NanoIC Pilot Line

Project Information

NanoIC will provide Europe with a beyond 2nm leading-edge SoC pilot line for advanced logic, memory and interconnect technologies to strengthen European leadership in advanced technologies development for markets like computing, communication, mobility, energy and health.

Systems-on-chip based on beyond-2nm logic nodes promise great opportunities for the European semiconductor industry.

To accelerate their development and commercialization, the NanoIC pilot line, deployed by the European Chips Act, offers low-barrier access to state-of-the-art equipment, and advanced research and development of new materials, process steps, and modules.

Partners

The NanoIC pilot line is a result of European collaboration. It’s hosted by imec (Belgium), and its partners include CEA-Leti (France), Fraunhofer (Germany), VTT (Finland), CSSNT (Romania), and Tyndall National Institute (Ireland).

Access to beyond-2nm innovation

The NanoIC pilot line is accessible to:

Start-ups, SMEs, universities, and design and system companies for early design exploration and prototyping;

Foundries and IDMs for the evaluation of equipment innovations and enhanced process flows;

Equipment and materials suppliers to test and refine new processes and tools with the advanced baselines.

NanoIC Technologies

The NanoIC pilot line targets semiconductor technologies that will shape tomorrow’s high-tech solutions. One of the main goals is to develop the process steps and modules that enable these technologies. This will result in stable ‘platformized’ baseline flows with a high technology readiness level (TRL 4-6).

These technologies are situated in three research pillars; advanced logic technologies, advanced memory technologies, advanced interconnect technologies.

Sustainability & Education

An overarching purpose of NanoIC activities is sustainability. The NanoIC pilot line will operate sustainably, using optimized processes and recyclable materials, and the new cleanroom will have minimal impact on the climate and environment. Most importantly, the NanoIC pilot line will contribute to the sustainability of future devices and applications. It will accelerate research on technologies that use responsible and recyclable materials.

Finally, the NanoIC pilot line will develop a host of initiatives aimed at education and workforce development: courses on beyond-2nm technologies, access to affordable design tools and prototyping services for universities, internships, and training programs, etc.