Dongjin Semichem has begun operating its new photoresist (PR) production plant that it has invested $18 million (20 billion KRW) into. The company held a ceremony for the completion and a ceremony for the first shipment at the plant located in Hwaseong on Tuesday.
“The plant will allow us to supply PR smoothly and provide the best products that meet demands from our customers.” said CEO Lee Jun-hyeok of Dongjin Semichem. “We plan to manufacture EUV (extreme ultraviolet) PR from the plant as well.”
PR is a material that is absolutely needed during semiconductor manufacturing process. It is used during lithography process where circuits are made through light. PR becomes different depending on an available light source that includes KrF (krypton fluoride), ArF (argon fluoride), and EUV. Dongjin Semichem currently mass-produces and supplies KrF and ArF PR and it mainly supplies them to Samsung Electronics and SK Hynix.
The construction began in April last year. It is a three-story building that also includes a basement and it has a total surface area of 3,400 m2. The company started bringing in manufacturing equipment in December last year and it has begun operating the plant on Tuesday.
The new plant is expected to strengthen the supply chain for semiconductor materials in South Korea. The total production capacity of the plant is 32,000 gallons per month which is four times more than the current production capacity of the company. Because the company is basically the only PR manufacturer in South Korea, an increase in its production capacity ultimately leads to stabilization of the supply chain. The plant has also created a foundation that will help South Korean semiconductor companies handle issues such as export regulations set up by the Japanese government in 2019.
Dongjin Semichem is also expected to make its own growth by diversifying its products and increasing production capacity. The company had been supplying KrF PR to Samsung Electronics and it successfully started supplying ArF PR at the end of last year. ArF lithography is divided into dry method that uses air and immersion method that uses liquid with high refractive index. Samsung Electronics had received ArFi PR mainly from foreign companies before Dongjin Semichem started supplying its ArF PR to Samsung Electronics. Dongjin Semichem successfully developed ArFi PR and applied its product to actual production lines. A representative from the company said that the new plant alone is expected to create $320 million (360 billion KRW) in sales in 2025.
Dongjin Semichem has also been working on localization of EUV PR by utilizing its infrastructure and EUV lithography system of a Belgium semiconductor hub called IMEC. EUV PR is a key material that is used to manufacture next-generation semiconductors and it is mainly supplied by Japanese companies such as JSR, Shin-Etsu, and TOK. Dongjin Semichem plans to succeed in development of EUV PR and start manufacturing EUV PR from the new plant as well. CEO Lee said that while he cannot mention anything specific about the development, he said that the overall development process of EUV PR is taking place smoothly.
Staff Reporter Yun, Geonil | benyun@etnews.com