SEMICONDUCTOR
A semiconductor is an element that has specific electrical properties that enable it to serve as a basis for computers and other electronic devices. Semiconductor are those material which has the conduction properties in between conductor and insulator. It means semiconductor do not allow the free electron to flow as conductor.
In general words semiconductors are materials that are neither conductors nor insulators. It is kind of material that are classified into Conductors, Insulators and Semiconductors based on their ability of conduct electricity.
Semiconductors are divided into two categories Intrinsic & Extrinsic Semiconductors. These are types of semiconductors Silicon (Si), Boron (B), Carbon (C), Germanium (Ge) etc.
Semiconductor Wafer
In electronics, a wafer (also called a slice or substrate). It is a thin slice of crystalline silicon (c-Si), used for the fabrication of integrated circuits and, in photovoltaics, to manufacture solar cells. The semiconductor or silicon wafers that form the base of fabricating different types of advanced semiconductor products. The wafer serves as the substrate for microelectronic devices built in and upon the wafer. It undertakes many microfabrication processes, such as doping, ion implantation, etching, thin-film deposition of various materials, and photolithographic patterning. Finally, the individual microcircuits are separated by wafer dicing and packaged as an integrated circuit. Semiconductors are categorized with different size of wafers; it is extended up to 450mm.
Semiconductor Devices
Semiconductor devices are a type of electronic components that designed, developed and manufactured based on the Semiconductor materials like Silicon (Si), Germanium (Ge) and Gallium Arsenide (GaAs).
When a doped semiconductor contains excess holes, it is called a p-type semiconductor (p for positive electric charge); when it contains excess free electrons, it is called an n-type semiconductor (n for negative electric charge). A majority of mobile charge carriers have negative charge. The manufacture of semiconductors controls precisely the location and concentration of p- and n-type dopants. The connection of n-type and p-type semiconductors form p–n junctions.
The most common semiconductor device in the world is the MOSFET (metal–oxide–semiconductor field-effect transistor) also called the MOS transistor.
Based on the physical structure of the device, the following list is categorized into Two-terminal Devices, Three-terminal Devices and Four-terminal Devices.
All transistor types can be used as the building blocks of logic gates, which are fundamental in the design of digital circuits. In digital circuits like microprocessors, transistors act as on-off switches; in the MOSFET, for instance, the voltage applied to the gate determines whether the switch is on or off. Transistors used for analog circuits do not act as on-off switches; rather, they respond to a continuous range of inputs with a continuous range of outputs. Common analog circuits include amplifiers and oscillators. Circuits that interface or translate between digital circuits and analog circuits are known as mixed-signal circuits. Power semiconductor devices are discrete devices or integrated circuits intended for high current or high voltage applications. Power integrated circuits combine IC technology with power semiconductor technology, these are sometimes referred to as "smart" power devices. Several companies specialize in manufacturing power semiconductors.
Semiconductor Fab
Semiconductor manufacturing is a complex, capital and technology intensive process of fabricating semiconductor wafers. Highly specialized semiconductor manufacturing facilities, called “fabs”, print the nanometer scale integrated circuits from the chip design into silicon wafers. Based on the complexity of the specific product, there are 400 to 1,400 steps in the overall manufacturing process. It is a sequential and multi-step process in which Integrated Circuits (ICs) / System on Chips (SoCs) are made in a very specialized and controlled environment with estimated cycle time of 12 weeks before the chip unit is finally packaged for the end applications. The process of making semiconductor devices, usually the metal-oxide-semiconductor (MOS) devices used in integrated circuit (IC) chips like the modern computer processors, microcontrollers, and memory chips is known as semiconductor fabrication. Silicon is almost always used, but various compound semiconductors are used for specialized applications. Each generation of the semiconductor manufacturing process, also known as technology node or process node, is designated by the process’s minimum feature size. Technology nodes, also known as "process technologies" or simply "nodes", are typically indicated by the size in nanometers (or historically micrometers) of the process' transistor gate length. Entity which is doing semiconductors fabrication work is known as Semiconductor Fab Units.
Display Fab
A display fabrication plant manufacturers screens through a multifaceted method that includes squeeze in pieces of glass with transistor cells and also uses metal alloys and silicon.
These are the technologies used to create the various displays: -
- Liquid crystal display (LCD) Light-emitting diode (LED) backlit LCD. Thin-film transistor (TFT) LCD. Quantum dot (QLED) display.
- Light-emitting diode (LED) display. OLED display. AMOLED display. Super AMOLED display.
Entities which are doing display fabrication work is known as Display Fab Units.
Semiconductor ATMP/OSAT Units
There are multiple steps involve and required huge cost & investment to make usable semiconductor devices or chip, one of them are semiconductor packaging. Semiconductor packaging, otherwise known as Assembly, Testing, Marking and Packaging (ATMP) or Outsourced Semiconductor Assembly and Testing (OSAT) is an essential stage in the chip manufacturing process. ATMP is the next step in the semiconductor value chain after semiconductor fabrication. ATMP units are coupled with strong Fab linkages and building ATMP ecosystem will accelerate the government’s efforts to set up Semiconductor Fabs in India. ATMP capabilities will also improve availability of semiconductors in the country in the quest to become Atmanirbhar in this critical sector
To fulfill the demand of semiconductor devices, Indian government has been implementing various schemes for semiconductor, some of these are: -
- Scheme for setting up of Semiconductor Fabs in India,
- Scheme for setting up of Display Fabs in India,
- Scheme for setting up of Compound Semiconductors / Silicon Photonics / Sensors (including MEMS) Fabs and Semiconductor ATMP / OSAT facilities in India,
- Design Linked Incentive (DLI) Scheme
- Scheme for Promotion of Manufacturing of Electronic Components and Semiconductors (SPECS)
- Scheme for setting up of Semiconductor Fabs in India
Fiscal Support: The Scheme extends a fiscal support for setting up of Silicon based Semiconductor Fab in India depending on the technology node.
- 28nm or Lower - Up to 50% of the Project Cost
- Above 28 nm to 45nm - Up to 40% of the Project Cost
- Above 45 nm to 65nm - Up to 30% of the Project Cost
Time Period: The fiscal support under the scheme shall be provided on pari-passu basis for a period of six years from the date of approval.
Application Time: Companies / Consortia / Joint Ventures proposing to set up semiconductor fabs can apply under the scheme starting from 01.01.2022.
- Scheme for setting up of Display Fabs in India
Fiscal Support: The Scheme extends fiscal support of up to 50% of Project Cost (subject to a ceiling of Rs. 12,000cr per Fab)
Time Period: The fiscal support under the scheme shall be provided on pari-passu basis for a period of six years from the date of approval.
Application Time: Companies / Consortia / Joint Ventures proposing to set up semiconductor fabs can apply under the scheme starting from 01.01.2022
- Scheme for setting up of Compound Semiconductors / Silicon Photonics / Sensors (including MEMS) Fabs and Semiconductor ATMP / OSAT facilities in India
Fiscal Support: The Scheme extends a fiscal support of 30% of the Capital Expenditure investment for setting up of Compound Semiconductors / Silicon Photonics (SiPh) / Sensors (including MEMS) Fab and Semiconductor ATMP / OSAT facilities in India
“Capital Expenditure” for the purpose of the scheme shall include expenditure incurred on building, clean rooms, plant, machinery, equipment & associated utilities (including used / second hand / refurbished); transfer of technology (ToT) including cost of technology; and research & development (R&D).
Time Period: The duration of the scheme for receipt of applications is three years, Fiscal support shall be available for a period of five years from the date of application.
Application Time: Companies / Consortia / Joint Ventures proposing to set up semiconductor fabs can apply under the scheme starting from 01.01.2022
- Design Linked Incentive (DLI) Scheme
Ceiling Limits for the Design Infrastructure Support under the Scheme: Reimbursement of up to ₹30 Lakh per application for MPW fabrication of design and post-silicon validation activities.
Ceiling Limits for availing the Product Design Linked Incentive (P-DLI) under the Scheme: Milestones linked reimbursement of up to 50% of the eligible expenditure subject to a ceiling of ₹15 Crore per application for designing semiconductor goods indicated under Target Segment and making them ready to be demonstrated in operational environment and volume production.
Threshold amount for availing the Deployment Linked Incentive (DLI) under the Scheme:Reimbursement of 6% to 4% of net sales of designed semiconductor goods over 5 years subject to a ceiling of ₹30 Crore shall be made per application.
Aplication Time:The Application Window shall be initially three (3) years from 01-01-2022.
- Scheme for Promotion of Manufacturing of Electronic Components and Semiconductors (SPECS)
The Scheme for Promotion of Manufacturing of Electronic Components and Semiconductors (SPECS) aims to strengthen the manufacturing ecosystem for electronic components and semiconductors.
Incentives of up to INR 3,285 crore will be awarded under the Scheme over a period of 8 years.
