Samsung Electronics and SK hynix are considering the introduction of hybrid bonding technology to the next-generation high bandwidth memory (HBM) stacking method, leading to anticipated shifts in the semiconductor equipment supply chain. Hybrid bonding is a method of stacking chips through copper without the use of 'bumps' connecting the DRAM mounted on HBM. This enables a reduction in chip size while improving performance metrics such as power efficiency by at least two times.
The existing HBM stacking utilized 'TC bonder' equipment from companies like SEMES, HANMI Semiconductor, and Hanwha, but no domestic corporation has proven mass production capabilities for hybrid bonding equipment. With the world's largest semiconductor equipment company, Applied Materials, announcing its entry into the HBM hybrid bonding equipment market, a competitive struggle over future supply chains is expected.
According to industry sources on the 7th, memory semiconductor corporations like Samsung Electronics and SK hynix are pushing to apply hybrid bonding technology to the mass production of next-generation HBM products. Samsung Electronics is expected to apply this technology to its HBM4 (6th-generation HBM) products, which could supply the market as early as next year, while SK hynix plans to apply it to 7th-generation HBM (HBM4E).
◇ The HBM stacking equipment 'TC bonder' led by the Korean semiconductor equipment industry
The latest HBM3E (5th-generation HBM) mass production currently supplied to the market utilizes TC bonder equipment. The TC bonder is a key piece of equipment that connects individual DRAMs by applying heat and pressure, stacking individual chips connected by bumps at set intervals and fixing them. Samsung Electronics receives TC bonders from SEMES and Japan's Shinkawa, while SK hynix has HANMI Semiconductor and Hanwha as major suppliers. U.S. Micron, which supplies HBM to Nvidia, also utilizes equipment from HANMI Semiconductor and Shinkawa.
Although Shinkawa and Singapore's ASMPT supply TC bonder equipment to memory semiconductor corporations, it is reported that domestic semiconductor equipment corporations currently hold over 80% of the TC bonder market. The market for TC bonders for HBM3E is effectively monopolized by HANMI Semiconductor.
SK hynix is expected to have Hanwha Semiconductor supply a significant number of TC bonder equipment for mass production of 12-layer HBM3E to be supplied to Nvidia starting in the second quarter of this year. Samsung Electronics also has a considerable number of SEMES equipment deployed in its HBM manufacturing line.
A semiconductor equipment industry official noted, "As the demand for HBM increases more sharply than expected, the supply quantity of TC bonders from domestic corporations like HANMI Semiconductor has risen," adding, "To deliver HBM for which supply contracts have been completed on time, orders are inevitably concentrated on corporations capable of stable mass production."
◇ U.S. Applied Materials announces intent to enter the hybrid bonding market
As the hybrid bonding market for next-generation HBM blossoms, seismic shifts in the semiconductor equipment ecosystem are anticipated. Once hybrid bonding technology begins to be applied, it is likely to establish itself as the mainstream method for next-generation HBM stacking.
Applied Materials acquired a 9% equity stake in VESI, the only company in the world mass-producing advanced bonding equipment necessary for hybrid bonding. Alongside this, they are proactively supplying hybrid bonding equipment to the system semiconductor market.
Domestic semiconductor equipment companies, including HANMI Semiconductor and Hanwha Semiconductor, are also accelerating the development of next-generation stacking equipment. HANMI Semiconductor and Hanwha Semiconductor plan to develop fluxless bonding equipment in addition to hybrid bonding, aiming to enhance their competitiveness. Fluxless bonding is technically less difficult than hybrid bonding but has the advantage of reducing chip size by stacking without flux, which is attached to bumps for chip alignment and oxide film removal. For this reason, it is reported that companies like Micron are considering its use for next-generation HBM stacking.