The perception of ASML’s high-NA EUV technology is getting a most welcome boost as the South Korean firm apparently prepares for insertion in high-volume manufacturing.
DRAM manufacturer SK Hynix has announced that it has completed assembly of ASML’s Twinscan EXE:5200B at its M16 fab in Icheon, South Korea. Following the installation of five development systems across the globe, the EXE:5200B is the first high-NA EUV production tool to be put together outside ASML’s premises. This suggests that deployment in high-volume manufacturing is on the horizon.
That prospect marks a major win for ASML, which has been battling a negative ‘public opinion’ for its flagship system. Sentiments surrounding the introduction of high-NA EUV lithography appear to be opposite to those surrounding its predecessor. Whereas low-NA EUV couldn’t be ready for mass production soon enough, high-NA is often labeled as having arrived too early.
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