Intel completes industry's first commercial 'high NA EUV lithography' assembly to achieve 14A process node



On April 18, 2024, Intel announced that it had completed the assembly of the industry's first commercial high numerical aperture (NA)

extreme ultraviolet (EUV) lithography at its research and development center in Hillsboro, Oregon, USA. This EUV lithography was manufactured by ASML , a major Dutch semiconductor equipment manufacturer, and is considered an important step toward semiconductor manufacturing of the '14A' process node, which is equivalent to a 1.4nm process.

With High NA EUV, Intel Foundry Opens New Frontier in Chipmaking
https://www.intel.com/content/www/us/en/newsroom/news/intel-foundry-opens-new-frontier-chipmaking.html



Intel completes assembly of first commercial High-NA EUV chipmaking tool — addresses cost concerns, preps for 14A process development in 2025 | Tom's Hardware
https://www.tomshardware.com/pc-components/cpus/intel-completes-assembly-of-first-commercial-high-na-euv-chipmaking-tool-as-it-preps-for-14a-process

Intel is lagging behind TSMC and Samsung in advanced chip manufacturing, but Patrick Gelsinger, who became CEO in 2021, has launched a new strategy called ' IDM 2.0 ' to expand its semiconductor manufacturing business and is seeking to make a comeback in the semiconductor manufacturing field.

In February 2024, Intel announced plans to launch the Intel Foundry as a sustainable foundry business for the AI era and become the world's second largest foundry by 2030. In this regard, Intel has announced the 14A, which is equivalent to the 1.4nm process node, as the successor to the 18A (equivalent to the 1.8nm process node) scheduled for adoption in the second half of 2024.

Intel announces expanded process roadmap for the AI era and expansion of ecosystem partners, aiming to become the world's second largest foundry by 2030 - GIGAZINE



ASML is the sole supplier of high NA EUV lithography, which is essential for the manufacturing of cutting-edge semiconductors, including Intel's 14A. EUV lithography is a device that uses an EUV light source to form extremely fine wiring patterns on chips, and high NA EUV lithography is said to be essential for miniaturization beyond the 2nm process node.

Intel ordered high NA EUV lithography from ASML in 2018, and in December 2023, it shipped the TWINSCAN EXE:5000 High NA EUV , which exceeds conventional EUV lithography.



The TWINSCAN EXE:5000 High NA EUV was transported in more than 250 wooden boxes, and after the cargo plane arrived in Seattle, it was transported by truck to the research and development center in Oregon, where it was assembled by Intel's team.

On April 18, Intel reported that it had completed the assembly of the world's first commercial high NA EUV lithography, the TWINSCAN EXE:5000 High NA EUV. The TWINSCAN EXE:5000 High NA EUV has an NA, a measure of the ability to collect and focus light, that has been improved from the conventional 0.33 to 0.55, providing higher imaging contrast for similar shapes and less light per exposure.

This allows the TWINSCAN EXE:5000 High NA EUV to print features 1.7 times smaller than existing EUV lithography, achieving up to 2.9 times higher transistor density in a single exposure. Intel said it is calibrating the TWINSCAN EXE:5000 High NA EUV in preparation for future load process maps.



'With the addition of high NA EUV, Intel has the most complete lithography toolbox in the industry, enabling Intel to drive future process capabilities beyond Intel 18A,' said Mark Phillips, director of lithography hardware and Intel Foundry logic technology solutions at Intel.

Intel is planning to introduce not only the TWINSCAN EXE:5000 High NA EUV, but also the next-generation 'TWINSCAN EXE:5200B' capable of producing more than 200 wafers per hour.

ASML reported on April 17 that it had shipped high NA EUV lithography to a 'second customer' that is not Intel, but did not disclose which manufacturer this customer is.

Semiconductor equipment maker ASML ships second 'High NA' EUV machine | Reuters
https://www.reuters.com/technology/semiconductor-equipment-maker-asml-ships-second-high-na-euv-machine-2024-04-17/



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