TSMC is holding off on high-NA EUV, even as Intel pushes ahead. The decision underscores a deeper divide in how the chipmakers weigh cost, complexity and risk at the leading edge.
High-NA EUV lithography is still absent from TSMC’s roadmap. Two process nodes that were recently added to the queue, A13 and A12, will be patterned with low-NA EUV technology, the Taiwanese firm confirmed. At this rate, it’s unlikely – though not impossible – that the world’s foremost logic manufacturer will adopt high-NA in production before the end of the decade.
This probably wouldn’t have raised eyebrows if another chipmaker hadn’t taken a different road. Intel has confirmed high-NA deployment for its upcoming 14A node, which is slated to hit full-scale production in 2028. Why the difference in timing?
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