ASML to invest €80M in TUE research and facilities

ASML and Eindhoven University of Technology have updated their collaboration announced last year. The litho firm is now committing 80 million euros to co-fund research and construction of a new cleanroom on campus. The ten-year partnership will help create almost one hundred PhD positions in plasma physics, mechatronics, optics, AI and other fields relevant to semiconductor technology.

Originally, ASML intended to move a significant part of its R&D operations to a new campus facility shared with TUE staff. Now that the equipment manufacturer has found space to expand elsewhere in the region, that plan has changed. ASML will still contribute to the construction of a more modern and larger cleanroom facility, however, and is now funding more researchers – last year’s announcement mentioned up to 40.

“TUE is the purveyor of talent in the region and an important academic partner. The collaboration will increase the availability of PhDs, which our industry has a strong need for, and will provide scientific insights that are relevant to the chip industry and society. With this agreement, we’re investing in science in the Netherlands and in training experts,” says ASML CFO Roger Dassen.

The collaboration between ASML and TUE fits with the goals of the 2.5-billion-euro Beethoven operation to bolster the Dutch high-tech ecosystem, although the partnership clearly predates the announcement of this project. Currently, more than seven hundred TUE researchers from 25 research groups are working in semiconductor-related fields, and this number is expected to grow considerably.