The semiconductor industry has been witnessing drastic changes over the years, which has resulted in complex semiconductor manufacturing assembly lines. Most modern applications are requiring complex semiconductors in a compact form. Shrinking feature sizes are driving demands for high accuracy, precision, sensitivity, and throughput. Such requirements are giving rise to demand for advanced semiconductor metrology and inspection equipment. Wafer and mask inspection and other inspection systems are used in semiconductor inspection, in the semiconductor production lines, the systems detects defect and ensures the quality of manufactured semiconductor devices. A few main functions of a semiconductor inspection system are application support provisioning, yield and process management provisioning, and inspection and evaluation system module provisioning. Rapid evolution of advanced packaging (AP) processes have been propelling the demand for flexible measurement and inspection systems that can control a wide range of parameters, including two-dimensional (2D) and three-dimensional (3D) geometries, and can be adapted to future requirements as they arise.
KLA Corporation, ASML Holding N.V., Applied Materials, Inc.; Onto Innovation, Inc. and Hitachi High-Technologies Corporation – Prominent Market Participants in the Semiconductor Metrology and Inspection Market
The robust expansion of SoC (System on Chip) development in recent years, increase in the need for inspection devices for R&D activities, and the rise in the proliferation of wireless devices are among the factors driving the semiconductor metrology and inspection market growth. Furthermore, the widespread use of semiconductors in industrial robots, automotive, consumer electronics, and various industries can be expected to fuel the market expansion in the coming years.
KLA Corporation, ASML Holding N.V., Applied Materials, Inc.; Onto Innovation, Inc. and Hitachi High-Technologies Corporation are some of the key market players operating in the global semiconductor metrology and inspection market. The listing of key players is derived by considering multiple factors such as overall revenue, current semiconductor metrology and inspection product portfolio, geographical reach, new product launches, market initiatives, and investment in technology up-gradation, partnerships, and other market-related activities. In addition to these players, there are several other important players operating in the semiconductor metrology and inspection ecosystems which were studies analyzed during the course of this market research study, such as JEOL Ltd.; Lasertec Corporation; NOVA Measuring Instruments; Nikon Metrology N.V.; and Thermofisher Scientific, Inc.
Most of the market initiatives were observed in APAC and Europe region, which have a high potential of market-related products, solutions, and services. Few of the important market initiatives from the industry are mentioned below:
| Year | Development | Region |
| 2022 | Hitachi High-Tech Corporation has announced the launch of its “Advanced-Technology Innovation Center Naka (ACN)” in Hitachinaka, Ibaraki Prefecture, as a new demonstration and collaboration base. This facility will serve as a demonstration centre for integrated solution development such as microscopes, as well as a place to start and promote the development of new analytical system products through collaborative activities closer to the company’s design and development base. | APAC |
| 2021 | Nova acquired ancosys GmbH, a privately held company headquartered in Pliezhausen Germany, in an all-cash transaction valued at approximately $100 million, including a performance-based earn out of $10 million. | Europe |
