How can microchips become more sustainable?

They are little components that offer space for more and more transistors, and they are becoming increasingly high-performing. They are called microchips, and they are essential to the fight against climate change. They underpin sustainable technologies such as photovoltaic systems, wind turbines, and electric vehicles. However, manufacturing these indispensable microchips and their components requires a lot of energy. Can microchips be made more sustainable? If so, how?¹

“The first thing to do is to decide what more sustainability actually means in connection with microchips,” explains Tobias Berndt, Sustainability Project Manager in ZEISS’ Semiconductor Manufacturing Technology segment, “An entire range of machines and processes are needed for manufacturing microchips. Optical lithography systems have a very important role in them, and we develop and produce these systems in the ZEISS Semiconductor Manufacturing Technology segment. To make them more sustainable, we look primarily at the product development and manufacturing process for the optical systems and the infrastructure needed for it. On top of that, our products are also influenced by the attributes of the chips that they are used to make.”

Optical lithography is the key process used for manufacturing microchips. It involves a round disk consisting of silicon wafer with a photoresist coating being used as a foundation for the microchips and a pattern of an optical mask being greatly reduced in size and transferred onto the foundation using various chemical and physical processes. The electronic components and traces on the microchips are created by repeating these processes about 100 times.

Product development plays a fundamental role in optimizing lithography systems, both in terms of performance and sustainability.

"The most important thing is to first be clear about the consumption and emissions caused by a production process – in other words, to collect key figures. As you can't improve anything that you don't measure," adds Ingo Hofmann, Project Manager and member of the sustainability team at ZEISS Semiconductor Manufacturing Technology: "We are currently building up the database. When it comes to sustainability, we are already looking at where our environmental impact lies during product development. Then we can ask ourselves, how can we reduce these influences?"

“Investigating” is a fitting choice of word, as Tobias Berndt and his team are currently working on a comprehensive program for establishing sustainability within ZEISS Semiconductor Manufacturing Technology and for approaching the topic strategically. They use nine core questions to align themselves with the Group’s targets and initiate projects to achieve the targets. The team is constantly on the lookout for new, promising ideas for projects. Tobias Berndt says optimistically, “As a manufacturing company, we are aware of our responsibility for sustainability, and this awareness is growing among customers and suppliers, too.”