1
At large scale facilities, semiconductor manufacturers have multiple fabrication plants — or "fabs" — at the same site. Building and outfitting one leading-edge fab shell with equipment takes 3–5 years and costs $20–30B.
2
Foundries — the companies that operate these factories — build fabs for process node specialization (N3, N3E, SF3, etc.). The lithography tools are tuned to that specific node. Currently, each lithography tool within a fab requires its own light source.
UTILITY
BUILDING
Everything in the cleanroom — at the heart of the fab — consumes ultra-purified air, water, process gases, chemicals, and more, all of which flow through the Central Utility Building.
SUBSTATIONS
Leading-edge fabs require significant energy to maintain 24/7 function. The substation steps down transmission voltage to usable facility voltage, doing so with near-zero interruption tolerance.
The introduction of the xLight system transforms how light is delivered to the fab. Instead of bespoke light sources at the tool level, xLight delivers light like a utility to the whole fab. One xLight system can support 16 scanners — delivering higher dose at full productivity.