Samsung Electro-Mechanics and LG Innotek are advancing efforts to enter Intel's EMIB-T packaging substrate supply chain, with product development and testing already underway. According to ChainCatcher, the upgraded EMIB-T packaging technology is being expanded for external sales, and Google's next-generation AI accelerator TPU, planned for release in the second half of next year, will be the first to use EMIB-T.
EMIB connects chips with a small silicon bridge, while EMIB-T adds through-silicon vias in the bridge for power transmission. A source said Samsung Electro-Mechanics has developed EMIB substrate samples for years and is now moving ahead with EMIB-T supply based on a 2.1D packaging substrate concept.
LG Innotek recently delivered EMIB-T packaging substrates to SK Hynix for sample testing, and the two companies are evaluating product characteristics by mounting HBM on the substrates. Current EMIB-T substrate suppliers include Japan's Ibiden, Shinko Electric Industries, Taiwan's Unimicron, and Austria's AT&S.
Ibiden has decided to build a mass-production line dedicated to Intel's EMIB-T substrates at an idle factory and plans to invest about 2 trillion won. It is also reported to have received advance payments from Google, Amazon, and Intel.