ASML opens EUV technology training Centre in Taiwan

Located in the Tainan Science Park, the 1'625 square metres new EUV training centre will offer training, including EUV machine operating practice in the cleanroom. ASML says that it expects to develop 360 EUV engineers for both internal and customer purposes every year. “We thank the Tainan Science Park Administration, the government and our customers for their support in helping us to establish this new EUV training center to serve the semiconductor industry,” says Mark Ting, manager of ASML Taiwan, in a press release. “ASML is growing with the semiconductor industry and our customers,” Mark continues. “In 2010, we shipped the first prototype EUV lithography system to TSMC for R&D purposes, marking the beginning of a new era in lithography. In 2017, we shipped the first production-ready system, the TWINSCAN NXE:3400, to TSMC, and three years later, Taiwan has become home to the world’s largest EUV installed base. It takes 18 months to develop an EUV engineer from a novice to a mature engineer who can work independently. The COVID-19 pandemic has increased the uncertainties related to traveling. The EUV training center enables both ASML and our customers to train EUV engineers locally in a safe and cost-effective way. “By placing our Global EUV Technology Training Center in Asia where EUV systems will continue to be installed, we expect to achieve significant savings in both time and money to bring EUV knowledge to those who need it,” says Wayne Allan, executive vice president of ASML Global Customer Support.