Chip Industry Week In Review

By The SE Staff - 17 Apr, 2026 - Comments: 0

Acquisitions and business pivots Teradyne acquired Israel-based TestInsight, a semiconductor test provider with pattern conversion, validation, and virtual test capabilities. Credo plans to acquire DustPhotonics, a developer of silicon photonics PICs for optical transceivers. Molex plans to acquire Teramount, a provider of detachable, passive-alignment fiber-to-chip connectivity solu... » read more

The Specialty Device Surge Part 2: The Process Control Challenges Of MEMS, Co-Packaged Optics, And More

By Christopher Haire - 07 Apr, 2026 - Comments: 0

In a world where high-bandwidth memory, GPUs, and advanced AI packages are all the rage, it is easy to forget the important role specialty devices play. These unsung heroes of modern life perform critical functions across a wide range of industries, including automotive, telecommunications, data centers, emerging AI hardware ecosystems, and consumer electronics, just like the smartphone in your... » read more

What’s Failing At The Interface

By Gregory Haley - 07 Apr, 2026 - Comments: 0

Key Takeaways The interface is where failures in advanced packaging become visible, but it's increasingly not where they originate. Weak interfaces often don't fail at time zero, but they do degrade due to parametric drift and margin erosion that binary test screens miss entirely. The temporary test interconnect is the largest variable in the measurement chain and must be controlled ... » read more

Mid-infrared Ellipsometry For Optical Critical Dimension Metrology

By Onto Innovation - 07 Apr, 2026 - Comments: 0

Abstract "Mid-infrared ellipsometry offers a powerful approach for non-destructive optical critical dimension (OCD) metrology in advanced semiconductor manufacturing. This technique supports in-line measurements of high aspect ratio structures, such as those found in 3D NAND memory devices. The incorporation of quantum cascade lasers and fast phase modulation allows rapid acquisition of Muel... » read more

Chip Industry Week In Review

By The SE Staff - 20 Mar, 2026 - Comments: 0

War impacts The Iran War's toll on the chip industry is widening. Over 95% of Taiwan's energy is imported, causing the country to secure alternative sources. Korea is also heavily dependent on energy imports from the Middle East. Shortages of key materials are cropping up everywhere. Helium from Qatar, the second largest producer behind the U.S., is constrained by hostilities in the Per... » read more

The Specialty Device Surge, Part 1: Wafer Size Transitions Are Powering The Future Of Specialty Devices And Bringing New Challenges

By Christopher Haire - 10 Mar, 2026 - Comments: 0

Specialty devices are the unsung heroes of modern life. For many in the semiconductor industry today, the spotlight is on the SiC and GaN power devices used in automotive, green energy, fast-charge consumer electronics (CE), and high-performance computing (HPC) applications (Figures 1 and 2). However, specialty devices are more than just power devices. They are a broad class of semiconductor... » read more

Detecting Chemical Variability At Advanced Nodes

By Gregory Haley - 10 Mar, 2026 - Comments: 2

Key Takeaways Yield loss is increasingly driven by molecular variability in thin films, interfaces, and contamination rather than visible defects. Reliability issues often appear first as parametric drift or margin erosion under workload and thermal stress. Detection requires correlating molecular metrology, embedded electrical telemetry, and AI-driven wafer inspection. As s... » read more

CD Step Application in Edge Air Layer Structure Measurement for Bulk Acoustic Resonator

By Onto Innovation - 10 Mar, 2026 - Comments: 0

A vital component of modern communication systems, bulk acoustic wave resonators (BAW) function as filters, oscillators, and sensors. In a BAW device, the acoustic waves are confined within a specific region to achieve efficient resonance. The air ring structure, including the edge air layer structure, prevents acoustic energy from leaking. However, measuring the critical dimensions (CD) of edg... » read more

Tool Matching Getting Tougher Across Test & Metrology

By Laura Peters - 10 Mar, 2026 - Comments: 0

Key Takeaways Engineers leverage both device-specific and tool-level data to identify a process "sweet spot." Tight, frequent tool-to-tool matching enables greater yield and fab flexibility. Machine learning helps capture the nuances of a tool's signature. Many people outside of the semiconductor industry wonder how humans can fabricate transistors with tens of nanometer sca... » read more

Digital Twins: The Cloud’s The Limit

By Ed Sperling - 10 Mar, 2026 - Comments: 1

Key Takeaways Digital twins are gaining traction as a way of testing different options at every step of the design-through-manufacturing flow. AI can be used to glue together disparate data types in multi-physics simulations. The promise of digital twins is huge, but multiple challenges need to be solved before it can live up to its potential. Digital twin technology is draw... » read more

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tag: Onto Innovation

Chip Industry Week In Review

The Specialty Device Surge Part 2: The Process Control Challenges Of MEMS, Co-Packaged Optics, And More

What’s Failing At The Interface

Mid-infrared Ellipsometry For Optical Critical Dimension Metrology

Chip Industry Week In Review

The Specialty Device Surge, Part 1: Wafer Size Transitions Are Powering The Future Of Specialty Devices And Bringing New Challenges

Detecting Chemical Variability At Advanced Nodes

CD Step Application in Edge Air Layer Structure Measurement for Bulk Acoustic Resonator

Tool Matching Getting Tougher Across Test & Metrology

Digital Twins: The Cloud’s The Limit

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