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Semilab announced an agreement to form a long-term strategic partnership with Fraunhofer IISB. Within the framework of this cooperation, a demo lab will be opened with a strong focus on developing state-of-the-art metrology and inspection solutions for wide bandgap semiconductor materials.
Over the years, developments in compound semiconductor materials such as silicon carbide (SiC) have been receiving increased attention. SiC devices show great promise in the future of wide bandgap semiconductors due to their superior material properties. The silicon carbide market’s growth shows no sign of slowing down due to the expansion in the industrial and automotive sectors. Semilab believes in driving decarbonization by supporting the development of key SiC products and components.
Based in Budapest, Hungary, Semilab is a strategic metrology supplier and innovation partner of the leading wafer manufacturers, IC device makers in the More-than-Moore market segment. Semilab provides state-of-the-art metrology solutions for semiconductor device manufacturers, both in-line and R&D segments. The company is among the world leaders in non-contact CV metrology for SiC and its market share is growing for EPI thickness and resistivity monitoring.
The Fraunhofer IISB in Erlangen, Germany, specializes in wide-bandgap semiconductors and efficient power electronics. Here, device know-how merges with complex system development, especially for e-mobility and sustainable energy supply.
The institute bundles its activities in the two business units Power Electronic Systems and Semiconductors. In doing so, it comprehensively covers the entire value chain from basic materials, through semiconductor device, process and module technologies, to complete electronics and energy systems. As a unique center of excellence in Europe for the semiconductor material silicon carbide (SiC), the IISB is a pioneer in the development of highly efficient power electronics, even for extreme requirements. This spans from material, over process and to device development supported by providing innovative metrology solutions.
Considering the crucial role both players have in shaping of the European semiconductor scene, the strategic partnership between Semilab and Fraunhofer IISB will allow the utilization of their respective resources and global networks in order to develop new, innovative silicon carbide processes and metrologies.
Original – Semilab
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Siltronic AG officially inaugurated the extension to its crystal pulling hall at the Freiberg site. The new production area provides space for the latest generation of crystal pulling systems, which are used to produce silicon monocrystals for wafer production under cleanroom conditions. In total, several hundred million euros were invested in the construction and around 60 jobs were created.
“This investment is a clear commitment to our Saxon location. In addition, the modernization helps us to maintain our position as one of the world’s technology leaders and it strengthens our position as the only major Western wafer manufacturer”, said Dr. Michael Heckmeier, CEO of Siltronic AG, at the opening. The Freiberg site in Saxony is one of four production sites of the group, which manufactures in Germany, Singapore and the USA.
With a usable area of 20,000 square meters, the extension building is almost as large as three soccer fields. Here, man-sized silicon monocrystals are produced in a process that takes five to seven days. The so-called ingots have a diameter of around 300 millimeters and weigh several hundred kilograms. In a complex process under cleanroom conditions, they are processed into wafers – extremely thin slices of silicon. Siltronic’s customers use the wafers to manufacture microchips, which can be found in everyday items such as tablets, smartphones and electric cars, as well as wind turbines and aircrafts. The semiconductor industry is receiving tailwind from the megatrends of artificial intelligence, digitization and electromobility.
Siltronic has invested more than one billion euros at the site since acquiring Freiberger Elektronikwerkstoffe GmbH in 1995. “With our investments, we believe we are well prepared for the future, to be at the forefront in a challenging market environment,” Heckmeier explained. Currently around 1,000 people are employed at the site in Freiberg, Saxony.
Original – Siltronic
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WT Microelectronics Co., Ltd. announced that it has entered into a definitive agreement to acquire 100% of the shares of Future Electronics Inc. (“Future Electronics”) for an enterprise value of US$3.8 billion in an all-cash transaction. The strategic transaction is anticipated to deliver long-term, sustainable value to all relevant stakeholders including customers, suppliers, employees, and shareholders through the combination of two highly complementary organizations.
Future Electronics, a Canadian-based leading global distributor of electronic components, generated revenues of US$2.9 billion, operating income of US$228 million, and net income of US$184 million for the six months ended on June 30, 2023. The privately-held company, with approximately 5,200 employees in 47 countries, provides customers with application engineering expertise and supply chain services covering a portfolio of electronics from industry leading suppliers.
“This is transformational for WT Microelectronics and Future Electronics and important for the electronic component ecosystem,” said Eric Cheng, Chairman and CEO of WT Microelectronics. “Future Electronics has an experienced and deep management team and a very talented employee base, and is highly complementary to WT Microelectronics in terms of product offerings, customer coverage, and global footprint.
Future’s management team, all of their employees worldwide, and all locations and distribution centers will continue to operate and add value to the organization. We are excited to invite Mr. Omar Baig to join WT Microelectronics’ Board of Directors post-closing and look forward to working with him and his immensely talented colleagues around the world to build together a best-in-class electronic components distributor.”
“We are excited to join WT Microelectronics and believe that this transaction will benefit all our stakeholders. Our two companies share a common culture, driven by a rich entrepreneurial spirit that will empower our talented employees globally”, said Omar Baig, President, CEO and Chairman of Future Electronics. “This combination is a great opportunity for WT Microelectronics and Future Electronics to jointly form a world-class industry leader, and allows us to continue our long-term strategic plan to offer the highest level of services to our customers, which we have been doing for the past 55 years.”
Original – WT Microelectronics
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A group of semiconductor companies in Flanders have come together to create Flanders Semiconductors, a new nonprofit organization representing the interests of the industry at local, European, and global levels. The organization is open to all qualifying companies, both in and outside of the Flanders region, that have semiconductor technology at the core of their business.
Flanders Semiconductors is a significant move for the Flemish semiconductor industry, which currently employs well over 3,000 people directly, has more than 50 companies with semiconductor as their core business, and over 100 companies defining, testing, and integrating advanced customized semiconductor devices or technologies.
Flanders Semiconductors covers the whole supply chain, including infrastructure, equipment, materials, processing, testing, and devices. The Flanders region also boasts world-class research facilities such as IMEC, universities, and institutes providing semiconductor R&D, education, and training. The objectives of Flanders Semiconductors are to increase the talent pool, share industry roadmaps, maintain a yearly business events calendar, and represent members’ interests at international levels. The organization will also market the region and its members internationally, to promote cooperation between members and to cooperate with similar organizations in Europe.
Flanders Semiconductors is led by President Lou Hermans, who has over three decades of industry expertise, along with a team of seasoned semiconductor professionals. Together with the dedicated management team, their mission is to foster collaboration, drive innovation, and catalyze growth within the semiconductor ecosystem, both in Flanders and on a global scale.
“We are thrilled to officially announce the launch of Flanders Semiconductors, poised to be(come) another important European hub for semiconductor innovation,” said Lou Hermans, President of Flanders Semiconductors. “Our founding members, including BelGan, Caeleste, Cochlear, easics, ICsense, NXP, Pharrowtech, Sofics, and Spectricity, have united to create a platform that champions the semiconductor industry’s interests at every level. I am deeply inspired and motivated by the drive, support, remarkable power and unity of the founding members. Our diverse community of present and future member companies, each bringing their unique solutions to the semiconductor industry, exemplifies the immense strength and boundless potential that collaboration holds.”
Flanders Semiconductors welcomes all qualifying companies with semiconductors as their main business and is open to associate memberships for universities, R&D organizations, and non-qualifying companies.
The grand unveiling of the Flanders Semiconductor association is set for September 13th in Leuven, Belgium and interested parties can join this special occasion. Registrations to secure a spot can be done at www.flanders-semiconductors.org
Original – Flanders Semiconductors
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On the road towards becoming a fully electric car maker by 2030, an important focus area for Volvo technology investments and R&D spending is e-motors, inverters and overall electric drivetrain optimisation.
Only by gaining control over electrification technology stack – a process called “vertical integration” – can can a company create pure electric Volvo cars that deliver on everything the customers want: longer range, faster charging and a great Volvo driving experience.
The latest investment by the Volvo Cars Tech Fund, the corporate venture capital arm, reflects those ambitions. Leadrive, a Shanghai-based company founded in 2017, is an exciting new player in power electronics and control units for fully electric cars.
Leadrive is specialising in designing and building power modules that use silicon carbide (SiC) technology. Silicon carbide is a semiconductor base material that promises to unlock highly efficient and flexible electric propulsion systems.
“Leadrive’s technology demonstrates a lot of potential for the development of more efficient electric drivetrains,” said Alexander Petrofski, CEO of the Volvo Cars Tech Fund. “That potential closely aligns with our own focus on electrification, so we’re excited to invest in the company and help it to continue growing its business.”
“Volvo Cars and Leadrive have been working very closely on the development of new generation SiC technologies, which has built a firm stairway towards the strategic collaboration,” said Jie Shen, founder and CEO of Leadrive. “This is a great milestone in Leadrive’s global strategy and demonstrates the huge potential of our cooperation in advanced electrification technology.”
Original – Volvo Car Corporation
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Mitsubishi Electric Corporation has completed installation of its first 12-inch silicon wafer processing line at its Power Device Work’s Fukuyama Factory, which manufactures power semiconductors. In addition, through sample production and testing, it has been verified that the power semiconductor chips processed on this production line achieve the required performance levels.
As previously announced, Mitsubishi Electric is planning to start mass production on the new 12-inch silicon wafer line in fiscal 2025. The company aims to approximately double its silicon power semiconductor wafer processing capacity by fiscal 2026 compared to fiscal 2021 levels.
In recent years, the demand for power semiconductors offering efficient control of electrical power is growing as countries look to achieve carbon-free status. Power semiconductors are utilized in wide range of relevant products, including electric vehicles, consumer devices (e.g. air-conditioning systems), industrial equipment, renewable energy and traction devices, and a stable supply is required in order to meet this growing demand.
Mitsubishi Electric will contribute to the realization of a carbon-free society through enhancement of its production capacity and by ensuring a stable supply of power semiconductors through the introduction of highly efficient 12-inch wafer production lines.
Original – Mitsubishi Electric
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The University of Arkansas has taken the next step to becoming a national leader in the United States’ semiconductor economy. Semiconductors, such as silicon, are essential materials in most electronic devices and advance performance in fields such as healthcare, national defense, computing and transportation.
This August, the university began construction on the national Multi-User Silicon Carbide Research and Fabrication Facility, or MUSiC. Capable of silicon or silicon carbide chip fabrication, this new semiconductor research and fabrication facility will enable the government, businesses of all sizes, and universities to prototype in silicon carbide, introducing a capability that does not presently exist in the U.S.
This unique facility will offer low-volume prototyping for high-volume manufacturing, bridging the gap between traditional university research and the needs of private industry. This will accelerate both workforce development and technological advancement in semiconductors by providing a single location where chips can be go from developmental research to prototyping, testing and fabrication.
Alan Mantooth, Distinguished Professor of electrical engineering at the U of A, is principal investigator for MUSiC. He stated that with MUSiC, the university could “begin training the next generation at a variety of degree levels to provide well-trained and educated talent for onshoring semiconductor manufacturing that domestic suppliers offshored in the late 90s and early 2000s. Our training will be equally applicable to silicon and silicon carbide and other materials.”
Construction coincides with the CHIPS America Summit on Aug. 17, an invitation-only event for research, industry and governmental leaders from across the nation to discuss CHIPS and Science Act semiconductor-related opportunities and the ways in which the U of A and the State of Arkansas are uniquely positioned to lead.
The summit will feature Director of External and Government Affairs for the U.S Department of Commerce’s CHIPS Program Office, Adrienne Elrod. U.S. Representative Steve Womack and Arkansas Secretary of Commerce Hugh McDonald will also participate.
In addition to the MUSiC facility, the U of A is also home to the first Energy Frontier Research Center in Arkansas, as part of a team of researchers who received $10.35 million from the U.S. Department of Energy. The Center for Manipulation of Atomic Ordering for Manufacturing Semiconductors is dedicated to investigating the formation of atomic orders in semiconductor alloys and their effects on various physical properties. This research program will enable reliable, cost-effective and transformative manufacturing of semiconductors.
Researchers at the U of A previously established the MonArk NSF Quantum Foundry to accelerate the development of quantum materials and devices. In collaboration with Montana State University, and other member universities, the foundry supports the study of 2-D materials — consisting of a single layer of bonded atoms — by aiding researchers and facilitating the exchange of ideas across academia and industry. The project leads the fabrication of 2-D material quantum devices and their characterization, using low-temperature electronic transport and optoelectronic techniques.
The U of A’s existing and expanding research foundation means it’s uniquely positioned to take advantage of the recent CHIPS (Creating Helpful Incentives to Produce Semiconductors) and Science Act, which is providing approximately $280 billion in funding to stimulate domestic research and manufacturing of semiconductors.
As a result of manufacturing and production shortages of essential computer chips during the pandemic, which are overwhelmingly manufactured overseas, the federal government has prioritized the onshoring of this critical technology.
About the University of Arkansas: As Arkansas’ flagship institution, the U of A provides an internationally competitive education in more than 200 academic programs. Founded in 1871, the U of A contributes more than $2.2 billion to Arkansas’ economy through the teaching of new knowledge and skills, entrepreneurship and job development, discovery through research and creative activity while also providing training for professional disciplines.
The Carnegie Foundation classifies the U of A among the few U.S. colleges and universities with the highest level of research activity. U.S. News & World Report ranks the U of A among the top public universities in the nation. See how the U of A works to build a better world at Arkansas Research and Economic Development News.
The national Multi-User Silicon Carbide Research and Fabrication Facility, or MUSiC, will provide opportunities for the government and business of all sizes, and universities to prototype in silicon carbide, introducting a capability that does not currently exist in the U.S.
Original – University of Arkansas
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TSMC, Robert Bosch GmbH, Infineon Technologies AG, and NXP Semiconductors N.V. announced a plan to jointly invest in European Semiconductor Manufacturing Company (ESMC) GmbH, in Dresden, Germany to provide advanced semiconductor manufacturing services. ESMC marks a significant step towards construction of a 300 mm fab to support the future capacity needs of the fast-growing automotive and industrial sectors, with the final investment decision pending confirmation of the level of public funding for this project. The project is planned under the framework of the European Chips Act.
The planned fab is expected to have a monthly production capacity of 40,000 300 mm (12-inch) wafers on TSMC’s 28/22 nanometer planar CMOS and 16/12 nanometer FinFET process technology, further strengthening Europe’s semiconductor manufacturing ecosystem with advanced FinFET transistor technology and creating about 2,000 direct high-tech professional jobs. ESMC aims to begin construction of the fab in the second half of 2024 with production targeted to begin by the end of 2027.
The planned joint venture will be 70 percent owned by TSMC, with Bosch, Infineon, and NXP each holding 10 percent equity stake, subject to regulatory approvals and other conditions. Total investments are expected to exceed 10 billion euros consisting of equity injection, debt borrowing, and strong support from the European Union and German government. The fab will be operated by TSMC.
“This investment in Dresden demonstrates TSMC’s commitment to serving our customers’ strategic capacity and technology needs, and we are excited at this opportunity to deepen our long-standing partnership with Bosch, Infineon, and NXP,” said Dr. CC Wei, Chief Executive Officer of TSMC. “Europe is a highly promising place for semiconductor innovation, particularly in the automotive and industrial fields, and we look forward to bringing those innovations to life on our advanced silicon technology with the talent in Europe.”
Dr. Stefan Hartung, chairman of the Bosch board of management: “Semiconductors are not only a crucial success factor for Bosch. Their reliable availability is also of great importance for the success of the global automotive industry. Apart from continuously expanding our own manufacturing facilities, we further secure our supply chains as an automotive supplier through close cooperation with our partners. With TSMC, we are pleased to gain a global innovation leader to strengthen the semiconductor ecosystem in the direct vicinity of our semiconductor plant in Dresden.”
“Semiconductors are not only a crucial success factor for Bosch. Their reliable availability is also of great importance for the success of the global automotive industry. Apart from continuously expanding our own manufacturing facilities, we further secure our supply chains as an automotive supplier through close cooperation with our partners. With TSMC, we are pleased to gain a global innovation leader to strengthen the semiconductor ecosystem in the direct vicinity of our semiconductor plant in Dresden.”said Dr. Stefan Hartung, chairman of the Bosch board of management
“Our joint investment is an important milestone to bolster the European semiconductor ecosystem. With this, Dresden is strengthening its position as one of the world’s most important semiconductor hubs that is already home to Infineon’s largest frontend site,” said Jochen Hanebeck, CEO of Infineon Technologies. “Infineon will use the new capacity to serve the growing demand particularly of its European customers, especially in automotive and IoT. The advanced capabilities will provide a basis for developing innovative technologies, products and solutions to address the global challenges of decarbonization and digitalisation.”
“NXP is very committed to strengthening innovation and supply chain resilience in Europe,” said Kurt Sievers, President and CEO of NXP Semiconductors. “We thank the European Union, Germany, and the Free State of Saxony for their recognition of the semiconductor industry’s critical role and for their true commitment to boost Europe’s chip ecosystem. The construction of this new and significant semiconductor foundry will add much needed innovation and capacity for the range of silicon required to supply the sharply increasing digitalization and electrification of the automotive and industrial sectors.”
Original – Bosch
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Semiconductor industry players Robert Bosch GmbH, Infineon Technologies AG, Nordic Semiconductor, NXP® Semiconductors, and Qualcomm Technologies, Inc., have come together to jointly invest in a company aimed at advancing the adoption of RISC-V globally by enabling next-generation hardware development.
Formed in Germany, this company will aim to accelerate the commercialization of future products based on the open-source RISC-V architecture. The company will be a single source to enable compatible RISC-V based products, provide reference architectures, and help establish solutions widely used in the industry. Initial application focus will be automotive, but with an eventual expansion to include mobile and IoT.
At its core, RISC-V encourages innovation, allowing any company to develop cutting-edge, customized hardware based on an open-source instruction set. Further adoption of the RISC-V technology will promote even more diversity in the electronics industry – reducing the barriers to entry for smaller and emergent companies and enabling increased scalability for established companies.
The company calls on industry associations, leaders, and governments, to join forces in support of this initiative which will help increase the resilience of the broader semiconductor ecosystem.
The company formation will be subject to regulatory approvals in various jurisdictions.
- Robert Bosch GmbH
“Bosch is convinced that initiatives promoting the RISC-V open specifications will bring the global mobility market a significant step further. The initiative now planned will greatly help to establish a reliable and efficient EU-based semiconductor ecosystem,” said Jens Fabrowsky, Executive Vice President at Bosch and responsible for the semiconductor business.
- Infineon Technologies AG
“As vehicles become software-defined and dependability requirements increase due to electrification and connectivity, for example, as well as through trends like autonomous driving, there is a general need for standardization and ecosystem compatibility across the industry, with CPUs being a key IP. We are proud to support the establishment of trusted RISC-V based automotive products with this initiative. The knowledge and expertise of leading market players will unleash the full potential of RISC-V in the automotive sector,” said Peter Schiefer, Division President of Infineon’s Automotive Division.
- Nordic Semiconductor
“Nordic Semiconductor is a committed and enthusiastic supporter of the RISC-V initiative and stands ready to drive the project forward. Nordic’s IoT solutions represent the leading edge of low power wireless technology and to retain that position it’s critical we maintain continuous access to efficient and powerful embedded microprocessors. An open collaboration with like-minded companies to continually enhance innovative RISC-V microprocessor IP and ensure a robust and reliable supply of the technology is the ideal answer to this challenge,” said Svein-Egil Nielsen, CTO/EVP R&D and Strategy, Nordic Semiconductor.
- NXP Semiconductors
“NXP is proud to be part of a new EU-based joint endeavor to pioneer fully certified RISC-V-based IP and architectures, initially for the automotive industry. The creation of a one-stop-shop ecosystem where customers can select turnkey assets will strengthen the adoption of RISC-V across many European industries,” said Lars Reger, Executive Vice President and Chief Technology Officer at NXP Semiconductors. “We thank the Artificial Intelligence Center Hamburg (ARIC) e.V. for their support of this collaboration.”
- Qualcomm Technologies, Inc.
“We are excited to come together with other industry players to drive the expansion of the RISC-V ecosystem through development of next-generation hardware. Qualcomm Technologies has been investing in RISC-V for more than five years and we’ve integrated RISC-V micro-controllers into many of our commercial platforms. We believe RISC-V’s open-source instruction set will increase innovation and has the potential to transform the industry,” Ziad Asghar, Senior Vice President of Product Management, Qualcomm Technologies, Inc.
Original – Infineon Technologies
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The decarbonization trend will result in strong market growth for power semiconductors, in particular those based on wide bandgap materials. As a leader in Power Systems, Infineon Technologies AG is now taking a further, decisive step to shape this market: By significantly expanding its Kulim fab – over and above the original investment announced in February 2022 – Infineon will build the world’s largest 200-millimeter SiC (silicon carbide) Power Fab. The planned expansion is backed by customer commitments covering about five billion euros of new design-wins in automotive and industrial applications as well as about one billion euros in pre-payments.
Over the next five years Infineon will additionally invest up to five billion euros in Kulim during a second construction phase for Module Three. The investment will lead to an annual SiC revenue potential of about seven billion euros by the end of the decade, together with the planned 200-millimeter SiC conversion of Villach and Kulim. This highly competitive manufacturing base will support Infineon’s SiC market share target of 30% towards the end of the decade. Infineon is confident that the company’s SiC revenue in the fiscal year 2025 will come in ahead of the target of one billion euros.
“The market for silicon carbide shows accelerating growth, not only in automotive but also in a broad range of industrial applications such as solar, energy storage and high-power EV charging. With the Kulim expansion, we will secure our leadership position in this market,” said Jochen Hanebeck, CEO of Infineon. “With the industry’s leading scale and a unique cost position, we are leveraging our competitive position of best-in-class SiC trench technology, the broadest package portfolio and unrivaled application understanding. These factors are the areas of differentiation and success in the industry.”
Infineon has been awarded new design wins of about five billion euros along with about one billion euros in prepayments from existing and new customers: In the automotive sector this includes six OEMs, three of them from China. Among the customers are Ford, SAIC and Chery. In the area of renewable energies customers include SolarEdge and three leading Chinese photovoltaic and energy storage systems companies.
In addition, Infineon and Schneider Electric agreed on a capacity reservation including prepayments for power products based on silicon and silicon carbide. Infineon and the respective customers will provide more details in separate announcements in the near future. The prepayments will contribute positively to Infineon’s cash flow in the coming years and shall be fully repaid in connection with the agreed sales volumes by 2030 at the latest.
The Right Honourable Dato’ Seri Anwar bin Ibrahim, Prime Minister of Malaysia, expressed his appreciation for Infineon’s commitment to creating a significant wide bandgap hub in the country. “Malaysia is putting in maximum efforts to meet its national target to decarbonize its economy and achieve net zero by 2050. Malaysia’s continued appeal as a preferred investment destination comes with a well-established landscape for developing innovative and sustainable technologies. In this vein, Infineon’s vision on green technology and sustainability puts it right at home in Malaysia.
Infineon and other well-established German corporations’ continued faith in Malaysia is a vote of confidence in Malaysia’s new economic growth agenda premised on inclusivity and sustainability, enabled by strong policies on knowledge transfer, quality investments, business enablement and socio-economic well-being based on equitable sharing of the nation’s wealth.”
The Minister of Investment, Trade and Industry (MITI), His Hon. Tengku Datuk Seri Utama Zafrul Aziz lauded Infineon’s expansion and said, “Infineon’s expansion of their world-class silicon carbide facility in Kulim marks a significant milestone in Malaysia’s pursuit of developing advanced manufacturing capabilities, creating high-skilled employment opportunities and positioning the country at the forefront of enabling green technologies, which are crucial to achieving our global sustainable development goals.
The innovative power semiconductor technologies manufactured in the SiC Power Fab will also bolster Malaysia’s position as a key player in the world’s semiconductor ecosystem, with a growing role specifically in the sustainable technology supply chain. I am heartened by Infineon’s sharing of Malaysia’s commitment to address the impact of climate change and I look forward to our long-term partnership for the further development of Malaysia’s green technologies ecosystem.”
Sustainability is a key element in the planning, construction and operation of the fab. The building is designed in a way that allows Infineon to make responsible use of resources such as electricity and water.
Original – Infineon Technologies
