After a poor show in the 3nm era, Samsung’s foundry division aims to bounce back with improved 2nm process technology and compete against its arch-rival TSMC. The company has stepped up its preparations by introducing new manufacturing equipment at its Hwaseong semiconductor campus in Korea. It allegedly purchased ASML’s High Numerical Aperture (NA) Extreme Ultraviolet (EUV) lithography equipment.
Samsung Foundry buys advanced semiconductor manufacturing equipment for the 2nm era
This cutting-edge machine, the ASML EXE:5000, is the first of its kind from ASML, the world’s only supplier of EUV equipment used to manufacture the advanced chips. Its latest offering is crucial for producing 2nm and smaller semiconductor circuits, improving efficiency, power consumption, and data processing speeds. Costing approximately 500 billion won ($344 million), the new equipment represents a significant technological leap.
Samsung expects this machine to enhance its process technology, potentially attracting major clients and directly competing with TSMC. Unlike conventional EUV machines with a 0.33 NA, the new High-NA EUV increases the numerical aperture to 0.55, allowing for higher precision lithography. This enables smaller, more efficient circuits, which is critical for the next generation of semiconductor chips.
Of course, Samsung isn’t the only one buying this advanced machine from ASML, which has its headquarters in Veldhoven, Netherlands. TSMC and Intel have also integrated High-NA EUV into their production pipelines. TSMC has reportedly achieved a 60% yield in 2nm trial production, while Samsung is said to be languishing between 20-30%. The Korean firm needs to set things right urgently to compete against TSMC.
Samsung’s foundry division president, Han Jin-man, has emphasized the need to accelerate the commercialization of the 2nm process. The Korean firm was first to adopt Gate-All-Around (GAA) transistor technology — it made the switch with its 3nm process, while TSMC will move to GAA with its 2nm process. However, this early progress didn’t help it gain market share because of poor 3nm yield.
According to industry estimates, Samsung’s foundry market share in Q4 2024 was only 8.1%, while TSMC captured a whopping 67.1% of the global market. Samsung now aims to close the gap in the 2nm era, with the new ASML machine playing a crucial role. If things go to plan, next year’s Galaxy S26 series may ship with the 2nm Exynos 2600 flagship processor, at least in some markets.
