SUSS MicroTec SE plays a discreet but important role in the semiconductor value chain: the German company designs machines that process and assemble components, rather than manufacturing chips itself. Based in Garching, near Munich, it serves semiconductor manufacturers, assembly specialists and research centers. Its business relies on expertise in precision processes, whose repeatability determines production quality and yield.
From scientific instruments to semiconductors
The story begins in 1949 with Karl Süss and the distribution of scientific instruments. The company subsequently develops its own equipment and supports the rise of microelectronics. Photolithography, which involves transferring patterns onto a surface coated with a photosensitive resist, becomes one of its main areas of expertise.
Listed on the stock exchange in 1999, the group gradually expands its portfolio through in-house development and acquisitions. Its history illustrates the specialization of certain European equipment suppliers: rather than covering every stage of a chip factory’s operations, SUSS focuses on specific processes in which optics, mechanics and materials expertise must work together.
Processes for structuring, assembling and cleaning
The portfolio includes resist coating and developing equipment, as well as mask alignment systems. These tools are used to prepare surfaces and define the patterns needed for various microelectronics applications. They are used in particular in microelectromechanical systems, power devices and advanced packaging.
This last area is becoming particularly important as architectures combining several chips in a single assembly become more widespread. SUSS notably provides solutions for the temporary bonding and debonding of wafers, the discs on which components are manufactured. The principle involves temporarily attaching a wafer to a carrier so that it can be thinned and handled, then detaching it without compromising the structures that have been created.
Another activity is the cleaning of photomasks, which carry the patterns used during lithography. The presence of particles or residues can affect their use and cause defects. The group’s equipment therefore meets particularly stringent cleanliness requirements. Machine sales are complemented by process support, maintenance and services for the installed equipment base.
What next?
The growth of computing for artificial intelligence, high-bandwidth memory and heterogeneous assemblies is opening up opportunities for advanced packaging technologies. For SUSS, the challenge is to turn these needs into equipment qualified by customers and then deployed in production. This trajectory remains dependent on semiconductor investment cycles, qualification lead times and international trade constraints. Its ability to keep pace with new architectures while ensuring machine reliability will be decisive. Corporate information and the product portfolio are available at suss.com.