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11 min ago 2 min read
The European Commission has approved €659m ($754m) in direct grants through German state aid to develop four first-of-a-kind semiconductor facilities and strengthen the EU’s competitiveness in the global semiconductor market.
The potential of the European semiconductor ecosystem is tied to the availability of specialty gases used in key semiconductor manufacturing processes.
German silicon carbide (SiC) specialist Element 3-5 has received €353m ($404m) to construct its SiC epi-wafer manufacturing facility in Baesweiler, North Rhine-Westphalia.
SiC epi-wafers are SiC wafers with a very thin crystalline layer added on top through a process called epitaxy.
This results in improved performance compared to standard SiC wafers, with applications in the automotive, communications, energy and industrial markets.
Vishay Siliconix Itzehoe, the German subsidiary of US electric component firm Vishay, has been granted €214m ($244m) to build a semiconductor device manufacturing facility in Itzehoe, Schleswig-Holstein.
Vishay will manufacture the next generation of power metal-oxide-semiconductor field-effect transistors (MOSFETs) designed to control high voltages in power electronic circuits in the automotive industry.
KLA-Tencor MIE, the German subsidiary of California-based semiconductor equipment manufacturer KLA Corporation, has received €74.4m ($85m) for a facility in Weilburg, Hesse.
The facility will manufacture advanced optical overlay and film metrology equipment used for quality control in the mass production of semiconductor devices.
Once operational, the equipment relies on ultra-high purity nitrogen to create an inert environment.
Munich-based electronics manufacturer Ketek has been awarded €17.9m ($20m) for silicon drift detectors (SDDs) and graphene radiation entry windows (GREW) manufacturing in Munich, Bavaria.
These specialised chips are key components of Ketek’s SDD detectors used for industrial sorting and recycling systems. The funding will streamline production by integrating two production lines into a single cleanroom.
In line with the objectives of the 2023 European Chips Act (EU Chips Act), these approvals mark the 15th to 18th decisions by the European Commission, with funding from previous measures totalling approximately €14.2bn ($16.3bn).
First announced in February 2022, the EU Chips Act aims to mobilise €43bn ($50bn) in public and private investment, with €3.3bn ($3.8bn) coming from the EU budget.
