United Microelectronics Corporation (UMC), a leading global semiconductor foundry, today announced that Dow Jones Sustainability Index (DJSI) has selected UMC as a global component for the 12th consecutive year. UMC earned DJSI's highest scores for the foundry industry in the "Environmental" category, with several items receiving full marks.UMC's overall scores have continued to increase in recent years, illustrating the company's continued excellence in sustainable operations. DJSI-World 2019 evaluated approximately 2,500 global enterprises, with only 6 semiconductor companies selected worldwide.SC Chien, co-president and chairman of the CSR Committee at UMC, said, "Being selected as a DJSI Global Component for the 12th consecutive year is a great honor. As a global leader in the semiconductor industry, UMC regards sustainable development as a key value in its business operations. We adhere to the vision of "people-oriented, environmental symbiosis and social co-prosperity," and we are committed to the three aspects of "environment, society and governance." Through the concept of perseverance, the company has set sustainable development goals for both 2020 and 2025 in order to make the greatest contribution to UMC, society and the world. We will continue to strengthen the company's advantages, respond to the UN's sustainable development goals, refine our operational strategies, and exert a positive influence to make the world a better place."UMC is a pioneer in promoting corporate sustainability and practicing social responsibility, with numerous recognitions both domestically and worldwide. In 2019, UMC earned "Top 5% in Corporate Governance Evaluation," "FTSE4Good Emerging Index" honors and became a "FTSE4Good TIP Taiwan ESG Index" component for the second consecutive year. UMC also promotes partnerships with its Eco Echo Award, now in its fourth year, which is a jointly sponsored program that supports supply chain partners.Dow Jones Sustainability Indices was launched jointly by Dow Jones Index, STOXX and Sustainable Asset Management (SAM) in 1999. DJSI is the first index that traces social responsibility performance of leading-edge enterprises, and is also one of the most creditable evaluation tools for reviewing sustainability worldwide. The Dow Jones Sustainability World Index and respective subsets track the performance of the top 10% of the 2500 largest companies in the S&P Global Broad Market Index that lead the field in terms of sustainability.

Power consumption is a crucial consideration for all types of electronics. As critical power components used in a wide range of electronic products, power MOSFET and other types of power semiconductor devices already enjoy enormous demand and this market segment is experiencing another wave of growth driven by fast rising popularity of automotive electronics in recent years. One year into its efforts toward backend wafer process of power semiconductor devices that started in 2018, iST has come up with the most comprehensive portfolio of backend wafer process solutions in the Taiwan semiconductor sector.Fueled by expanding demands from handheld devices and automotive electronics, the power semiconductor application market is enjoying surging growth. In particular, automobiles, including gasoline, hybrid and electric cars, all have ever-increasing demand for automotive ICs.According to William Cheng, head of iST's surface process engineering business unit, the growth of the automotive electronics market is mainly driven by two factors - automakers' needs to enhance their competitiveness by leveraging advances in electronics technologies to improve performance and increasingly rigorous vehicle emission standards instituted by governments worldwide. To meet the stringent standards, automakers have to incorporate different electronics technologies. As a result, the use of all kinds of discrete electronic devices in automobiles is rapidly on the rise.According to a report released by semiconductor manufacturer Infineon, the costs of discrete power semiconductor devices used in a gasoline car amount to US$71 and in electric cars, the costs run up to US$455. In contrast to declining global automobile shipments in the past year, automotive IC shipments continue to show positive growth, indicating an irreversible trend for the automotive electronics sector going forward.With its critical role in the global semiconductor scene, Taiwan leads the world with a complete ecosystem in terms of both production and supply chain. It is second to none particularly with the professional links along the semiconductor supply chain working in perfect symphony. The same is true for power semiconductor devices. Taiwan has largely focused on front-end wafer fabrication of power MOSFET and other types of power semiconductor devices while China-based firms take over mid-stage and backend processes. However, with the recent growth in the automotive electronics market, power semiconductor devices are constantly in short supply. To meet market demand, iST began to engage in backend MOSFET process in 2018 in an effort to complement the Taiwan supply chain and ease the supply shortage.iST has developed the industry's most comprehensive backend wafer process solutions after a year's efforts in technology research and production line build-up. It offers a complete range of solutions including common processes such as wafer thinning and backside grinding/backside metallization (BGBM) and advanced processes such as wafer thinning up to 15um, front-side metallization (FSM) through chemical plating or sputtering deposition and even chip probing (CP) tests and Taiko ring removal, which most other wafer thinning firms do not provide.As Cheng pointed out, professional talent and automation systems are the two enablers of iST's services. Its team of engineers comprises specialists in frond-end fabrication, mid-stage FSM and BGBM processes and backend assembly with a full grasp of the entire process line technologies to enable all-around services to iST customers. Furthermore, iST also implements the Manufacturing Execution System (MES), which is designed to optimize the production process for the manufacturing industry. As opposed to most other wafer thinning firms that still keep paper-based equipment status logs, iST has fully digitized its production equipment data. It uses real-time monitoring (RTM) devices to keep track of machine conditions at all times. In the case that any data anomaly is detected, the manager in charge is notified and production is halted to prevent damage to subsequent wafers and therefore ensure yield. Also as part of iST' measures to improve factory floor management, operators are required to crosscheck the personnel, equipment and material by scanning barcodes to confirm everything is correct before starting the machine and inputting the material.RTM significantly lowers the chance of machine failure while the crosschecking of personnel, equipment and material prevents human error. With these mechanisms in place, iST is able to boost the yield of all its BGBM process lines. According to Cheng, the yield has maintained at 99.7% for months and iST's target is to further raise it to 99.8% within the year. With respect to capacity, iST plans to produce 35,000 wafers per month at present, meeting customers' current needs. The capacity can be expanded to keep up with customer demand in the future. This indicates that iST has full control on its production lines and therefore is capable of making on-schedule delivery and providing on-target quality.iST is also gearing up efforts toward expansion into different application markets. In May 2019, iST's Fab II located in Hsinchu Science Park obtained third-party certification for compliance with the International Standard for Automotive Quality Management Systems IATF 16949. With the Letter of Compliance (LOC) to IATF 16949, iST has crossed the entrance barrier to the automotive market and will be able to produce compliant products for automotive applications. Aside from IATF 16949, it is necessary to also get certified for German automotive standard VDA 6.3 if manufacturers want to make their way into the supply chain for leading automakers. Compliance with this standard indicates that the manufacturer's production lines can maintain stable production even under multiple interferences. VDA6.3 is different from IATF 16949 in that third-party certification is not available but instead automakers conduct their own audits. iST has been VDA6.3-certified by one customer and the number will increase to three or four in the second half of 2019.Apart from MOSFET, the insulated-gate bipolar transistor (IGBT) is another critical component of automotive electronics and therefore also a highlight of iST's efforts toward backend wafer process solutions for power semiconductor devices. However, as it may take longer for investment in IGBT to generate return, iST will build its IGBT process platform by engaging industry alliance for the purpose of maximizing resource utilization. Cheng noted that iST is currently focusing on field-stop layer processing for IGBT. Besides wafer thinning, the critical part to field-stop layer processing is how to ensure that the backside processing produces semiconductor devices with characteristics conforming to the design spec. iST's team of professionals with extensive experiences in front-end and backend processes, coupled with its ample lab resources to help with material analysis, will enable iST to stand out from the competition.Fueled by flourishing automotive and smart home markets, the demand for power semiconductor devices and their backend wafer thinning process is on a steep rise. All iST's fabrication facilities have been upgraded to Industry 3.5, said Cheng.With a full control of production line data, both capacity and yield are ramping up, enabling iST to deliver the most comprehensive backend wafer process services for power semiconductor devices to customers worldwide.iST is among the few firms in Taiwan and even Asia that are capable of providing complete FSM and BGBM backend wafer process services for power semiconductor devices, according to William Cheng from iST.

The continuous process scaling and moving toward heterogeneous integration have enabled the vigorous innovation in the semiconductor industry in the post-Moore's Law era, which in turn drives the rapid development of 5G/AI/IoT applications. Behind this, semiconductor equipment makers play an important role in helping semiconductor manufactures create larger capacity, faster in speed, lower power consumption, and higher reliability chips with more sophisticated process equipment.However, through the dawn of emerging technology in intelligence networks, semiconductor equipment makers are facing both new business opportunities and challenges. Roger Chang, executive vice president of Tokyo Electron Taiwan Limited, recently shared his view on TEL's future development direction in an interview, explaining how TEL will stay ahead in the new era by leveraging its existing advantages. In addition, for the important Taiwan market, TEL will focus on talent, technology and supply chain optimization to enhance local services, as well as establish closer relationships with supply chain partners.Serving the market with comprehensive, powerful portfoliosTEL is the third largest semiconductor equipment maker in the world and has performed with bright color in recent years. According to VLSI research, TEL's YoY growth rate in 2018 grew 25.8%, outperforming the overall market. Regarding this, Chang said that "TEL's product portfolio extend from the front-end coater/developers, etch systems, deposition systems, cleaning systems and to the back-end wafer prober, market share among these product lines are well recognized in the leadership market of either Top 1 or Top 2. With the overwhelming comprehensive capability and diverse products, TEL is able to enjoy better growth momentum when demand turns up."The rapid advances in AI and big data applications have led the industry to invest heavily in building memory and advanced logic device capacities. Being a leader in semiconductor production equipment market, TEL aims to drive the advanced wafer fabrication technologies. He stressed that, as the industry moves to 7/5 nm and even 3 nm node, semiconductor manufacturing has involved in the stacking of atomic layer deposition, requiring more subtle precision and control capabilities, therefore, equipment suppliers need to enhance their R&D capabilities to meet the challenges.Funding large sum for R&D investment to maintain competitive edgeIn order to meet the industry's demand for more advanced manufacturing technology, TEL has announced that it expects to spend 400 billion yen in R&D investment in the next three years. "R&D is very important for semiconductors with fast technological innovation," Chang said. "We believe that companies that cannot do enough research and development won't be able to survive in the market. Therefore, our R&D investment is high in order to drive continuous innovation in the industry."TEL's R&D direction will also echo three major trends in semiconductor manufacturing: process scaling, heterogeneous integration, and application-specific design.Chang explained that the continuous miniaturization of logic and memory devices and moving toward 3D structure will lead to the introduction of diverse new materials and structures. In addition, research and development of new devices such as PCRAM, MRAM, and FeRAM are also in progress. The industry requires atomic level controllability and high-aspect ratio 3D dimension etching and deposition technologies, as well as the within-wafer, wafer-to-wafer, lot-to-lot, and tool-to-tool process variation control and stability."Lithography, etching, deposition, and cleaning are very important steps for miniaturization and 3D structure creation, and there are no other semiconductor equipment makers that have these four. With the unique advantage, we are able to keep serving our customers with higher value under the mega trend."In addition to process scaling, the development of heterogeneous integration has gradually matured. Through multi-functional-die stacking, it has become another important option for the industry to enable higher level of integration. Similarly, TEL will also leverage its excellent technologies to meet the needs of the industry.Finally, the application-specific design co-optimization is in response to the rise of AI, which will bring new design and manufacturing requirements for chip and memory. As a result, new ecosystems and business models are needed to drive the more efficient AI applications. "This is a new trend and a closer collaborative R&D integration from manufacturing to design. The industry is currently exploring new ways of cooperation. TEL is getting actively involved, and its follow-up development will be anticipated in full.Enhance Taiwan deployment by strengthening supply chain optimizationTEL has been deeply involved in Taiwan market for more than 20 years. Chang said that as the market demand for new applications continues to expand in the future, TEL will strengthen its resources in Taiwan in terms of talent, technology and supply chain optimization, in a bid to meet the needs of customers and grow together. In addition to invest in the development of advanced process technology, TEL also values greatly on assisting customers to improve the productivity of their legacy 200mm or 300mm equipment."For many industries, well established process know-how may just be enough, such as in automotive and IoT applications. Therefore, for the larger amount of installed equipment at customers' sites in Taiwan, it's our responsibility, as well as potential business opportunities, to bring the advanced technology of 300mm tools and implementing into 200mm tools through functional upgrade and refurbishment to help customers improving their productivity and yield.""TEL recently has announced the cooperation with BRIDG in the United States to jointly develop in this area. This is an important part of the optimization of our supply chain ecosystem, aiming to help customers maximize the value of their legacy equipment and create higher added value. Therefore, understanding the needs of customers and providing in-time localized services will be crucial to our future business."Moreover, as the process equipment is getting more complicated and sophisticated, talents with cross-domain expertise will be highly demanded. As a result, TEL will strengthen its talent cultivation programs. "TEL has cooperated with numerous internationally renowned R&D institutions and a Technology Center had been established in Taiwan. We have conducted a two-year trainee engineer program for many years. It's hoped to provide more training for our employees," Chang said. "With stronger capability, we will be able to embrace future growth opportunities. We aim to work with customers and suppliers through bilateral innovation and advanced field solutions, creating higher value for the semiconductor industry in order to contribute to the development of a dream-inspiring society."Roger Chang, executive vice president of Tokyo Electron Taiwan Limited