IBM and Lam Research reach cooperation on the development of 1nm cutting-edge logic process

IT House, March 11 — IBM announced yesterday local time in the United States that it has reached a collaboration with semiconductor equipment manufacturer Lam Research on the development of cutting-edge 1nm logic process technology. The new five-year agreement will focus on joint development of new materials, advanced etching/deposition processes, and High NA EUV lithography.

IT House understands that the two companies will leverage IBM’s advanced research capabilities at the Albany campus and Lam’s end-to-end process tools and innovative technologies. The team will build and verify complete process flows for nanosheets, nanosheet stacks, and backside power delivery. These capabilities aim to reliably transfer High NA EUV patterns onto actual device layers, achieve high yields, and support ongoing scaling, performance improvements, and feasible mass production paths for future logic devices.

IBM Semiconductor General Manager Mukesh Khare said:

For over a decade, Lam has been an important partner for IBM, contributing to key breakthroughs in logic scaling and device architecture, such as nanosheet technology and the world’s first 2nm node chip released by IBM in 2021. We are pleased to expand our collaboration to jointly address the next phase of challenges, including high numerical aperture EUV lithography and sub-1nm node processes.

Lam Research Chief Technology and Sustainability Officer Vahid Vahedi said:

As the industry enters a new era of 3D scaling, progress depends on rethinking how to integrate materials, processes, and lithography into a single high-density system. We are honored to further advance breakthroughs in High NA EUV dry lithography and processes based on successful cooperation with IBM, accelerating the development of low-power, high-performance transistors, which are critical for the AI era.