The Public Authorities Board of the Chips Joint Undertaking (EU Chips Act) has allocated €32m of funding to support two pilot projects that will boost semiconductor chip development and innovation.
Funding for the two pilots, FAMES and NacoIC, which will develop new semiconductor lines and processes, was confirmed today (3rd Oct).
VTT, a research, development, and innovation business, will support the realisation of the sites and has said it will use its share of the funding to purchase equipment for a cleanroom to be built in Espoo.
The European pilot line equipment, operations, and services provided by VTT will be integrated within Kvanttinova, a semiconductor and quantum technology RDI hub located in Espoo, Finland.
With the capital support, the project will be able to develop faster than expected. Construction of the pilot projects has already started. The first semiconductor processes in Finland are scheduled to start up in late 2026.
Tauno Vähä-Heikkilä, Vice-President of Microelectronics and Quantum Technologies at VTT, said the development will support and strengthen Europe’s role in the global chip market and bring Finland to the ecosystem.
“The recent EU Chips Act funding, together with funding provided by the Finnish Government last autumn, will ensure Finland’s involvement in pilot lines that are important to the European semiconductor industry.”
In July 2023, the European Council approved the EU Chips Act in a bid to double the EU’s global market share in semiconductors, from 10% now to at least 20% by 2030.
First announced in February 2022, the Chips Act hopes to mobilise €43bn in public and private investment, with €3.3bn coming from the EU budget.
With this, the EU hopes to become an industrial base for the semiconductor market, attract further investment, promote research and innovation, and prepare for any future chip supply crisis.
Read more: European Council gives Chips Act the green light
The recent Chips Act funding decisions and the resulting equipment acquisitions by VTT will support the strongest Finnish semiconductor industry competence areas, especially new materials, atomic layer deposition technology for memory applications, and RF technologies.
The role of specialty gases in semiconductor manufacturing
Specialty gases are often thought of as the lifeblood of the electronics industry and the beating heart of semiconductor manufacturing. These gases, including those used in creating silicon for chips, are directly linked to the advancement of current technology. Remarkably, a single wafer – a thin slice of semiconductor material crucial for integrated circuits – can comprise up to one thousand chips.
Semiconductor manufacture may use up to 30 different gases in all the various processes, including gases such as helium, nitrogen, and argon, which are used to create an inert atmosphere, flush chambers at the end of a process, or before cleaning.
Other specialty gases such as hydrogen, ammonia, and chlorine, in addition to less common examples like hexafluoroethane, octafluorocyclobutane and germane, are used in the etching and deposition processes.
gasworld Yearbook
The gasworld Yearbook is an essential annual publication for the industrial gas sector, compiling key news, reports, and trend analysis from the past year. It covers developments across CO2, helium, air gases, hydrogen, LNG, and specialty gases, featuring market trends, technological advancements, significant mergers and acquisitions, and interviews with industry leaders.
With 12 months of exposure, advertising in gasworld’s Yearbook will help cement your company alongside the most significant new developments, technologies and solutions of the industrial gas year.
Get in touch with our sales team today to learn more.
