ASML High-NA EUV Gains Backed by TSMC, Samsung, Intel
ASML High-NA EUV collaboration with TSMC, Samsung and Intel expands 12-inch photomask timelines and tightens demand visibility, supporting equipment flows.
KEY TAKEAWAYS
- ASML and TSMC launched an initiative to shift High-NA EUV to 12-inch photomasks with a 2031 pilot.
- Samsung committed to High-NA EUV for DRAM high-volume manufacturing by 2028.
- Intel Foundry had processed over one million wafers using High-NA EUV on select layers.
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ASML’s High-NA EUV program gained momentum after TSMC, Samsung and Intel Foundry expanded collaboration on September 7–8, 2026. The companies set timelines including Samsung’s DRAM use by 2028, TSMC’s advanced-node adoption by 2030, and a 12-inch photomask pilot by 2031.
Industry Timelines and Transition to Larger Photomasks
ASML and TSMC announced an industry initiative to shift toward larger 12-inch photomasks for High-NA EUV lithography, aiming for a pilot line by 2031 and full system readiness for advanced-node production by 2033. TSMC plans to use High-NA technology in high-volume manufacturing for advanced nodes starting in 2030. The move from current 6-inch masks to larger formats is expected to increase fab productivity, reduce chipmaking costs, and eliminate layout stitching constraints. The companies said, “We expect the adoption of High NA EUV to increase progressively along the device scaling roadmap, first using current 6-inch masks and then further supported by 12-inch masks.” [source:8]
Samsung confirmed it will join the larger-mask initiative and plans to introduce High-NA EUV into DRAM high-volume manufacturing by 2028. The technology is expected to extend the DRAM scaling roadmap while improving process simplification and efficiency through higher resolution. [source:14]
Intel Foundry and ASML said High-NA EUV is already in production at Intel Foundry, with more than one million wafers processed across certification, testing, research and development, and volume production on select layers for Intel Core Ultra Series 3 processors, code-named Panther Lake. Products built on Intel 18A using High-NA for select layers continue to meet or exceed comparable layers patterned with the NXE platform, which uses conventional EUV with a numerical aperture of 0.33. [source:17]
Production Scale and Industry Impact
These coordinated announcements reflect a broader industry push toward next-generation chip manufacturing for AI and advanced memory and logic, reinforcing long-term demand for ASML’s most advanced lithography tools. A technical estimate presented alongside the announcements suggested that productivity could rise about 40% if the transition to larger photomasks is executed, though this was framed as an engineering estimate rather than company financial guidance.
The releases described these efforts as collaborative industry initiatives rather than regulated transactions. No regulatory approvals, antitrust filings, export approvals or transaction conditions were identified in the primary sources.
