Advancements in Glass Substrate Technology and Its Rising Popularity in the Semiconductor Industry
TapTechNews July 12th news, TrendForce released a blog post on July 10th, The glass substrate technology, with its excellent performance and numerous advantages, has become a rising star in the advanced packaging field.
Glass Substrate Technology
The chip substrate is used to fix the die cut from the wafer, and it is the protagonist in the last step of packaging. The more dies fixed on the substrate, the more transistors in the entire chip.
The materials of the chip substrate have mainly experienced two iterations. The lead frame was used in the 1970s and transitioned to the ceramic substrate in the 1990s, which is also the most common organic material substrate at present.
In the packaging solution, the glass substrate has more advantages compared to the organic substrate. TapTechNews briefly summarizes as follows:
Excellent mechanical, physical and optical properties
50% more Die can be placed on the chip
The glass material is very flat, which can improve the depth of focus in lithography
Better thermal stability and mechanical stability
The spacing between the through glass vias (TGV) can be less than 100 microns, which can directly increase the interconnection density between wafers by 10 times
The thermal expansion coefficient of the glass substrate is closer to that of the wafer, and the higher temperature tolerance can reduce the deformation by 50%.
Glass Substrate Technology Becomes the New Favorite
Reports point out that Intel, AMD, Samsung, LGInnotek and the US subsidiary Absolics of SKC are all paying close attention to the glass substrate technology for advanced packaging.
Intel
Intel Corporation in September 2023, released the Next-Generation Advanced Packaging Glass Substrate Technology, claiming that it can revolutionize the entire chip packaging field. Intel plans to use the glass substrate to increase the number of chips, thereby reducing the carbon footprint and ensuring faster and more efficient performance.
Intel plans to start mass production of the glass substrate by 2026 and has established a research institute for this in Arizona, USA.
Samsung
Samsung has commissioned its Samsung Electro-Mechanics division to start the research and development work of the glass substrate and explore its potential application cases in artificial intelligence and other emerging fields.
Samsung will also utilize the work results of different departments (such as the display department) to ensure the future cooperation mode of the glass substrate. The company also expects to start mass production in 2026 and build a trial production line in September 2024.
SK Hynix
SK Hynix has also stepped into this field through its US subsidiary Absolics. Absolics has invested 300 million US dollars in Covington, Georgia to develop dedicated production facilities and has begun mass-producing prototype substrates.
SK Hynix plans to start mass production in early 2025, thus becoming one of the earliest companies to join the glass substrate competition.
AMD
AMD plans to introduce the glass substrate between 2025 and 2026 and cooperate with global component companies to maintain its leading position. According to Korean media reports, AMD is conducting performance evaluation tests on the glass substrate samples of several major global semiconductor substrate companies and intends to introduce this advanced substrate technology into the semiconductor manufacturing field.
New Supply Chain Will Take Shape
With the emergence of new companies such as SCHMID, as well as the participation of laser equipment suppliers, display manufacturers and chemical suppliers, around the glass core substrate, the industry is gradually forming some new supply chains and creating a diversified ecosystem.
