Producer
Nippon Sanso MATHESON
Japan's largest and world's fifth-largest industrial gas company. MATHESON rebranded to Nippon Sanso MATHESON in April 2026. Particularly strong in electronics-grade specialty gases: NF3, WF6, SiH4, GeH4 for semiconductor fabs.
2
Inputs supplied
4
Goods downstream
1
Facilities
0
Stories
What they make
2 inputs Nippon Sanso MATHESON supplies
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Goods downstream
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Business segments
The company's full revenue map, where this supply-chain role fits within their broader business.
Electronics Specialty Gases (MATHESON brand)
35%Industrial & Medical Gases (Japan/Asia)
40%MATHESON Americas (US Industrial)
25%
Intelligence
What's known
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Did you know2008
Nippon Sanso MATHESON's NF3 (nitrogen trifluoride) supply sits at an unexpected intersection of semiconductor manufacturing and climate policy. NF3 is the standard gas used to clean chemical vapor deposition (CVD) chambers in semiconductor fabs — without periodic NF3 cleaning, CVD chambers accumulate silicon and tungsten deposits that contaminate the next wafer. Every semiconductor fab globally that uses CVD processes consumes NF3. NF3 has a global warming potential of approximately 17,200 times CO2 over 100 years — making it one of the most potent greenhouse gases in industrial use. For years, NF3 was not specifically tracked in climate regulations because it was considered a 'downstream' use with negligible emissions (most NF3 is destroyed in the cleaning process). Research published in 2008 found that actual NF3 atmospheric concentrations were growing rapidly, prompting Kyoto Protocol and UNFCCC discussions about including NF3 in GHG inventories. A semiconductor manufacturing process input is simultaneously a climate-policy-relevant greenhouse gas, connecting chip supply chain to climate regulation in an unexpected way.
Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences ↗Origin2023
MATHESON Gas Company — now part of Nippon Sanso MATHESON — was founded in 1927 in Joliet, Illinois by a chemistry professor named Thomas W. Matheson. Matheson pioneered the commercial distribution of purified specialty gases for scientific and industrial use — at a time when industrial gases were primarily bulk commodities (oxygen, acetylene), Matheson focused on high-purity, precision gas mixtures for chemical analysis, calibration, and research. MATHESON's specialty gas expertise became critical for the semiconductor industry as it emerged in the 1960s-1970s: depositing silicon, tungsten, and other materials in chip manufacturing requires gases of extraordinary purity (6N to 9N, meaning 99.9999% to 99.9999999% purity). Contamination at ppm levels ruins semiconductor wafers. MATHESON's institutional expertise in specialty gas purity measurement and handling made it a natural semiconductor gas supplier. Nippon Sanso (Japan's largest industrial gas company) acquired MATHESON Tri-Gas in 1994, and the combined entity is now one of the top semiconductor gas suppliers globally.
Nippon Sanso Holdings Corporation ↗