xLight Signs Letter Of Intent To Obtain CHIPS Funding
The U.S. government would receive $150 million of equity in xLight, a developer of a next-gen light source for EUV
By Mark LaPedus
xLight, a startup that is developing a next-generation light source technology for EUV lithography, has signed a letter of intent with the U.S. Department of Commerce for $150 million in proposed federal incentives under the CHIPS and Science Act.
The proposed incentives would enable xLight to accelerate the development of its next-generation light source technology for extreme ultraviolet (EUV) lithography. Under the terms, the Department of Commerce would receive $150 million of equity in xLight.
This award is the first from the Trump Administration’s new CHIPS Research and Development Office.
What is EUV?
Based in Palo Alto, Calif., xLight’s mission is to commercialize a free electron laser (FEL) technology for next-generation applications. More specifically, the company is developing an FEL light source for next-generation EUV lithography.
In general, EUV lithography involves a large and expensive system called a scanner. Typically, an EUV lithography scanner is installed in a large semiconductor manufacturing facility called a fab. In the fab, the EUV scanner is used to manufacture the world’s most advanced chips. EUV is required to make leading-edge chips—it is difficult to produce advanced devices without it.
ASML, an equipment maker based in the Netherlands, is the sole supplier of EUV lithography scanners in the market. All leading-edge chipmakers, such as Intel, Micron, Samsung, SK Hynix and TSMC, must buy their EUV lithography scanners from ASML.
ASML’s EUV scanners incorporate several components, such as the optics, source power unit, wafer handling mechanisms and others, all in the same unit.
Still in R&D, xLight is taking a different approach with the light source technology for EUV. The company’s light source is designed to generate EUV light at 13.5nm wavelengths, or even sub-13.5nm, in a large-scale particle accelerator. The company’s EUV FEL light source is said to produce 4x more power than today’s EUV light source units.
At present, xLight is working with the Department of Energy’s national lab system to advance the company’s mission to build the world’s most powerful FEL. The company is building a feature-complete prototype that will be operational and printing wafers by 2028. The technology will likely require a new and expensive infrastructure.
To help develop the technology, xLight recently raised $40 million in venture capital funding. The round was led by Playground Global and others. Pat Gelsinger, the former chief executive of Intel, was recently named executive chairman of xLight. Gelsinger is also a general partner at Playground Global.
Now, the U.S. government is providing a major boost for xLight. The U.S. Department of Commerce’s CHIPS Research and Development Office, part of the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST), has signed a non-binding preliminary letter of intent to provide up to $150 million in proposed federal incentives under the CHIPS and Science Act to xLight.
The potential incentives for xLight would be for the construction, build out and demonstration of an FEL prototype as an alternative light source for EUV lithography.
The next step involves xLight working with the Department of Commerce and Albany Nanotech. Situated in Albany, N.Y., Albany Nanotech is an R&D center.
xLight, according to NIST, plans to use its prototype at Albany Nanotech, in partnership with non-profit NYCreates, beginning in 2028. “It will demonstrate the technology on current generation EUV lithography machines and leverage the existing robust ecosystem at the facility to pioneer lithography research at sub-EUV wavelengths that could prove essential for manufacturing next-generation high-performance semiconductor devices,” according to NIST.
In addition, xLight is a member of the Blue-X Consortium. Blue-X is proposing EUV lithography using a 6.7nm wavelength. At present, Blue-X comprises of 70 member organizations.