Week In Review: Manufacturing, Test

Chipmakers
TSMC has announced its intention to build and operate an advanced semiconductor fab in the U.S. The fab, to be built in Arizona, will utilize TSMC’s 5nm technology and will produce 20,000 wafers per month.

TSMC’s total spending on this project will be approximately $12 billion from 2021 to 2029. Construction is planned to start in 2021 with production targeted to begin in 2024. It will create over 1,600 professional jobs, and thousands of indirect jobs in the semiconductor ecosystem.

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TSMC has halted new foundry orders from Huawei following the emergence of new U.S. export controls, according to a report from the Nikkei Asian Review. “If TSMC maintains its position of halting new orders from HiSilicon on account of not receiving approval from the US government, its wafer shipments to HiSilicon will terminate after the 120-day grace period,” according to a report from TrendForce. “If such scenario does come to pass, TSMC could see a noticeable reduction in the capacity utilization rates of the advanced processes below (including) 16/12nm in 3Q20.”

The move follows last week’s announcement. The U.S. Bureau of Industry and Security (BIS) has announced plans to protect U.S. national security by restricting Huawei’s ability to use U.S. technology and software to design and manufacture its semiconductors abroad. This announcement cuts off Huawei’s efforts to undermine U.S. export controls.

Previously, companies wishing to export U.S. items to Huawei were required to obtain a license. Now, the rule change will make the following foreign-produced items subject to the Export Administration Regulations (EAR):

“Items, such as semiconductor designs, when produced by Huawei and its affiliates on the Entity List (e.g., HiSilicon), that are the direct product of certain U.S. Commerce Control List (CCL) software and technology,” according to the BIS. “Items, such as chipsets, when produced from the design specifications of Huawei or an affiliate on the Entity List (e.g., HiSilicon), that are the direct product of certain CCL semiconductor manufacturing equipment located outside the United States. Such foreign-produced items will only require a license when there is knowledge that they are destined for reexport, export from abroad, or transfer (in-country) to Huawei or any of its affiliates on the Entity List.”

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SMIC posted strong results for the quarter. The company plans to increase its capital expenditures by $1.1 billion to a total of $4.3 billion to meet market demand.

Intel has announced new investments totaling $132 million in 11 technology startups. These companies are developing various technologies, such as artificial intelligence, autonomous computing and chip design.

Fab tools and materials
VLSI Research has released its annual “10 BEST Semiconductor Equipment Supplier Rankings for 2020.” Customers recognized fab tool vendors with a rating of “4 VLSI Stars” and above. The rankings involve product performance, recommend supplier, and partnering.

KLA will hold a virtual career fair next week. KLA’s CEO Rick Wallace will give a keynote speech.

TEL has donated 100 million yen to the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies to support their global COVID-19 response.

Veeco has announced the pricing of a private offering of $125 million aggregate principal amount of 3.75% Convertible Senior Notes due 2027. In a separate move, Veeco intends to offer, subject to market and other conditions, $150 million aggregate principal amount of Convertible Senior Notes due 2027 in a private offering.

Applied Materials reported its results for its second quarter ended Apr. 26. Quarterly revenue was $3.96 billion, up 12% year-over-year.

Ereztech, a supplier of metal-organic solutions to the semiconductor industry, has announced the opening of its new research and development lab in Sheboygan Falls, Wisc.

In case you missed it, SEMI’s Semicon West event will occur in a virtual format for the first time in its 50-year history. Registration opens May 18; a notification form and detailed information on the event are available at www.semiconwest.org.

Packaging
TrendForce has released its rankings of the top-10 OSATs in terms of sales for the first quarter. ASE topped the list again, followed by Amkor and JCET. “The global top 10 OSAT companies’ revenues combined for $5.903 billion in 1Q20, a 25.3% increase YoY,” according to the firm. “However, as the demand of end devices came to a screeching halt because of the COVID-19 pandemic, the OSAT industry may potentially start to decline in 2H20.”

Recently, ASE completed its merger with Siliconware (SPIL). Now, ASE has completed a share exchange under which ASE Industrial Holding has acquired all issued and outstanding shares of ASE.

Job, Event and Webinar Boards
Find industry jobs and upcoming virtual conferences and webinars all in one place on Semiconductor Engineering, including what GUC says about HBM reliability monitoring.

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