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Week In Review: Manufacturing, Test


Government and trade The U.S. Bureau of Industry and Security (BIS) has expanded its export control regulations for U.S.-based hi-tech companies. The BIS has added more companies to its “Military End User” (MEU) list. The list involves 103 entities, which includes 58 Chinese and 45 Russian companies. The U.S. government has determined that these companies are “military end users” or th... » read more

Manufacturing Bits: Dec. 23


Magnetic glue Nanyang Technological University (NTU) Singapore has developed a new magnetic-activated glue technology. Conventional glue or adhesives involve epoxy and related materials. These adhesives are used to bond plastics, ceramics and wood. The adhesives are bonded and cured using moisture, heat or light. The curing temperatures range from room temperature to 80 degrees Celsius. ... » read more

Week In Review: Manufacturing, Test


Chipmakers SMIC’s shares fell following the resignation of the company co-CEO, according to a report from Bloomberg. Liang Mong Song, co-CEO of the Chinese foundry company, has proposed to resign and the company has become aware of Liang’s intention of conditional resignation, according to a filing. A former technologist at TSMC and Samsung, Liang has opposed the appointment of a new board... » read more

3D NAND’s Vertical Scaling Race


3D NAND suppliers are accelerating their efforts to move to the next technology nodes in a race against growing competition, but all of these vendors are facing an assortment of new business, manufacturing, and cost challenges. Two suppliers, Micron and SK Hynix, recently leapfrogged the competition and have taken the scaling race lead in 3D NAND. But Samsung and the Kioxia-Western Digital (... » read more

Regaining U.S. Chip Competitiveness


In the IC industry, companies compete in a multitude of different markets. At the same time, there is competition among nations on several different fronts. In technology, for example, various nations are competing for supremacy in 5G, AI and quantum computing. China has rekindled the worldwide competition in semiconductors. Backed by $150 billion in funding, the country is developing its do... » read more

200mm Demand Surges


A surge in demand for various chips is causing shortages for select 200mm foundry capacity as well as 200mm fab equipment, and it shows no signs of abating in 2021. Foundry customers will face a shortfall of 200mm capacity at select foundries at least in the first half of 2021, and perhaps beyond. Those customers will need to plan ahead to ensure they obtain enough 200mm capacity in 2021. Ot... » read more

AI And High-NA EUV At 3/2/1nm


Semiconductor Engineering sat down to discuss lithography and photomask issues with Bryan Kasprowicz, director of technology and strategy and a distinguished member of the technical staff at Photronics; Harry Levinson, principal at HJL Lithography; Noriaki Nakayamada, senior technologist at NuFlare; and Aki Fujimura, chief executive of D2S. What follows are excerpts of that conversation. To vie... » read more

Manufacturing Bits: Dec. 15


Ghost imaging quantum microscopes The U.S. Department of Energy’s (DOE) Brookhaven National Laboratory has begun building a quantum-enhanced X-ray microscope based on a technology called ghost imaging. Still in R&D, quantum X-ray microscopes promise to provide higher resolution images with less damage to a sample. Using the National Synchrotron Light Source II (NSLS-II), researcher... » read more

Week In Review: Manufacturing, Test


Government policy--semiconductors Eighteen members of the European Union have launched an initiative to boost the EU’s efforts in processors and semiconductor technologies. The member nations will also work together to bolster leading-edge manufacturing capacity. The EU plans to invest up to $145 billion in the effort. “Europe has all it takes to diversify and reduce critical dependenci... » read more

Manufacturing Bits: Dec. 7


Cybersecurity for manufacturing The University of Texas at San Antonio (UTSA) has launched a center to address cybersecurity issues in the U.S. manufacturing sector. The center, called the Cybersecurity Manufacturing Innovation Institute (CyManII), is a $111 million public-private partnership. As part of the effort, UTSA will enter into a five-year corporative agreement with the U.S. Depart... » read more

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