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William Spaniel, on his YouTube channel "Lines on Maps," addresses the geopolitical significance of TSMC (Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company) within the context of the potential conflict between China and Taiwan. His analysis focuses on the concept of the "Silicon Shield", which...
So as an illustration, if I understand this correctly:
CXMT produces HBM2e for Accend 910C, a Huawei/SMIC production, creating a full stack for AI in China, and sanction-proof.
However, there are other chips in the "broader chipmaking ecosystem that Taiwan has built for over 40 years and cannot...
This is an interesting concept, following the rule of law. It should be suggested to the CCP. You never know.
Beside the fact Taiwan would never hand over TSMC to CCP, nor the USA, nor Korea.
It is nevertheless time to think about lifting the embargo on basic EUV so SMIC and other China...
I feel like I left out my thoughts describing all the new things (CFETs, 2DFETs, 0.75NA EUV, and Back-side power). Those are 4 big, big innovations coming in the next 10ish years. Back-side power arrives very soon (2025-2026). This is not a slowing down or settling down of a mature industry...
Power and ground rails move to the backside. Signal lines stay on the frontside, reducing the forest of interconnect on the frontside. Lines on the backside will be 65nm or larger according to IMEC, in the first generation, meaning less expensive lithography can be used, returning that portion...
Summary
-On the left: Starting from Finfet, next is "Nanosheet"
-Lithography: From 0.33NA EUV to 0.55NA EUV starting at the second Nanosheet generation ("Scaled")
-Metal pitch: In 2025, we're at 22nm in the first generation Nanosheet. This is down from 23nm at the last Finfet node, N3...
This was an interesting read. I like the approach to reporting Tech Taiwan takes.
My take is that it's been a long time since the semiconductor industry had a player like China, with no profit sensitivity, with the only goal market share. Highly leveraged semiconductor companies, like...
Three scenarios. LBT may gut the fabs as a threat and Trump may deliver more money, enough to keep Intel going. Or LBT may cede control to an acquirer, possibly with a Trump golden share (Ala Nippon Steel deal with US Steel). Or LBT may just execute a classic fab lite strategy where Intel...
I'm watching this website for objective news (ie numbers). https://www.warntracker.com/company/intel
Some surprises on this website: As coldsoldier indicated the last big layoff affecting OR and AZ (ie the fabs) was in 2016.
PG protected the fabs, judging from this website: In 2024 there...
It’ll take 4-5 years to build, then 5+ years to scale.
There are a lot of believers in AI as a gargantuan opportunity to build GPUs, HBM memory, analog support chips, and perhaps some CPUs thrown into the mix as well. The US is preparing to fight for market share, rather than cede ground...
My condolences to the Intel employees affected by this.
I learned in 2008 it’s better to be in the first wave of layoffs. There is still some money left to do right by you. Later waves, if it comes to that, won’t be so lucky.
The US has a permanent garrison in South Korea and in Japan, but not TW. This situation has existed for a long time. It is a bit like a bullfighter waving a flag at a bull, encouraging it to run at TW (not JP or Korea). It may be a bit of a trap. Or perhaps, TW is the battleground that the...
Intel last big layoffs were in 2015-2016, 10 years ago. https://www.warntracker.com/company/intel#google_vignette
That affected OR and AZ, and since then, most layoffs have been in CA. There are no front-end fabs in CA.
The WARN Act only applies to the USA, so no help with Israel or Ireland...
I think this means EUV-enabled DRAM (14nm) and possibly NAND.
TSMC has proven you can profitably build EUV-based fabs in the USA, with the subsidy relatively small < 10%.
All good news. DRAM fabs are all about volume and scale, the investment numbers are high to be competitive, and it seems...
I think they know WFH is more efficient, but certain companies wanted to increase natural attrition so they took it away. WFH is thus a sign of corporate health.
To hist78 post above about TSMC Arizona leaders experience levels. The TSMC leaders of today developed over decades of stable employment with TSMC. Much of that time in Taiwan, obviously, but some could have come from Wafertech in Washington. TSMC has always had more of a Marines...
Kinik embeds thousands of diamonds in precise patterns on stainless steel disks. The CMP department disposes of 10s of these disks per day. Uniform, tiny industrial diamonds is one of the secrets of semiconductor manufacturing. Kinik's particular trick is to chemically bond the diamond to the...
My base case is that Intel is locked into a death spiral of downsizing, cost cutting, de-investment (50% GM required!) and has a few quarters left. I’m not really committed to that position, but need to see the following to re-evaluate it:
—Intel can mass produce an EUV product with a large die...
Back in the 1960s, at the dawn of the semiconductor industry, the major customer for ICs and discretes was the US military. There was a military doctrine, called “Offset”, which proposed that the US could build weapons around semiconductor chips, such as laser-guided glide bombs, which featured...
