Samsung Electronics has announced that construction work has begun in Hwaseong, Korea, for a new EUV (extreme ultraviolet) semiconductor line. The new facility will produce semiconductors under 7-nanometers for use in next-generation mobiles and servers.
The US$6 billion investment, the company said, aims to maintain leadership in state-of-the-art semiconductor technology. The new facility is expected to be completed within the second half of 2019 and start production ramp-up in 2020.
Speaking at the groundbreaking ceremony, Kinam Kim, President & CEO of Device Solutions at Samsung Electronics, said: “With the addition of the new EUV line, Hwaseong will become the centre of the company’s semiconductor cluster spanning Giheung, Hwaseong and Pyeongtaek in Korea.
“The line will play a pivotal role as Samsung seeks to maintain a competitive edge as an industry leader in the coming age of the Fourth Industrial Revolution.”
Kinam Kim, President & CEO of Device Solutions at Samsung Electronics
With this new EUV line, Samsung will be able to strengthen its leadership in single nanometer process technology by responding to market demand from various applications, including mobile, server, network, and HPC (high-performance computing) for which high performance and power efficiency are critical.
Samsung has decided to utilise cutting-edge EUV technology starting with its 7-nanometer (nm) LPP (Low Power Plus) process. This new line will be set up with EUV lithography equipment to overcome nano-level technology limitations.
The Korean technology company has continued to invest in EUV R&D to support its global customers for developing next-generation chips based on this leading-edge technology.
Cleanroom Technology has requested further details on controlled environment facilities considered in the project and will follow the news closely.
