manufacturing

In 40 years they have gone from manufacturing printers to manufacturing the future

by

Exactly 40 years ago, HP packed up its original facilities in Terrassa (Barcelona) and moved to land on the outskirts of Sant Cugat del Vallés (Barcelona) to expand facilities that the success of your printers left small. We have visited those same HP facilities in Spain and, although the machines that manufactured printers have been turned off a long time ago, we have discovered the equivalent of a small Silicon Valley in Spain from which you imagine what will the technological future be like. From growing cereals to generating ideas The center located in Sant Cugat del Vallés celebrates 40 years since, in 1985, the company moved its facilities, taking with them the 30 employees that made up its staff at that time. In those years, the facility was designed as a production center for its printers. However, in 2000, production was relocated to Asia. Given the new situation, the center was on the brink of closure. The Sant Cugat facilities, already with more than 800 employees, of which 200 were engineers, were reinvented, transforming the center into a factory of ideas and a laboratory of innovations that has not stopped growing in its four decades of existence. Currently, the center has 11 buildings that house 2,600 employees of 60 nationalities, of which 800 are engineers who work hand in hand with other companies to develop new practical solutions for their businesses. “In 1985, there were farms here and now this space has become the Silicon Valley of the city,” Helena Herrero, HP president of Southern Europe, the Middle East and Africa, told us proudly. No wonder, she was part of that team that made possible its transformation into one of the two largest HP R&D centers in Europe and the worldcomparable to that of HP’s headquarters in Palo Alto. Recreation in Barcelona of the Hewlett Packard garage in Palo Alto Symbolic testimony of this spirit of development is the detailed recreation of the famous garage where Hewlett and Packard created HP 85 years ago in Palo Alto that welcomed us. In that garage not only was Hewlett Packard born as a company, but it served as inspiration for the creation of that ecosystem of companies that we know today as Silicon Valley. As happened in Silicon Valley, around the recreation of that garage, HP has created a center for innovation and development of new ideas and products that will be decisive for the future in areas as diverse as Formula 1, prosthetic medicineculture, construction or work efficiency. This center registers more than 150 patents a year for HP. Ideas that have come true and we have been able to see and touch One of the peculiarities of this HP center is that companies come asking for help to solve a problem and the HP teams work with them to find innovative solutions. The most recent example is the collaboration of these engineers with the Ferrari Formula 1 team. In this case, the challenge was to lighten the weight of the car as much as possible without compromising the aerodynamic sliding of its body. Daniel Martínez, head of the large format printing division and director of the center, told us that the Sant Cugat engineering team developed a latex print that was then applied to the body of the vehicle like vinyl. This sheet reduced its weight by 17% compared to conventional paint without compromising aerodynamics. In our visit to this HP ideas laboratory We saw that engineers are developing solutions in other, much more futuristic areas in which robotics and printing come together. It looks like a Roomba, but it actually draws plans That idea born within these walls has given rise to the project SitePrinta hybrid between a printer and a robot vacuum cleaner that print on the ground the dimensions of the plans of work. Combining a complex system of positioning and inclination sensors, they allow the robot to determine its position in space and detect unevenness in the terrain, providing additional information to the construction team. 3D printed metal parts Another real application that has been developed in this avant-garde center in Barcelona has to do with the 3D printing development with new techniques and materials with technology Metal Jet. Among its novelties, the use of generative AI to simplify the design of the parts to be printed or the development of 3D printing with metals to manufacture high precision mechanical parts and components. One of the pieces that personally surprised me the most about this technology is the possibility of combining, in the same continuous printing job, flexible materials, with a rubber-like texture, and rigid areas with the hardness of a metal. These technological solutions open a whole range of opportunities for the field of prostheses and cast replacements with 3D printing. New turn towards the future: AI As a symbol of the innovative spirit and reinvention of this center in Sant Cugat, HP has rehabilitated a 15th century farmhouse that was in a state of semi-ruin on the land occupied by the enormous HP technology campus, and has converted it into La Masia Experience Design Center, the spiritual center of its new stage with the creation of the HP AI Innovation Hub. The Masia in its original state. Source: HP With this new hub focused on AI, the Barcelona facilities become the reference center in Europe for the development of AI LMM models that HP will use in its future products: from AI agents premises on their computers to videoconferencing assistance systems, to give some examples that are already on the market. Interior of La Masia Experience Design Center after its reconstruction The new AI hub will collaborate transversally in 14 business units of the company and with all the development centers that the company has throughout the world, especially with its headquarters in Palo Alto, where there is also a team specialized in AI development. As happened in 1985 and later in 2000, with the creation of the HP AI Innovation Hub, … Read more

Intel has been manufacturing chips for decades only for her. His only salvation is to make chips for all others

by

Let’s make a trip to the past. The year is 1997 and Steve Jobs has just returned to Applebut the state of the company is terrible and its future, uncertain. To try to save her Apple began to look for strategic alliances, and that was when she announced an absolutely unusual with Microsoft. Bill Gates’s company would invest 150 million dollars in Apple And both would collaborate on several fronts. That unique agreement seemed impossible. Both companies were large rivals, but the truth is that both won with that alliance. Now it seems that we could live an analogous situation with two other companies that are also large rivals. On the one hand Intel, which is as low as Apple was in 1997. On the other TSMC, which dominates in the semiconductor market like Microsoft did it in the software then. According to The Wall Street Journalboth companies are negotiating a possible alliance that is certainly surprising, but has very interesting ramifications. If TSMC helps Intel’s “salvation”, That will give you an advantageous position in future agreements with the US government. This government is now the owner of 10% of Intel’s shares, and for better or worse to get along with Intel, it means getting along with the administration. Taking into account the current policy that practically forces to manufacture chips and components in the US to get rid of tariffs, that potential alliance becomes profitable. Not just that. The agreement also favors TSMC interests when avoiding possible antitrust. How is it going to be a monopoly when you are helping a competitor not go to pique? As They demonstrated Apple and Microsoft, eliminating competition is not the only way to win the game. A promising transition The Historical crisis For which Intel has been going through his new CEO, Lip-Bu Tan, to make very difficult decisions. The mass layoffs They are part of that strategy, but the company has also attended a deep restructuring that It is “chopping”. But there is even more. In fact, Intel’s strategy seems to be recognized and Accept the failure of the era of “exclusive chip”. The firm has admitted that manufacturing by and for it had no route, and now wants to focus on a business model on which it is A chips factory for third parties. That is exactly what has placed TSMC where it is. If the alliance with TSMC is completed, a unique strategy would be confirmed by Intel in which in a few weeks we have lived a unique opening to alliances of all kinds and condition: SoftBank injected 2,000 million dollars USA bought 10% of Intel for 8,900 million dollars Nvidia invested 5,000 million dollars Apple is a candidate for a collaboration agreement And now TSMC could also follow those steps All these steps certainly open an escape for an Intel that seemed to be against the strings. If such alliances fruit, Intel will only lack his two great future objectives. The first, fulfill your promises With the 14th node to which everything has opted. The second, Get customers For that node. And that is where those agreements can be very useful. Image | Intel In Xataka | Intel has confirmed that the 20A node will be skipped to reduce expenses. The 18A node will enter production in 2025

The main car manufacturing countries, exposed in a devastating map that shows the Asian domain

by

It depends on what car segment let’s put the magnifying glass, but I know esteem that in 2024 They sold Between 75 and 85 million vehicles worldwide. It is a growth of more than 2% compared to the previous year, and if you have wondered which country is the one that manufactures the most cars, this map responds to perfection and highlights its own name: China. There are also trend changes that should be analyzed. Asian domain. Prepared by Visual Capitalist With data from the OICA (International Organization of Motor Vehicle Manufacturers), we can see in blue the countries that dominate cars manufacturing. China produced more than 31 million Of vehicles in 2024, the United States more than 10.5 million and Japan more than eight million. Among the three, 54% of all vehicles built during the past year, but we put the focus on Asia. Apart from China and Japan, India with six million and South Korea with four million are two other countries of that Asian “axis that contribute to the domain of the area in exports worldwide. All have more or less stable production compared to the previous year, being Japan that stars in a 10% decrease in production, but staying between the powers. The opposite case is Thailand, which closes the Top 10 with 1.4 million vehicles produced, assuming a 20% downturn compared to the previous year.

The Samsung chips manufacturing subsidiary walks on the tightrope. Tesla will save her from collapse

by

Samsung has reached an agreement with Tesla. An important agreement. According to Bloombergthese two companies have signed a commitment that will run until 2033 and for which the subsidiary specialized in the manufacture of integrated circuits of this South Korean company will produce for Tesla chips for a value of 16.5 billion dollars in its Texas plant (USA). Not bad at all, especially if we are in mind that Samsung urgently needs that its semiconductor division Increase your presence in the market. Jay Y. Lee, the president of this company, sent in the middle of last March An internal statement in which it synthesizes with great precision what this company faces: “Our technological advantage has been compromised in all our businesses. It is difficult to see that efforts are being made to boost great innovations or assume new challenges. There are only attempts to maintain the status quo instead of generating disruptive changes. “ The Samsung subsidiary specialized in the manufacture of semiconductors is largely the company’s engine, and to recover health it is essential that its competitiveness increases. However, to carry it out it is necessary that its integration technology of 2 nm pelee from you to you both with the equivalent lithography of Intel, and, above all, with that of TSMC. However, Samsung’s starting point is favorable. And it is because He has been working in which it is undoubtedly The most important photolithography in its history. The 2 nm are crucial Samsung has led for more than three decades the industry of integrated dram circuits, but the rise of the artificial intelligence (AI) has triggered something that just two or three years ago would have seemed unthinkable: now it is also the South Korean SK Hynix the manufacturer of integrated memory circuits that LEADS THE HBM Chips Market so much (High Bandwidth Memory) that work side by side with the GPUs for the The one of the DRAM memories. Chips manufacturers need the candlestick performance of their avant -garde nodes to be at least 70% In current circumstances it is evident that Samsung needs to trace as soon as possible. And it seems that it is in it. At the beginning of 2025 several South Korean media anticipated that Large scale manufacturing of 2 nm chips It had already begun in the company’s South Korean plants. However, this does not mean that Samsung already has everything tied. Chips manufacturers need The performance by wafer of his avant -garde nodes is at least 70%and, according to the South Korean newspaper Munhwa Ilbothis company currently moves in the range of 40 to 50%. Even so, the Japanese chips designer for the preferred networks (PFN) and a South Korean company specialized in the design of neuronal processing units (NPU) They were already interested in early 2025 in which Samsung manufactured his designs in his new 2 nm node. There is no doubt that at the delicate moment this company is going through, having several agreements tied before its competitors initiate large -scale production with equivalent photolithographs is very important. However, this is not all. And is that just five months after that news the South Korean medium Chosunbizwhich in the matter of semiconductors does not usually give stitch without a thread, said Samsung I had already started the evidence In its 2 Nm node For Nvidia and Qualcomm. This test process does not guarantee that Samsung is finally going to manufacture integrated 2 Nm circuits for these two US companies, but their interest in the technology of this South Korean company is an oxygen ball. There is no doubt about that. Image | Samsung More information | Bloomberg In Xataka | This is the chips war: a former SK Hynix employee is suspected to deliver stolen technology to Huawei

A giant is ready to get into the market of chips manufacturing machines: LG Electronics

by

The HBM memories market (High Bandwidth Memory) that work side by side with the GPUs for artificial intelligence (IA) Three companies lead it clearly: Samsung, SK Hynix and Micron Technology. Interestingly, memory chips are The South Korean economy engine Trade dependent. And Samsung and Sk Hynix are Companies that support this industry In this Asian country. In fact, these two South Korean companies compete with each other to master the lucrative HBM memory chips. AND They do not supply when it comes to manufacturing as many integrated circuits as their customers demand. The most important of all of them is, as we can intuit, Nvidia. The export of semiconductors in South Korea increases, but its chips stocks 33.7% fell in April of 2024 compared to the same period of 2023 according to the National Statistics Office. In any case, another South Korean company is ready to enter the market for integrated HBM memory circuits, although it will not compete with SK Hynix and Samsung. LG is preparing a unique machine to produce HBM memories Manufacturing integrated VAGUARD HBM circuits is not simple. The processes involved in the production of these chips are complex, and in them very advanced technologies are involved. SK Hynix, Samsung and Micron are manufacturing on a large scale, although with different success12 -layer HBM3E memories. The two South Korean firms will produce large -scale HBM4 chips during the second semester of 2025, and Micron will do so in 2026. However, CXMT (Changxin Memory Technologies), one of the Chinese companies specialized in the production of memoirs, will launch Your first HBM3E chips in 2027. The main quality of this equipment will be its ability to allow the stack of integrated circuits in a much more efficient way China has several memories manufacturers Important, but they currently do not have solutions capable of competing with the best of SK Hynix or Micron. This circumstance reminds us of how complex it is to manufacture latest generation HBM chips. LG Electronics is going to enter this marketbut you will not compete from you to you with memory chips manufacturers. The opposite; aspires to be your customers. Koo Kwang-Mo, the president of this company, has confirmed That its strategy is to participate in the hardware industry for AI, but it will make it marketing its own chips manufacturing equipment. In fact, LG is developing a machine that will be specifically designed to produce avant -garde HBM memories. According to this company, the main quality of this equipment will be its ability to allow the stack of integrated circuits in a much more efficient way than with the technologies currently available. In theory, the innovation in which LG engineers are working will contribute to the tuning of HBM memories of more capacity and with a lower heat dissipation index. LG plans go to make their HBM memories production team in 2028. The main manufacturers of these machines are the American company Applied Materials and the Dutch Besi, so these are The companies with which LG will compete If finally its memory semiconductor production machine comes to fruition. If so, it is likely that Samsung, SK Hynix and Micron are interested in their team, although it is also possible to apply materials or kiss forward to LG. In fact, SK Hynix and Samsung plan to introduce this technology this year. More information | Economic Seoul In Xataka | Chinese memory chips manufacturers are a nightmare for the US and South Korea. There is a lot at play

These are the chips that are capable of manufacturing without resorting to the most advanced Machine of ASML

by

TSMC is not the largest semiconductor manufacturer on the planet by chance. Morris Chang He founded this veteran Taiwanese company in 1987, but his leadership took several years to consolidate. At that time the most important integrated circuit manufacturer was Intel, but The TSMC domain In this industry during the last two decades it is irrefatable. Today monopolizes approximately 60% of the market of the manufacture of integrated circuits, and nothing indicates that in the short term Intel or Samsung, its two main competitors, will be able to dispute your leadership. The success of this company has mainly based on its ability to manufacture large -scale chips using the most advanced integration technologies available and with a very high wafer performance. Here lies its very high competitiveness. And, in addition, he has managed to preserve this position for many years, which has helped him transmit confidence to his solid clients such as a rock. His economic performance is nothing other than a consequence of his career: in 2024 he entered 34% more than in 2023. TSMC claims to be able to bring asml UVE lithography equipment to the limit This integrated circuit manufacturer has confirmed that the tests of its 2 Nm node are being successful, so you can start the large -scale manufacture of semiconductors using this photolithography during the second semester of 2025. However, its medium -term plans do not end here. And is that at the end of last April advance During his North American Technological Conference that is also testing his next avant -garde integration technology. It will call it A14 (1.4 Nm), will enter large -scale production in 2028 and we already know some of its most interesting characteristics. Kevin Zhang ensures that TSMC does not need the ASML UVE High-Nna lithography team to make 1.4 Nm One of its most important spots will consist that you will use transistors Nanosheet Gaa (Gate-alall-around) Second generation. The first generation will arrive next to the Lithography N2 (2 Nm) this year. In addition, this integration technology will land with the promise to make possible the manufacture of integrated circuits with higher performance, higher energy efficiency and a more flexible design. The usual. However, TSMC, fortunately, has been wet and in its event some figures made public that allow us to assess to what extent the arrival of the A14 node will be important. And, according to this company, the integrated circuits produced with the A14 lithography will be 15% faster than the chips manufactured in the NEN N2 with the same consumption; They will reduce energy expenditure by 30% at the same speed, and, in addition, they will put on the table the possibility of increasing the density of logic by 20%. According to Kevin ZhangSenior Vice President and Deputy Director of Operations of TSMC, the A14 node will be attractive to make chips for consumption devices and for strictly professional applications, such as, for example, GPU for artificial intelligence (AI). There is no doubt that TSMC’s promises about their lithography A14 sound good, but there is more that we should not overlook. Zhang says that they will not use the equipment of extreme ultraviolet photolithography (UVE) and haute opening (High-na) that manufactures the Dutch company ASML in this node. This is a technical capacity exhibition. These machines, the most advanced that currently exist, are suitable for producing integrated circuits of 2 nm and beyond. In fact, The lithography 14a (1.4 Nm) It will be the first in which Intel will use the Uve High opening equipment of ASML. However, as we have just seen, TSMC says it can produce chips capable of dealing with comparable semiconductors of Intel and Samsung using conventional UVE equipment. 2025 will be the year in which the lithographs of 2 nm will start, and, therefore, it will be the prelude to a presumably even more bloody battle: that of the 1.4 Nm. Image | ASML More information | Tom’s hardware In Xataka | ASML’s new lithography team divides chips manufacturers. TSMC considers not using it until 2030

In his effort for national manufacturing, the US has threatened Samsung. It will serve as little

by

Or Apple manufactures the iPhone in the United States, or the Trump administration will impose an additional 25%tariff. The last weeks of May are starring New threats to technology companiessome that They will serve as little in the case of Apple. As much as a new tariff is imposed, the company is still more profitable to manufacture in India than in the United States. It is not the only one under the spotlight. Trump has recently stated that “Samsung and any other that manufactures this product” (the smartphone) will face tariffs. The message is clear: if it is sold in the United States, you want to be manufactured in the United States. Samsung, under the spotlight. In the general photography of best -selling mobile brands in the world, there is not much beyond Chinese brands. Samsung and Apple are the main protagonists, with a minority participation of giants such as Google or Motorola. Trump has made it clear that all telephone manufacturer that manufactures out of the United States will have to face new tariffs. And there is not one that manufactures there. Vietnam as refuge. The history of the Samsung supply chain is one in which China ceased to be present more than ten years ago. The company made a strategic bet for Vietnam, its investments in the country in 2024 exceeded 220 million dollars, and employs more than 100,000 people in which, for years, it was its main refuge against the commercial war between China and the United States. The South Korean giant production chain is strategically diversified between countries such as Vietnam, South Korea, Brazil or Indonesia, having closed its last Chinese phone factories in 2019. The possible impact. Samsung is in a situation similar to Apple’s. Currently, plants in Vietnam are more than 50% of their global production volume. This country has a minimum labor costof just three dollars an hour in electronics. Moving the production chain to the United States is simply unassumable, due to labor costs, factor and R&D, degree of automation in Vietnamese production and lack of a pool of thousands of technicians willing to work in the shifts that make possible the current rhythm of Samsung in Vietnam. A tariff hurts, but less than moving the production chain. A 25% tariff would destroy the current margins of Samsung and force both to absorb a certain part of them and to raise the price of the product in the United States. It is still a better plan to allocate decades to rebuild from scratch an infrastructure and technical specialization in which they have been allocating millions of dollars for more than ten years. Image | Xataka In Xataka | Samsung had it difficult with its exynos processors. Google and Xiaomi have only aggravated their situation

Intel’s future is linked to the success of a single chip manufacturing node: 18A technology

by

Intel is facing one of the most difficult stages Of all its history. And its story is not exactly brief. In fact, Gordon Moore and Robert Noyce founded this company more than half a century ago, in 1968. As we have explained in other articles, The future of factories and Intel chips packaging and validation centers is uncertain. However, it is possible that these facilities are finally incorporated into a joint company Managed by Intel, TSMCand, perhaps, by some other company of the integrated circuit industry. Anyway, the short -term competitiveness of this company is closely linked to the success of a single semiconductor manufacturing technology: 18A photolithography. Ben Sell, Vice President of Intel Technology Development, confirmed At the end of last September that the 18A node already has the maturity necessary to enter large -scale production in 2025. and also assured that it will benefit from the resources that have been reallocated since the 20A node. In the current scenario the 18A node will be the true protagonist. That is not the slightest doubt. More transistors. More performance. And less consumption This statement by Joseph Bonetti, main manager of Intel engineering programs, expresses very well The important thing that is the 18A node for this company: “Intel leaders, Board of Directors of Intel and Donald Trump administration, please do not sell or give the control of Intel Foundry to TSMC just when Intel is taking the technological front and starting to take off. It would be a terrible and demoralizing error.” Bonetti also maintains that Intel is not lagging for its competitors, and that the advances that their engineers are achieving in the field of chips production are very important. Bonetti does not expressly mention the 18A integration technology, but his statement is supported by it because right now is the asset that Intel has to compete with TSMC and Samsung in the market for the production of integrated circuits in a year in which 2 Nm photolithographies They will take off yes or yes. In the last months Intel has been revealing some of the characteristics of this integration technology, but just a few hours ago and as a prelude to the semiconductor conference ‘2025 Symposium on VLSI Technology and Circu has made public more interesting data. Powervia proposes to physically separate the feed lines and signal signal within each integrated circuit Lithography 18a is erected above all about two essential innovations: Ribbonfet Gate-Lall-Around (GAA) transistors and energy delivery technology Powervia. The purpose of this last improvement is to solve the limitations imposed by the introduction in the integrated circuit of smaller transistors, which are also together more. This scenario causes that within each chip the power lines and signal compete for the same resources, which triggers the appearance of bottlenecks that perceptibly limit the performance and energy efficiency of a CPU. The purpose of Powervia technology is precisely to solve this problem. And to achieve this, what proposes is to physically separate the power lines and signal signal. So far both lived in the same physical space, but From Intel 20A lithographythat It was commercially dismissed In September 2024, the distribution of transistors and food and signal will acquire the form of a sandwich. In this way the transistors will be housed in the center, while the feed lines will reside in a lower layer and those of signal in an upper layer. In any case, for us, the users, the most interesting thing is to know that Intel promises that their lithography 18a will deliver a 25% higher performance using the same voltage as the integration technology Intel 3, as well as a 36% lower energy consumption by using the same frequency and the same voltage. And by reducing this last parameter and moving from 1.1 volts to 0.75 volts, lithography 18a delivers a performance of 18% higher and a consumption of 38% lower. It sounds good, but we should not ignore that This information comes from Intel itself. Whether it is evident that we are interested in consumers that both Intel and TSMC or Samsung have the best state possible. Image | Intel More information | Intel In Xataka | Intel has confirmed that the 20A node will be skipped to reduce expenses. The 18A node will enter production in 2025

A critical component of current chips manufacturing machines

by

The teams of extreme ultraviolet photolithography (UVE) that manufactures the Dutch company ASML are extraordinarily sophisticated. In fact, they are those currently using TSMC, Samsung, Intel, Sy Hynix and Micron Technology for produce integrated avant -garde circuits. They are so complex that during the first phases of their design in the early 90s of the last century, ASML engineers They believed it was impossible. However, everything changed in 1997. That year Jos Benschop, the leader of the research department, reassess whether UNVE technology was a viable option. After the first tests he realized that The German company Zeiss He was able to develop extraordinarily sophisticated mirrors that would be necessary to transport ultraviolet light. And he was not wrong. That was the real starting point of technology that has made it possible for our mobile phones and computers to have such advanced chips. Zeiss’s feat arrived in the 90s One of the most complex elements of UVE lithography machines is The ultraviolet light source. The company of American origin Cymer, although since 2013 it is not an independent company. That year ASML executives decided to buy it to accelerate the development of the technologies involved in UVE lithography. An interesting note: the ultraviolet light is responsible for transporting the geometric pattern described by the mask so that it can be transferred with a lot of precision to the surface of the silicon wafer. Understanding what is the mask is simple: it is nothing other than a physical template that contains the design of the integrated circuit that is necessary to transfer to the Silicon wafer. In any case, there is another component without whose intervention It is not possible to carry out this crucial task. Other components, in plural, in reality, although all of them are of the same type. It is precisely the mirrors that Jos Benschop suspected in 1997 that Zeiss could produce. The light of 11.4 nm was discarded because it forced to use beryllium in the mirrors and is a toxic chemical element The role of the optical elements of this company in these lithography equipment is crucial. And it is because they are responsible for moving the UVE light with a wavelength of 13.5 nm from the source that is responsible for its emission to the mask contained in the geometric pattern that is necessary to translate into the silicon wafer. If the mirrors involved in the propagation of the UVE light are not manufactured with enormous precision the geometric pattern defined by the mask will be altered, and the chips will be damaged. Interestingly, the choice of the wavelength of the UVE light used by these machines was a very delicate decision. Initially the engineers involved in their tuning had four possible options: 13.5 nm, 11.4 nm, 6.6 nm and 4.8 nm. These last two wavelengths were finally ruled out due to the limitations they imposed Organic photorestoning materials. The light of 11.4 Nm was also discarded because it forced to use beryllium in the mirrors, and is a toxic chemical element. The wavelength of 13.5 Nm required to introduce molybdenum and silicon mirrors, but these elements do not pose any problem. This is the reason why UVE machines work with this light. In any case, this data clearly reflects the extraordinary level of precision with which it is necessary to manufacture the mirrors: Zeiss uses argon ions and other elements to polish layer per layer at the atomic level the mirrors, and then identifies and corrects the defects using a subnustric analysis technique. This last tool is capable of detecting defects with a lower precision than a nanometer (less than a millmillonieth part of a meter). * Some price may have changed from the last review Image | Zeiss BIBLIOGRAPHY | ‘Focus: The Asml Way’by Marc Hijink More information | Zeiss | Asianometry In Xataka | 2024 has been a year full of uncertainty for chip designers. So much that the market has changed leader

The US is realizing that manufacturing the iPhone without China is almost impossible. Tariff exemptions are the test

by

Donald Trump’s administration has applied a very special exemption to reciprocal tariffs announced The last days. Thus, mobile phones, computers and some other consumer electronics products “are fought”. Importing them to the United States will not make 10%global tariffs apply, nor China’s specific ones, which are 125%. What products are exempt. The note published by the US Customs Department almost without making noise is especially important, and makes a list of HTSUS codes (Harmonized Tariff Schedule of the United States) that include different types of electronic products. Among them, exemptions affect: 8471: PCS of desktop, laptops and its components, such as CPUS, hard or I/O peripheral discs as monitors (8528.52.00), mice and keyboards 8517.13.00: smartphones 8517.62.00: Routers, modems, wireless access points 8523.51.00: SSD units 8524: CDS and DVDS Regrabable 8541.49.10 and 8541.49.70: Solar panel cells 8541.49.80: LEDs 8542: microprocessors, controllers, memory chips and other integrated circuits But they are temporary exemptions. As they point out In Financial TimesUS Secretary of Commerce, Howard Lutnick, made it clear that these exemptions are temporary. All these products will be part of the semiconductor tariffs, “which will probably arrive in a month or two.” Trump denies that this are exemptions. In his social network Truth, Donald Trump He also stood out That what was announced on Friday were no exceptions to tariffs and made it clear that these products are still subject to 20% rates related to the fentanil. “What has been stated is that we need to manufacture products in the United States, and that we will not be hostages from other countries, especially hostile commercial nations such as China, which will do everything in their hand to disrespect the US people,” he added in his statement. Dodging price increases. The measure is clearly aimed at avoiding notable price increases in semiconductors, mobiles and consumer electronics products, especially considering that a vast majority of those sold in the United States They come from China. The impact for consumers can be very important, and these temporary exemptions reduce concern for the future of these products and their prices and protect strategic sectors. The iPhone as a great example. Some analysts estimate that the price of the iPhone in the United States It could triple If the cost of tariffs ends up moving to consumers. Apple smartphones are one of the clear examples of how tariffs would affect US consumers first and the rest of the world later. The climb of reciprocal tariffs between the US and China has been spectacular in recent weeks. Source: Reuters China as a US factory. According to Counterpoint Research dataChina represents 80% of the iPhone production sold in the United States. The remaining 20% ​​are manufactured in India, a country in which Apple is gradually growing in production precisely to avoid the dependence of China. The Cupertino company in fact fought several aircraft full of iPhone From India to try to have some margin of maneuver if tariffs came into force. Exemptions also disappear the “basic” 10% tariff that applied globally and included countries such as India. These exemptions are also partly the tacit recognition to manufacture the iPhone in the US It is practically impossible. Business pressure. The impact of tariffs has been especially remarkable for Big Tech, which have collapsed in the stock market in recent weeks. All of them depend largely on China’s production capacity, and these exemptions are also an acceptance (at least temporary) that changing things and mitigating Chinese dependence will take a long time. No official explanation. The US government did not explanations about the reason why it applied these exemptions, but it is evident that This is a big respiteeven if it is temporary, for companies such as Apple, Nvidia, Dell, or HP, which import a good part of their products from China. A war without winners. As they point out In axiosChinese President Xi Jinping stressed that a war of tariffs “will not produce any winner.” China indicated that I was evaluating the impact of these exemptions. In a statement last Sunday, the Chinese Ministry of Trade Califified the measure as “a small US step to correct its wrong practice of establishing ‘unilateral reciprocal tariffs.” How will we be next week? Democrate Senator Elizabeth Warren appeared in a debate In CNN to describe the confusion that exists about tariffs. He indicated that “investors will not invest in the US with Donald Trump playing” red light, green light “with tariffs and saying” Oh, and For my special donors, you have special exemptions“. He also highlighted how the situation is impresable.” No one can imagine what the rules will be within five days, much less in five years. “ Image | Gage Skidmore In Xataka | Spain acts where Europe doubts: the strategy that is paying fruits in China

Log In

Forgot password?

Forgot password?

Enter your account data and we will send you a link to reset your password.

Your password reset link appears to be invalid or expired.

Log in

Privacy Policy

Add to Collection

No Collections

Here you'll find all collections you've created before.