Shin-Etsu Chemical
A chemical group whose subsidiary Shin-Etsu Handotai is the world's largest silicon wafer maker. It also supplies photoresists, photomask blanks and encapsulation materials.
信越化学工業・Materials・Last updated: October 15, 2026
Overview
Shin-Etsu Chemical was founded in 1926 and is headquartered in Otemachi, Chiyoda, Tokyo. Silicon wafers are produced by its subsidiary Shin-Etsu Handotai (SEH).
Beyond wafers, the group makes lithography materials, including photoresists and photomask blanks, which places it at two different points of the front-end supply chain.
Business: Silicon wafers, photoresists and photomask blanks
Why it matters
Shin-Etsu and SUMCO together make Japan the dominant source of silicon wafers for the world's fabs.
Its production is spread across many prefectures, from Fukui and Niigata to Gunma and Fukushima.
Main products
- •Silicon wafers: polished and epitaxial (via Shin-Etsu Handotai)
- •Photoresists
- •Photomask blanks
- •Semiconductor encapsulation materials
Sites in Japan
Head officeHeadquarters
Chiyoda, Tokyo
Takefu plantPlant
Echizen, Fukui
Isobe plantPlant
Annaka, Gunma
Naoetsu plantPlant
Joetsu, Niigata
Shirakawa plantPlant
Shirakawa, Fukushima
Kashima plantPlant
Kamisu, Ibaraki