Peter Wennink, CEO of ASML, expected in early September 2023 that his company would deliver the first high-aperture EUV lithography equipment (EUV High-NA to one of its clients before the end of the current year. And he fulfilled it. At the end of December, a machine for the production of integrated circuits the most advanced of all He left the Netherlands and went to Intel’s semiconductor plant in Hillsborough (USA).
The route that the Pat Gelsinger-led company has set for the development of new integration technologies is extremely ambitious, and ASML’s high-aperture UVE lithography team is playing a leading role. During the first half of 2024, it is planned to prepare the Intel 20A node, and during the second half of 2024 it promises to be ready for the production of integrated circuits in the 18A node.
In all likelihood, the lithography equipment Intel will use in these nodes will be first-generation EUV machines, which it has had in some of its factories for several years, so high-aperture EUV equipment will take center stage. starting at node 18A. This means that over the next two years, Intel engineers will be thoroughly testing this technology with the goal of starting mass production of chips with it, presumably in 2026. Intel has not officially confirmed this, but the timing is reasonable.
TSMC took a more conservative stance than Intel
As we told you two days ago, we have more and more evidence that TSMC, the largest semiconductor manufacturer on the planet, is not yet going to install new ASML lithography equipment in its factories. In mid-January, CC Wei, the CEO of this Taiwanese company, was very cautious during a meeting about the possibility of his company adopting the new high-aperture EUV machines.
Several semiconductor industry analysts say TSMC will not use UVE High-NA equipment until it introduces its 1nm lithography
“We study it carefully, assess the maturity of the instrument and study its value. We always make the right decision at the right time to offer the best service to our customers,” Wei said during his speech. However, we now know something more. A month ago, Szeho Ng, an analyst at China Renaissance, predicted that TSMC would not use ASML’s high-aperture UVE hardware until it was introduced its 1nm integration technology. At the time it seemed like a premature prediction, but now other credible voices are defending the same.
Media outlet DigiTimes Asia, which usually handles very reliable information, went wet this week and, like Szeho Ng, defended that TSMC will not use ASML’s most advanced lithographic equipment in 2 and 1.4nm nodes. If so, this decision will have very important consequences. On the one hand, TSMC’s position reminds us that with the appropriate refinements, first-generation UVE lithography equipment can be used to produce 2nm chips and even more (we’ll see with what performance per wafer).
And, furthermore, if TSMC finally confirms this strategy, it will not begin to mass-produce integrated circuits using the ASML UVE High-NA machine. by the end of this decade. Probably by 2029 or 2030. We’ll see how Intel handles these devices. Perhaps if Pat Gelsinger’s bet goes well, this American company will be able to bring advanced chips to market at a very competitive price. This is exactly one of the assets that ASML says its state-of-the-art lithography equipment offers.
Cover Image | ASML
Additional information | Tom’s equipment
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