“”We look at what are potential directions the industry could take, and what would it require in terms of packaging, bonding, etc “ Pieters told Reuters, “we’re actually researching to what extent we can participate in it, or what we can add to that part of the business. One of the things I’m doing is also looking at what could be a product portfolio in that direction.”
As stacked chips in chiplet packaging use finer geometry technology, ASML’s unmatched expertise in front-end litho gives it an edge in developing packaging tools.
Last year ASML produced a scanner specifically for packaging – the XTC.260 – targeted at advanced technologies like Intel’s Foveros and TSMC’s CoWos where large field size and precise through‑silicon alignment are critical. “Accuracy is becoming more and more important,” said Pieters.
The XTC.260 delivered 4x the throughput of existing tools and ASML is looking at areas like interconnect and bonding where expertise in litho give it an edge. The company does not want to become a broad-based equipment supplier like Applied.
