April 29, 2024 – According to a recent press release from Samsung, Lee Jae-yong, the chairman of Samsung Electronics, visited the headquarters of Carl Zeiss in Oberkochen, Germany, on the 26th of the month. During his visit, he held discussions with Carl Zeiss CEO Karl Lamprecht on strengthening the collaboration between the two companies.
Carl Zeiss is the exclusive supplier of the optical system for ASML’s EUV lithography machines, with each machine containing over 30,000 components provided by Carl Zeiss. Additionally, Carl Zeiss holds more than 2,000 key patents in EUV lithography technology.
Several Samsung Electronics executives responsible for semiconductor production technology accompanied Lee Jae-yong on this visit, including DS Division CTO Song Jae-hyuk and DS Division’s Manufacturing and Technology President Nam Seok-woo.
During the meeting, the management teams from both Samsung and Carl Zeiss exchanged views on the main trends in semiconductor technology and medium- to long-term technology roadmaps for both companies.
Looking ahead, Samsung Electronics and Carl Zeiss plan to further expand their collaboration in the areas of EUV technology and advanced semiconductor equipment.
This deepened cooperation is expected to result in enhanced performance, optimized processes, and increased production capacity for Samsung’s future semiconductor products, ultimately boosting the competitiveness of its semiconductor foundry and memory businesses.
Furthermore, Carl Zeiss intends to invest 480 billion Korean won (approximately 253 million Chinese yuan) in building a research and development center in Korea by 2026, aiming to strengthen strategic cooperation with Korean companies like Samsung.
The press release also mentioned that Samsung Electronics plans to achieve mass production of 1cnm (6th generation 10nm-class) memory within this year and is actively promoting its NPU business.
