In context: Manufacturers are attempting to develop novel chip substrate applied sciences to save Moore’s regulation and preserve crunching the Megahertz charges up. Glass is the most promising materials for next-gen substrates Manufacturers ought to begin utilizing them sooner than anticipated – if Samsung can succeed at its ramped-up R&D effort.
According to rumors from unnamed business insiders, Samsung has determined to make investments closely in the analysis and improvement of glass substrates for chip manufacturing. The firm plans to bring merchandise to prospects by 2026, making a “coalition” of subsidiary organizations to velocity up know-how improvement.
The leakers say that three divisions inside the Korean conglomerate – Samsung Electro-Mechanics, Samsung Electronics, and Samsung Display – will develop the new glass-based chip substrates. Samsung Electronics will work on integrating semiconductor parts with the new substrates, whereas Samsung Display and Electro-Mechanics concentrate on the glass processing half.
The insiders stated that Samsung will attempt to leverage a synergic strategy amongst its subsidiaries, leveraging their experience of their respective fields. During the Consumer Electronics Show 2024, Samsung Electro-Mechanics introduced plans to construct mass-production capabilities for glass substrates by 2026.
Glass substrates can theoretically bring vital enhancements to the chip manufacturing course of. Compared to conventional natural substrates, glass reveals an enhanced flatness that improves the depth of focus for lithographic processes. The materials additionally has larger dimensional stability for interconnects and supplies larger thermal and mechanical energy.
The materials may face up to larger temperatures and stress ranges, making chips extra sturdy and resilient even in “harsh” information heart situations. The know-how can be perfect for multi-chiplet, system-in-package (SiP) purposes, that are set to turn into considered one of the business’s hottest chip designs. Intel has been growing a glass substrate resolution for years, and the firm lately introduced its plans to launch novel industrial merchandise by 2030.
Samsung and Intel aren’t the solely corporations engaged on the subsequent era of substrate know-how. Japanese producer Ibiden has additionally joined the R&D effort for glass-based designs, whereas South Korean firm SKC has opened a brand new subsidiary (Absolics) to develop new mass manufacturing capabilities. Absolics has already partnered with AMD and different main semiconductor corporations.