages in NAND flash during the third quarter, especially if suppliers are unable to achieve an optimal mix in production, iSuppli warned.

ISuppli is offering Pierson's latest component tracking report for sale through the company's website.