Issue link: https://iconnect007.uberflip.com/i/1506834
20 SMT007 MAGAZINE I SEPTEMBER 2023 Advanced substrates are essential to critical infrastructure and defense applications in the United States. Many of today's leading brand owners and OEMs are here and looking for new device architectures that deliver best-in- class electrical properties, improved yield, and speed to market. Today, the ecosystem is very Asia-centric, and this creates supply chain risks and barriers to innovation. To establish an eco- system here, we must identify specific unmet needs or chal- lenges that are tied to an OEM or brand owner. ese unmet needs are likely derived from improved electronic prop- erties such as reduced loss, improved signal fidelity, or higher feature density. D e s ig n eng ineer s should contemplate how to improve e l e c t r o n i c p r o p e r t i e s a n d offer solutions to challenges f o r a n e m e r g i n g e c o s y s - tem that delivers a new architecture meant to achieve the targeted electrical properties and the required yield and cost. Using an ecosys- tem approach at the system level offers best- in-class solutions to these needs and chal- lenge. e best solutions will not come from one component of the value chain, but from multiple groups within the value chain. Fea- ture sizes for advanced substrates are get- ting increasingly smaller, with thinner layers, higher layer counts, and more stringent elec- trical demands. Delivering thinner, lower loss, high reliability materials requires collabora- tion among materials, equipment, fabrication, and design. Materials companies deliver mate- rials that meet the electrical, dimensional, and reliability performances. Equipment compa- nies develop equipment and process flow that deliver the tolerances, electrical performance, and yield based on current and next generation materials. Brand owners/OEMs provide direc- tion on future technology challenges and tech- nology tradeoffs that are always required. is ecosystem must break down conven- tional silos to deliver technology faster; pro- vide world class expertise on design, materials, and equipment; and approach high value chal- lenges with innovative system level thinking. Although these ecosystems are valuable on their own merit, they can be accelerated through incentive programs like the CHIPS Act. Incentives have worked in countries like China to attract ecosystems and increase market share. A great example of that is the solar industry where China has invested $50 billion since 2011, which resulted in 300,000 jobs and enabled an 80% market share in solar panels 1 . e U.S. has made a similar commitment with the CHIPS Act. To be suc- cessful, we need to create dis- crete ecosystems that are tar- geting specific high value chal- lenges that have been articu- lated by the leading OEM and brand owners. ere needs to be U.S. capability to deliver fast material prototypes, and new equipment pro- cesses. e U.S. is a leader in device design, equipment, and materials technology. To win in advanced packaging and advanced sub- strates, we must have improved capability in materials and equipment prototyping and fab- rication. e CHIPS Act is a catalyst, and the industry needs to rally around this to develop the right ecosystems and system approach to solving high value advanced packaging and substrate challenges. SMT007 References 1. "China currently dominates global solar PV sup- ply chains, International Energy Agency. Kirk Thompson is chief technology officer at Isola Group. Advanced substrates are essential to critical infrastructure and defense applications in the United States.