Applied Materials brings SCREEN SPE to EPIC Center for co-optimized processing

Applied Materials, Inc. said SCREEN Semiconductor Solutions Co., Ltd. joined its EPIC Center in Silicon Valley as an innovation partner. The move connects SCREEN SPE’s wafer cleaning capabilities with Applied’s materials engineering work under an effort to develop co-optimized process solutions.

The companies tied the collaboration to process challenges in leading-edge chipmaking, where defects introduced during deposition, etch, and materials modification steps require tighter surface cleanliness controls. Applied also described its EPIC Center as a facility intended to reduce the time from early-stage research to full-scale manufacturing.

Applied Materials’ EPIC Center work centers on co-locating and co-innovating with customers and partners across the semiconductor ecosystem, and on combining process expertise across deposition, dry etch and materials modification with SCREEN SPE capabilities in cleaning, wet etch and surface preparation. Applied also referenced prior involvement through SCREEN SPE single-wafer cleaning systems used at its Materials Engineering Technology Accelerator (META) Center in Albany, New York, for pre- and post-process cleaning optimization across film formation, etch, and ion implantation workflows.

Applied said the new partnership builds on that relationship and expands the scope and scale of joint process development. “The EPIC Center is designed to dramatically accelerate the commercialization of next-generation semiconductor technologies by co-locating and co-innovating with customers and partners across the entire semiconductor ecosystem,” said Dr. Prabu Raja, President of the Semiconductor Products Group at Applied Materials. “SCREEN SPE and Applied Materials share a long history of technical collaboration, and we are proud to deepen that partnership at Applied’s new EPIC Center in Silicon Valley,” said Akihiko Okamoto, President of SCREEN Semiconductor Solutions Co., Ltd. The press release also said the EPIC Center covers more than 180,000 square feet and was on track to become operational in 2026.