- Imec, in collaboration with ASML, has achieved significant breakthroughs in computer chip-making using ASML’s new High NA tool, successfully printing circuitry as small or smaller than the best currently in commercial production.
- This development is expected to enable leading chipmakers to produce smaller, faster chips in the coming years, with ASML’s High NA tool playing a crucial role in the dimensional scaling of logic and memory technologies.
OUR TAKE
Imec has made significant strides in semiconductor technology, successfully printing circuitry at scales equal to or smaller than current commercial standards using ASML’s new High NA tool. This advancement is poised to facilitate the production of smaller and faster chips by leading chipmakers in the near future, with ASML’s tool being pivotal in the ongoing miniaturization of logic and memory technologies.
-Rae Li, BTW reporter
What happened
Belgium’s Imec, one of the world’s leading semiconductor research and development organisations, has achieved several breakthroughs in computer chip manufacturing using ASML‘s latest $389 million chip printer. Imec has succeeded in printing, in a single operation, circuits as small or smaller than the best logic and memory chip circuits currently in commercial production. These breakthroughs indicate that leading chip makers will be able to use the tool to make smaller, faster chips as planned in the coming years.
ASML is a major equipment supplier to computer chip makers, and its dominance in lithography systems is due to its huge lithography machines, which use beams of light to help create circuits. The High NA tool’s ability to print smaller features in fewer steps will save chip makers money and help justify the tool’s hefty price tag. Intel has already purchased the first two High NA tools, and a third is expected to be purchased later this year by TSMC, which makes chips for Nvidia and Apple. Other chipmakers ordering High NA tools include Samsung electronics and memory makers SK Hynix and Micron. these developments suggest that High NA tools will play a key role in reducing the sise of logic and storage technologies in the coming years.
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Why it’s important
As the performance and energy efficiency requirements of electronic devices continue to increase, chipmakers need to continually shrink chip sises to meet these demands. Imec and ASML’s breakthrough paves the way for the future of chip technology by using the High NA tool to successfully print circuits that are as small as or smaller than the best logic and memory chip circuits currently in commercial production. Not only does this portend higher performance and lower power consumption for future chips, it also means that electronic devices can become thinner and more portable while maintaining or improving their functionality and performance.
The introduction of High NA tools and their application in chip manufacturing will have a profound impact on the entire semiconductor supply chain. as a major supplier of lithography systems, ASML’s technological advances are directly related to the production capacity and innovation speed of chipmakers around the globe. the high-precision printing capability of High NA tools will help chipmakers to save money and improve productivity.
