imec to set up new 300mm R&D facility in Spain
imec is teaming up with the Spanish government and the region of Andalusia, to establish a new 300mm R&D process line for specialised chip technologies.
The Spanish government, together with the regional government of Andalusia and imec, have signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) outlining their intent to establish a specialised chip technology pilot line in Malaga (Andalusia).
The new innovation facility intends to complement imec's existing 300mm advanced CMOS process line in Leuven, Belgium, with new 300mm process developments and the introduction of new materials that are difficult to combine today with standard CMOS processes.
imec says in a press release that the new facility aims to answer the industry’s need for R&D, prototyping and pave the road to the manufacturing of promising, new technologies.
The facility will utilise the advantages of leading-edge 300mm semiconductor process technology to drive new applications in health care, life sciences, photonics, augmented and virtual reality and precision sensing.
Negotiations to find a strong public-private cooperation model – between imec, the Spanish government and the government of Andalusia – are now set to start. The governments already agree to support the construction of the new facility including the advanced equipment.
They have also formulated the intention to financially support the pilot line's operations in a sustainable, long-term manner, to the benefit of its growing semiconductor ecosystem.
