Soitec-PSMC ally on ultra-thin TLT tech for nm-scale 3D stacking

Soitec, a leader in the design and production of innovative semiconductor materials, has announced a strategic collaboration with Powerchip Semiconductor Manufacturing Corp. (PSMC). 

Under the collaboration, Soitec will supply PSMC 300mm substrates incorporating a release layer, Transistor Layer Transfer (TLT) ready, to support a new demonstration of advanced 3D chip stacking at the wafer level. This marks the first public announcement of Soitec’s TLT technology. 

The technology is an enabler for next-generation semiconductor designs that allow for more powerful, compact and energy-efficient chips – with potential applications ranging from smartphones, tablets and AI devices to autonomous driving systems.

Soitec’s CTO and Senior EVP Innovation, Christophe Maleville said: “At Soitec, we are proud to pioneer semiconductor materials that unlock new possibilities in chip design and performance. Our collaboration with PSMC reflects a shared commitment to pushing the boundaries of 3D integration and supporting the global shift toward more efficient and compact computing architectures. Together we are laying the groundwork for the next generation of semiconductor innovation.”

SZ Chang, PSMC CTO, said: “With our longstanding presence in memory and logic foundry, PSMC consistently drives advancements in 3D stacking. In the two-year collaboration, PSMC has demonstrated an innovative wafer-stack integrated process by leveraging Soitec's advanced substrate technology.

"The innovation significantly broadens the 3D technology from chip-level stacking - optimizing power performance in computing architecture, to transistor-level stacking – extending Moore’s law, with a remarkable reduction in stacking wafer thickness from micrometer to nanometer level. This achievement, by pushing the boundaries of 3D stacking, reaffirms our position at the forefront of the semiconductor industry.”

To meet growing industry demand for faster and more energy-efficient chips, Soitec has developed a new substrate stack enabling high-speed transfer of ultra-thin transistor layers onto different types of wafers—a key requirement in heterogeneous integration, where diverse chip components are combined in a single package.

The stacking process enables multiple transistor layers to be built vertically to support 3D transistor architectures including vertical field-effect transistors (FETs) with backside power delivery networks (PDNs).

This TLT substrate leverages Smart Cut technology together with infrared (IR) laser release processing. The proprietary Soitec technology enables the formation of an ultra-thin semiconductor layer, ranging from 5nm to 1µm in thickness, on top of the TLT substrate. Once devices are fabricated on the TLT wafer, the IR laser process facilitates the lift-off of the ultra-thin layer from the substrate to the target wafer, without introducing thermal stress or damaging the devices.

The Soitec-PSMC collaboration builds on existing France-Taiwan cooperation initiatives in AI and other semiconductor-related domains.