Why it matters: Chips are the stars of the show whenever a new CPU, GPU, or mobile device is announced, but in that location is a component that is equally important but commonly overlooked unless at that place's a shortage threatening to cause production bug. That component is the humble capacitor, which is used in near every single device powered past electricity.

The shortage of everything from advanced chips to the lowly $1 display driver chips that power well-nigh every digital device we utilize has caused a great deal of grief in the tech and auto industries. It looks like it'south about to get worse every bit Covid-nineteen infections are threatening production of even more bones electronic components found in every unmarried electronic device.

According to a Wall Street Periodical report, capacitors are the latest electronic component where the supply is running low while demand grows stronger than ever. Specifically, this is about multilayer ceramic capacitors (MLCCs), which are used in many different applications, specially loftier-density printed circuit boards. The tiny components under a desktop CPU or on the cutout on the backside of a graphics carte du jour are MLCCs, whose role is to ensure steady voltage during power usage spikes.

In other words, MLCCs are the "workhorses" of the electronic component industry, and they're vital for the stable operation of everything from wearables, phones, tablets, consoles, PC components, servers, electrical cars, and pretty much anything else powered past electricity.

Back in June, lockdowns in Malaysia and the Philippines were already causing a nifty deal of concern almost the potential effects on the already tight supply of MLCC. Over the past few weeks, companies like Murata and Samsung, who are the largest manufacturers of these components, have warned that their production capacities and shipment schedules for high-cease MLCCs could exist severely affected if regional lockdowns continue.