SK hynix and ASML have jointly assembled the industry's first commercial High-NA EUV lithography system, the Twinscan NXE:5200B, at SK hynix's M16 fabrication plant in Icheon, South Korea. With its enhanced numerical aperture (NA) of 0.55—up from the 0.33 used in current systems—the machine achieves dramatic improvements, enabling 8 nm resolution, 1.7× smaller transistors, and 2.9× higher transistor density in a single exposure. This removes the need for costly multi-patterning steps required by current EUV tools, streamlining chip design and production. Initially, SK hynix will use the system to accelerate R&D and prototyping for next-generation DRAM, testing new layouts and materials to future-proof their manufacturing processes. Over the long term—likely in the 2030s—the system is expected to support full-scale mass production of advanced DRAM using High-NA EUV-exclusive process nodes. This installation not only gives SK hynix a clear edge over rivals like Micron and Samsung—most of whom still use lower-NA systems—but also marks the first time ASML’s high-NA EUV tool has been deployed at a customer’s production-ready site, rather than a pre-production research facility. (ICE SEOUL)

Fonte notizia: Tom’s HARDWARE