Samsung utters high-NA skepticism, too

The lifetime of EUV technology is limited, according to Samsung Electronics Fellow Young Seog Kang. Speaking at a panel discussion at the SPIE Advanced Lithography conference recently, Kang said that high-NA EUV lithography will run into “performance and cost issues” (via Spie.org). The researcher pointed to double patterning and advanced packaging techniques as alternatives. Others in the panel didn’t share his pessimistic view.

Kang’s comment adds to a discussion about the cost-effectiveness of high NA that was kicked off in December. Samsung’s competitors seem divided on the issue, with Intel keen to embrace it and TSMC in no hurry. The former recently confirmed that it will start applying high-NA in volume production in 2026, whereas the latter may wait until the 2030 timeframe.

ASML has said that high-NA adoption is proceeding according to expectations, stating it’s “clearly the most cost-effective solution” available to chipmakers. SPIE AL panelist Jan van Schoot, director of systems engineering at ASML, noted that there are still several knobs to turn to improve resolution and extend EUV’s usefulness.