This week ASML is making two crucial bulletins associated to their progress with excessive numerical aperature excessive ultraviolet lithography (High-NA EUV). First up, the corporate’s High-NA EUV prototype system at its fab in Veldhoven, the Netherlands, has printed the primary 10nm patterns, which is a serious milestone for ASML and their next-gen instruments. Second, the corporate has additionally revealed that it is second High-NA EUV system is now out the door as nicely, and has been shipped to an unnamed buyer.
“Our High-NA EUV system in Veldhoven printed the first-ever 10 nanometer dense lines,” a press release by ASML reads. “Imaging was done after optics, sensors and stages completed coarse calibration. Next up: bringing the system to full performance. And achieving the same results in the field.”
Our High NA EUV system in Veldhoven printed the first-ever 10 nanometer dense strains. ✨ Imaging was executed after optics, sensors and levels accomplished coarse calibration.
Next up: bringing the system to full efficiency. And attaining the identical ends in the sphere. ⚙️ pic.twitter.com/zcA5V0ScUf
— ASML (@ASMLcompany) April 17, 2024
Alongside the system shipped to Intel on the finish of 2023, ASML has retained their very own Twinscan EXE:5000 scanner at their Veldhoven, Netherlands, facility, which is what the corporate is utilizing for additional analysis and growth into High-NA EUV. Using that machine, the corporate has been in a position to print dense strains spaced 10 nanometers aside, which is a serious milestone in photolithography growth. Previously, solely small-scale, experimental lab machines have been in a position to obtain this sort of a decision. Eventually, High-NA EUV instruments will obtain a decision of eight nm, which will probably be instrumental to construct logic chips on applied sciences past three nm.
Intel’s Twinscan EXE:5000 scanner at its D1X fab close to Hillsboro, Oregon can also be shut behind, and its meeting is alleged to be nearing completion. That machine will probably be primarily used for Intel’s personal High-NA EUV R&D, with Intel slated to make use of its successor — the commercial-grade Twinscan EXE:5200 — to provide its chips on its Intel 14A (1.four nm-class) in mass portions in 2026 – 2027.
But Intel is not going to be the one chipmaker that will get to experiment with a High-NA EUV scanner for very lengthy. As revealed by ASML, the corporate not too long ago began transport one other Twinscan EXE:5000 machine to one more buyer. The fab instrument maker just isn’t disclosing the consumer, however beforehand it has mentioned that every one of main logic and reminiscence producers are within the technique of procuring High-NA instruments for R&D functions, so the record of ‘suspects’ is fairly brief.
“Regarding High-NA, or 0.55 NA EUV, we shipped our first system to a customer and this system is currently under installation,” mentioned Christophe Fouquet, chief enterprise officer of ASML, on the firm’s earnings convention name with analysts and traders. “We started to ship the second system this month and its installation is also about to start.”
While Intel plans to undertake High-NA EUV instruments forward of the trade, different chipmakers appear to a bit extra cautious and plan to depend on dangerous but already identified Low-NA EUV double patterning methodology for manufacturing a three nm and a pair of nm. Still, whatever the precise timing for a transition, the entire main fabs will probably be counting on High-NA EUV instruments in due time. So all events have an curiosity in how ASML’s R&D seems.
“The customer interest for our [High-NA] system lab is high as this system will help both our Logic and Memory customers prepare for High-NA insertion into their roadmaps,” mentioned Fouquet. “Relative to 0.33 NA, the 0.55 NA system supplies finer decision enabling an virtually 3x enhance in transistor density, at the same productiveness, in help of sub-2nm Logic and sub-10nm DRAM…
