The 2025 3D InCites Yearbook

A New Spin on Inspection SpinSAM ™ Acoustic Inspection

Navigating the European Chip Renaissance By Paul Lindner, EV Group Governments around the world are increasingly

semiconductor design software, advanced materials development, critical manufacturing processes such as lithography and wafer and die bonding, device manufacturing such as sensors and power devices, advanced packaging, as well as beyond-CMOS technologies such as photonics and optical computing as well as quantum computing. This article will review several major investment activities by the European Union that are driving a new “European chip renaissance” and strengthening the region’s semiconductor and micro-electronics infrastructure. This article will also review recent examples of partnerships between EV Group and manufacturers, research institutes, and other key players in Europe to enhance Europe's competitiveness and leadership in advanced technology. The Path to Revitalization Europe has historically been a leader in semiconductor research and development, as well as in manufacturing equipment. CEA-Leti, Fraunhofer, imec, and myriad other institutes and universities have led the charge in discovering and developing new technologies that have enabled new levels of innovation in semiconductor manufacturing and packaging. ASML, one of the largest semiconductor equipment companies, is the only manufacturer of EUV lithography systems, which are needed for the most advanced design nodes. EV Group and Besi are leaders in wafer- to-wafer and die-to-wafer bonding, respectively, which are essential process technologies for enabling 3D/ heterogeneous integration. ARM, Soitec, Carl Zeiss, and

recognizing the strategic importance of semiconductors to national security as well as in fueling innovation in many industry sectors. As a result, nations are investing billions of dollars to expand semiconductor manufacturing and packaging infrastructure on their shores. For example, the U.S. CHIPS and Science Act, which was signed into law two years ago, aims to invest $280 billion in new funding to boost domestic research and development semiconductors, of which nearly $53 billion in subsidies has been allocated for semiconductor manufacturing. Across the Atlantic, the European Chips Act will invest more than €43 billion ($47 billion) through 2030 to bolster Europe's competitiveness and resilience in semiconductor technologies and applications and help achieve both the digital and green transition. Other nations, including China, Japan, Korea, Taiwan, and India, have announced their plans to invest billions in semiconductor subsidies. While much attention has been centered on building leading-edge semiconductor fabs for making the most advanced memory and logic devices, strategic investments are also being made in building the infrastructure and supply chains for heterogeneous integration technologies. These include investments in advanced packaging, MEMS and sensors, power devices, and photonics—all of which play a vital role in driving semiconductor innovation. Europe has historically played and continues to play a crucial role in driving semiconductor innovation and device scaling through core strengths across the semiconductor value chain. These strengths include

The SpinSAM automated inspection system delivers industry-leading throughput with unparalleled sensitivity for accurately locating defects in wafer based assemblies. The SpinSAM’s innovative spin scanning method efficiently and accurately scans up to 4 (300mm) wafers simultaneously, at 41 wafers per hour with best-in-class defect capture and image quality. With 4 matched waterfall transducers, the SpinSAM was meticulously engineered to attain full wafer scans in less than 6 minutes.

Ideal applications include bonded wafers, Chip-on-Wafer, stacked wafers, MEMS, over-molded wafers and more.

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3D InCites Yearbook