Semiconductors
One of the core challenges that Rapidus will face when it kicks off volume production of chips on its 2nm-class process technology in 2027 is lining up customers. With Intel, Samsung, and TSMC all slated to offer their own 2nm-class nodes by that time, Rapidus will need some kind of advantage to attract customers away from its more established rivals. To that end, the company thinks they've found their edge: fully automated packaging that will allow for shorter chip lead times than manned packaging operations. In an interview with Nikkei, Rapidus' president, Atsuyoshi Koike, outlined the company's vision to use advanced packaging as a competitive edge for the new fab. The Hokkaido facility, which is currently under construction and is expecting to begin equipment installation...
TSMC Buys 10% Stake in IMS Nano from Intel
Intel and TSMC have announced an agreement in which TSMC will acquire a 10% stake in IMS Nanofabrication. IMS, controlled by Intel, produces multi e-beam photomask writing tools, whose...
0 by Anton Shilov on 9/12/2023TSMC: Short Supply of HPC GPUs to Persist for 1.5 Years
The reports about an insufficient supply of compute GPUs used for artificial intelligence (AI) and high-performance computing (HPC) servers became common in recent months as demand for GPUs to...
6 by Anton Shilov on 9/7/2023ASML to Deliver First High-NA EUV Tool This Year
In a promising sign for the development of the next generation of EUV lithography machines, ASML has revealed that the company is set to deliver the industry's first High-NA...
7 by Anton Shilov on 9/6/2023Intel Foundry Services to Make 65nm Chips for Tower Semiconductor
In quite an unexpected turn of events, Intel on Tuesday announced that its foundry division would produce chips for contract chip maker Tower Semiconductor. Tower was a previous acquisition...
9 by Anton Shilov on 9/5/2023Intel Calls Off Tower Acquisition, Forced to Focus Solely on Leading-Edge Nodes
Intel Corp. will not proceed with its $5.4 billion deal to acquire Tower Semiconductor foundry due to a lack of regulatory approval from China, the two companies announced on...
17 by Anton Shilov on 8/17/2023Intel and Synopsys Ink Deal to Develop IP for Intel's 3 and 18A Nodes
Intel and Synopsys this week signed an agreement under which Synopsys will develop a portfolio of various IP offerings for Intel 3 and 18A fabrication technologies for Intel Foundry...
1 by Anton Shilov on 8/15/2023TSMC Establishes Joint Venture to Build 12nm/16nm Fab in Europe
TSMC on Tuesday announced plans to establish a European Semiconductor Manufacturing Company (ESMC) joint venture with its partners Bosch, Infineon, and NXP to build a fab near Dresden, Germany...
10 by Anton Shilov on 8/8/2023Intel Plans Massive Expansion in Oregon: D1X and D1A to Be Upgraded
Intel has filed a permit application that outlines significant expansion plans for its campus near Hillsboro, Oregon. According to filings submitted to state regulators, the tech giant's ambitious proposals...
4 by Anton Shilov on 8/2/2023China Imposes New Export Restrictions on Gallium and Germanium
China this week formally imposed new export regulations on gallium and germanium, as well as materials incorporating them. This move is broadly seen as a retaliatory act for the...
6 by Anton Shilov on 8/2/2023Dozens of Companies Adopt TSMC's 3nm Process Technology
Designing chips for modern, leading-edge manufacturing technologies is an expensive endeavor. Still, dozens of companies have already adopted TSMCs N3 and N3E (3 nm-class) fabrication processes, according to disclosures...
9 by Anton Shilov on 7/28/2023Samsung Begins to Produce Third 3nm Chip Amid Massive Losses On DRAM & NAND
Samsung this week reported their financial results for the second quarter of 2023, closing the book on an especially bleak quarter of the year with a massive $3.4 billion...
14 by Anton Shilov on 7/28/2023Rapidus Wants to Supply 2nm Chips to Tech Giants, Challenge TSMC
It has been a couple of decades since a Japanese fab has offered a leading-edge chip manufacturing process. Even to this day, none of the Japanese chipmakers have made...
19 by Anton Shilov on 7/26/2023TSMC to Build $2.87 Billion Facility For Advanced Chip Packaging
TSMC on Tuesday announced plans to construct a new advanced chip packaging facility in Tongluo Science Park. The company intends to spend around $2.87 billion on the fab that...
3 by Anton Shilov on 7/25/2023TSMC: 3nm Chips for Smartphones and HPCs Coming This Year
While TSMC formally started mass production of chips on its N3 (3nm-class) process technology late last year, the company is set to finally ship the first revenue wafers in...
21 by Anton Shilov on 7/21/2023TSMC Delays Arizona Fab Deployment to 2025, Citing Shortage of Skilled Workers
TSMC on Thursday disclosed that it will have to delay mass production at its Fab 21 in Arizona to 2025, as a lack of suitably skilled workers is slowing...
27 by Anton Shilov on 7/20/2023Samsung Shipping First GAAFET Silicon; 3nm and 4nm Yields Are Improving - Report
Currently, only two foundries offer their customers 3 nm and 4 nm-class process technologies: TSMC and Samsung Foundry. But business media sometimes blames Samsung Foundry for mediocre yields on...
5 by Anton Shilov on 7/18/2023Intel Foundry Services Readies Intel 16 Process: Low Power FinFET For Everyday Chips
Intel Foundry Services (IFS) this week soft-launched their new Intel 16 process technology, a 16nm-class node that will be used for the production of low-power chips for everyday workloads...
3 by Anton Shilov on 7/14/2023Samsung Updates Foundry Roadmap: 2nm in 2025, 1.4nm in 2027
Samsung Foundry revealed its latest process technology roadmap today at its annual Samsung Foundry Forum (SFF) 2023. The company's SF2 (2 nm-class) production node is on track for 2025...
4 by Anton Shilov on 6/27/2023Intel Sells a 20% Stake in Maker of Multi E-Beam Mask Writing Tools
Intel on Wednesday announced that it had agreed to sell a 20% stake in IMS Nanofabrication, a company the develops and builds multi e-beam photomask writing tools, for $860...
1 by Anton Shilov on 6/22/2023Intel to Spend Tens of Billions on New Fabs in Germany and Israel
Intel is spending tens of billions of dollars on new fabs in Arizona and Oregon, but the company's ambitions certainly do not end in the U.S. This month the...
28 by Anton Shilov on 6/21/2023