eetimes.com, Oct. 15, 2019 –
TSMC's boast that it is the first chipmaker to commercialize EUV lithography technology is probably justified, according to a number of analysts surveyed by EE Times.
On Oct. 7, the world's largest foundry announced that its 7nm plus (N7+) node has become the industry's first commercially available (extreme ultra-violet) EUV technology. TSMC said in a press statement that it has been quickly deploying capacity to meet N7+ demand driven by multiple customers.
"TSMC is clearly leading the EUV pack, both in terms of tools taken and ordered, numbers of commercial EUV wafers produced and integration of EUV into their coming roadmap," says Jim Fontanelli, a senior analyst with Arete Research.
The leading edge is currently at 7+ with about three layers done using EUV, he says. In 2020, TSMC will ramp 5nm in the second half with significantly increased EUV usage of about 15 layers, followed by 6nm ramping at the end of 2020 with about four layers done in EUV, according to Fontanelli.