Rapidus begins installation of Japan’s first NXE:3800E EUV lithography machinery
Rapidus Corporation has announced the delivery and installation of ASML’s EUV lithography equipment at its Innovative Integration for Manufacturing (IIM-1) foundry, an advanced semiconductor development and manufacturing fab currently under construction in Chitose, Hokkaido.
This is a significant milestone for Japan’s semiconductor industry, marking the first time that an EUV lithography tool will be used for mass production in the country. In addition to the EUV lithography machinery, Rapidus will install additional complementary advanced semiconductor manufacturing equipment, as well as full automated material handling systems in its IIM-1 foundry to optimize 2nm generation gate-all-around (GAA) semiconductor manufacturing.
EUV lithography is one of the key technologies for realizing 2nm semiconductors. An advanced lithography process is critical for forming the 2nm generation GAA structure.
ArF (193nm) immersion exposure has been at the forefront of EUV technology. However, 2nm and future nodes require an even shorter wavelength (13.5nm). The newest generation of EUV lithography technology uses laser sources, optical systems and photomasks that are far more precise than those used previously. The EUV lithography equipment from ASML installed at the Rapidus IIM-1 foundry uses an advanced optical system with a reflective photomask and mirror lenses. It adopts a TWINSCAN platform that performs alignment and scanning on separate stages, realizing increased productivity while responding to shrinking transistor sizes.
A pilot line will begin at Rapidus’ IIM-1 in April 2025. A single-wafer process will be introduced for all manufacturing equipment, where Rapidus will proceed with the construction of a new semiconductor foundry service called Rapid and Unified Manufacturing Service (RUMS).
