Samsung Electro-Mechanics and Sumitomo Chemical Group Partner to Establish Glass Core Substrate Joint Venture

企業発表 South Korea

Overview

Samsung Electro-Mechanics and Sumitomo Chemical Group have signed an MOU to establish a joint venture for manufacturing “glass core” substrates, a critical material for next-generation advanced packaging. Aiming to mass-produce these substrates from Dongwoo Fine-Chem’s Pyeongtaek facility, this collaboration addresses the need for superior flatness and lower thermal expansion, essential for high-density, large-area AI and HPC packages.

In Depth

Background

The evolution of AI and High-Performance Computing (HPC) chips presents new challenges for semiconductor packaging technology. As chips become larger, more integrated, and consume more power, conventional organic-based package substrates are encountering limitations in terms of warpage, signal integrity degradation, and thermal management. To overcome these hurdles and support next-generation high-performance semiconductors, the development of glass core substrates, boasting superior material properties, has become an urgent priority. Glass core substrates are garnering attention as a promising solution for advanced packaging due to their low coefficient of thermal expansion (CTE), excellent flatness, and electrical stability.

Key Findings / Results

Samsung Electro-Mechanics has entered into a strategic partnership with Sumitomo Chemical Group, a Japanese chemical giant, for the mass production of “glass core” — a core material for next-generation semiconductor package substrates. The two companies have signed a non-binding Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) to establish a joint venture (JV) aimed at building a supply chain and bringing glass core substrates to market. The JV’s headquarters and initial production site for glass core are planned to be at Dongwoo Fine-Chem’s Pyeongtaek facility, a subsidiary of Sumitomo Chemical Group. Glass core substrates are considered a crucial technology that overcomes the limitations of conventional organic substrates, particularly for high-density, large-area advanced semiconductor packages for AI and HPC. They enable the reduction of warpage-induced defects and the formation of finer circuit patterns.

Technical Significance & Outlook

The collaboration between Samsung Electro-Mechanics and Sumitomo Chemical Group represents a significant move in the advanced packaging materials market and is expected to greatly accelerate the commercialization of glass core substrates. Through this JV, Samsung is anticipated to secure a stable supply of glass core substrates and enhance its competitiveness in advanced semiconductor packaging technology. Sumitomo Chemical Group will leverage its extensive expertise in material science to explore new growth areas within the semiconductor industry. The widespread adoption of glass core substrates will contribute to further performance enhancements and reliability for AI chips, ultimately enabling more sophisticated electronic devices. In the future, glass core substrates hold the potential to become the standard material for HBM stacking, chiplet integration, and other applications requiring advanced high-density interconnections, thus forming a new paradigm in semiconductor packaging technology.