Mitsubishi Materials to Sixfold Optical Communication Thermistor Production by 2027
Mitsubishi Materials announced plans to expand its production capacity for optical communication chip thermistors in Thailand by sixfold, aiming for a monthly output of 12 million units by November 2027. This expansion addresses the surging demand for optical transceivers and high-speed optical I/O driven by the rapid growth of AI data centers worldwide. It highlights how infrastructure hardware supply chains are scaling up to keep pace with generative artificial intelligence workloads. The production increase will take place at the company's manufacturing base in Samut Prakan, Thailand. These chip thermistors feature sizes under 1 millimeter, providing high-precision temperature monitoring critical for maintaining stable optical communication performance.
## BACKGROUND
Optical transceivers use optical communication technologies to convert electrical signals into light signals and vice versa, enabling high-speed data transmission across networks and data centers. Thermistors, particularly NTC (Negative Temperature Coefficient) types, are essential components used to monitor and stabilize temperature variations within these communication modules, as performance can degrade due to thermal fluctuations.