Prior to first EUV nodes, every new technology generation was always coming together with net capacity expansion. Every new node was bringing significantly more dies at lower costs.
But after EUV, the trend reversed, and newer node fabs started to come with much less net capacity than the previous generations for the first time.
Why?
With extremely slow, and extremely expensive EUV steppers, expanding the rest of the litho line stopped making sense, when scanners became the bottleneck.
The only way to continue making cheaper chips in higher volumes was to stay on very fast optical litho, and bring the bigger wafer size, so the deposition throughput can continue to grow.
The 450mm route was obviously less profitable, and thus rejected, and that completely changed the direction of the industry,
The extreme expense of complex multipatterning nodes, and EUV has opened the breathing hole for mainland China fabs, letting them catch up, and become profitable for the first time.
The COVID followed, and scram for legacy node capacity sealed the new course of the industry, bringing tons of cash to mainland fabs, and making them long-term viable.
But after EUV, the trend reversed, and newer node fabs started to come with much less net capacity than the previous generations for the first time.
Why?
With extremely slow, and extremely expensive EUV steppers, expanding the rest of the litho line stopped making sense, when scanners became the bottleneck.
The only way to continue making cheaper chips in higher volumes was to stay on very fast optical litho, and bring the bigger wafer size, so the deposition throughput can continue to grow.
The 450mm route was obviously less profitable, and thus rejected, and that completely changed the direction of the industry,
The extreme expense of complex multipatterning nodes, and EUV has opened the breathing hole for mainland China fabs, letting them catch up, and become profitable for the first time.
The COVID followed, and scram for legacy node capacity sealed the new course of the industry, bringing tons of cash to mainland fabs, and making them long-term viable.