# Polysilicon: Overview

Why nearly all polysilicon ends up on rooftops, not chips

Source page: https://www.materialinsights.org/chemicals/polysilicon/overview/

What this tab covers What the chemical is, how big its market is, what it is used for (with shares, volumes, why it wins and what could replace it), and its chain from raw material to end user. Ends with three things to remember.

Polysilicon is silicon purified to 99.9999999% or better by turning metallurgical silicon into trichlorosilane, distilling it and depositing pure silicon on hot rods (Siemens) or granules (fluidised bed). About 1.4 Mt was made in 2025, worth roughly $8-9 billion, and about 96% went to solar wafers. China makes over 90%, and its capacity of more than 3.2 Mt ran at about 40%, so prices have been near or below cost for most makers since 2023. Production is very power-hungry. India makes none yet but mandates domestic wafers from 2028.
 Volume about 1.4 Mt produced in 2025 (derived: China 1.32 Mt, down 28.4% from 2024, plus roughly 0.1 Mt outside China, indicative); world output was about 1.95 Mt in 2024; nameplate capacity above 3.2 Mt Market value about $8-9 billion (2025, indicative, basis: about 1.4 Mt x Daqo's 2025 average selling price of $5.25/kg for solar grade, plus roughly $1 billion of semiconductor grade) Growth demand roughly flat in 2026 (BNEF forecasts 649 GW of solar installs after 690 GW in 2025); overseas capacity forecast above 500 kt by 2030 CNMIA Silicon Branch via Daqo Q4 2025 call (Feb 2026); Bernreuter Research (Nov 2025, 93.5% China share in 2024); Daqo FY2025 results; China Polysilicon 2026 report (faxiangongchang.com) for capacity and demand forecasts; value derived (indicative)

#### Key uses

| Use | Share | Annual volume | Why this commodity | Alternatives |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| **N-type monocrystalline solar wafers (TOPCon, heterojunction, back-contact)** | 94% | about 1.34 Mtbasis | Crystalline silicon converts sunlight to power cheaply and lasts 25-30 years. N-type cells need higher-purity polysilicon (11 nines for some grades), which pushed out older plants. Each watt needs roughly 2 g of polysilicon (indicative). China Polysilicon 2026 report; Conway (2023) | Thin-film CdTe (First Solar) Perovskite tandems (pilot) |
| **P-type and other solar wafers** | 2% | about 30 ktbasis | Older PERC lines still run in some markets, using lower-purity material at a discount. Indicative | n-type wafers |
| **Semiconductor wafers (electronic grade, 10-11 nines)** | 4% | about 57 ktbasis | Chips need silicon with less than one foreign atom per billion. Only Wacker, Hemlock, Tokuyama, OCI and a few others qualify; Conway notes China had not mastered this grade. China Polysilicon 2026 report (Wacker); Conway (2023) | None for silicon chips |
| **Silane and silicon for battery anodes and other** | n/a | not publishedbasis | Silane made in the same trichlorosilane chain feeds thin-film deposition and silicon-carbon anodes. Indicative | Silicon metal routes |

 Solar shares are indicative; the semiconductor share is derived from Wacker's stated capacity and market share. World 2025 output of about 1.43 Mt is derived from China's 1.32 Mt (CNMIA) plus an indicative 0.1 Mt elsewhere. Estimated 2026 demand is about 1.1 Mt (range 1.02-1.18 Mt, China Polysilicon 2026 report, indicative), so inventories stay high.

#### From raw material to user

1. **Quartz to silicon metal** Quartz is reduced with carbon in arc furnaces to 98.5-99.5% silicon; China made 4.0 of 4.6 Mt in 2025 (USGS).
2. **Trichlorosilane (TCS)** Silicon metal is reacted with HCl or with silicon tetrachloride and hydrogen to make TCS, then distilled to extreme purity.
3. **Deposition** Siemens reactors deposit silicon on rods at about 1,100 C using about 48 kWh/kg on average; fluidised-bed reactors grow granules at about 11-20 kWh/kg.
4. **Ingot and wafer** Polysilicon is melted and pulled into monocrystalline ingots (Czochralski), then sliced into wafers about 130 microns thick (indicative).
5. **Cell and module** Wafers are made into TOPCon, HJT or back-contact cells; 690 GW of solar was installed in 2025 (BNEF).
6. **Recycling** Silicon tetrachloride is recycled in-process; module silicon recovery at end of life is still small (indicative).

#### Made from (commodity table)
[Si Silicon](https://www.materialinsights.org/commodities/silicon/)[Tc Thermal coal](https://www.materialinsights.org/energy/thermal_coal/)

#### Three things to know

- China made 1.32 Mt of polysilicon in 2025, over 90% of the world total, while its capacity of over 3.2 Mt ran at about 40% (CNMIA; Bernreuter).
- Siemens reactors use about 48 kWh per kg on average against 11-20 kWh for fluidised-bed granules, so power is both the cost and the carbon story (same source).
- India makes no polysilicon, but ALMM-listed domestic wafers become mandatory from 1 June 2028, and MNRE said in August 2026 it is preparing a polysilicon PLI for more than 10 GW of capacity, not yet approved (MNRE memo, Mar 2026; PV Tech, 7 Aug 2026).

#### Read the tabs
[Production route](https://www.materialinsights.org/chemicals/polysilicon/routes/)[Production](https://www.materialinsights.org/chemicals/polysilicon/production/)[Feedstocks](https://www.materialinsights.org/chemicals/polysilicon/feedstocks/)[Cycles](https://www.materialinsights.org/chemicals/polysilicon/cycles/)[Trading](https://www.materialinsights.org/chemicals/polysilicon/trading/)[Movement](https://www.materialinsights.org/chemicals/polysilicon/movement/)[Regulation](https://www.materialinsights.org/chemicals/polysilicon/regulation/)[Characteristics](https://www.materialinsights.org/chemicals/polysilicon/characteristics/)[Emissions](https://www.materialinsights.org/chemicals/polysilicon/emissions/)

## Other sections

- [Summary](https://www.materialinsights.org/chemicals/polysilicon/index.md)
- [Correlation](https://www.materialinsights.org/chemicals/polysilicon/correlation/index.md)
- [Production route](https://www.materialinsights.org/chemicals/polysilicon/routes/index.md)
- [Production](https://www.materialinsights.org/chemicals/polysilicon/production/index.md)
- [Feedstocks](https://www.materialinsights.org/chemicals/polysilicon/feedstocks/index.md)
- [Cycles](https://www.materialinsights.org/chemicals/polysilicon/cycles/index.md)
- [Trading](https://www.materialinsights.org/chemicals/polysilicon/trading/index.md)
- [Movement](https://www.materialinsights.org/chemicals/polysilicon/movement/index.md)
- [Regulation](https://www.materialinsights.org/chemicals/polysilicon/regulation/index.md)
- [Characteristics](https://www.materialinsights.org/chemicals/polysilicon/characteristics/index.md)
- [Emissions](https://www.materialinsights.org/chemicals/polysilicon/emissions/index.md)
- [Relationships](https://www.materialinsights.org/chemicals/polysilicon/links/index.md)