Although the strong earthquake in Japan shook out doubts about the semiconductor supply chain, foundries including TSMC (2330), UMC, Globalfundries, and Samsung all turned against the situation and reiterated that they will not be underwriting this year's capital expenditures and must be advanced. The 28-nm process made a fierce battle.

According to the market adjustment agency Gartner, the total capital expenditure of the global foundry will reach 18.7 billion U.S. dollars this year, of which TSMC’s capital expenditures will reach 7.8 billion U.S. dollars, accounting for nearly 42% of the total capital expenditure. It is still a foundry. The largest investment in China.

Global wafers to catch up with TSMC, this year's capital expenditures up to 40 billion US dollars, investment is also very large; UMC’s capital expenditures this year has also been raised to 1.8 billion US dollars; even South Korea’s Samsung also accelerated the capture of global wafer foundry pie Ranks.

Gu Neng said that this year's capital expenditures are mostly betting on advanced processes at 40nm and 28nm. In particular, TSMC has announced that the advanced process of 28nm will be put in early in the third quarter of this year and the fourth quarter output will be scheduled for further competition. Accelerate the pace.

Wang Duan, Director of Research and Service Providers, Guneng Analysts, due to the introduction of advanced high-dielectric-constant-metal gate (HKMG) materials at 28nm, can better solve microprocessors, graphics chips, fundamental frequencies, and radio frequency High-order chip leakage problems such as image sensing, and the requirement to achieve smaller size and larger capacity, are expected to attract more chip makers to take film interest.

Wang Duan emphasized that currently including wafer foundries such as global wafers and Samsung seems to have deterred Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co., Ltd. from specializing in 28-nanometer process OEM services and insisted on completing 28-nanometer production volume production at the end of this year; UMC also announced 28-nanometers. The process is scheduled for mass production next year.

Wang Duan analyzed that the 28-nm process will be a key demarcation point for the global foundry sector; due to Moore's law, the next generation after 28 nm will have 20 or 14 nanometers, which will encounter great difficulties. Global wafers and Samsung may be 28 The nano-manufacturing process will catch up with TSMC, and the competition for future foundry will become increasingly fierce.