August 10, 2026

Global Semiconductor Sales Increase 35.1% from Q1 2026 to Q2 2026 Global semiconductor sales surged to $403.3 billion in Q2 2026, up 35.1% from Q1, while June sales reached $134.5 billion, rising 123.6% year over year. Strong demand across the Americas, Asia-Pacific and China keeps the industry on pace to top $1.5 trillion in 2026. Semiconductor Industry Association

Sponsor Premier Semiconductor Packaging Event 3 days featuring 5 technical tracks, 100 exhibitors, panels, posters, professional development, along with strong industry engagement. Keynotes from Qualcomm, Marvell, and Cerebras. IMAPS 2026 on September 28. IMAPS

TSMC and Researchers Overcome 2D Semiconductor Bottleneck with Epitaxial Interface Engineering TSMC and NYCU researchers developed a high-performance monolayer MoS₂ transistor by engineering an ultrathin Al₂O₃ interface that reduces electron scattering. The advance boosts mobility and stability, strengthening 2D semiconductors for future chips. TrendForce

Alpha Particle Emissions: An Overlooked Risk for Soft Errors in Advanced Packaging As advanced packaging density increases, alpha particle emissions present a growing reliability risk. This article examines soft error mechanisms and solutions to mitigate failures in AI, HPC, and high-density packages. Technical Paper

Sponsor SB²® Solder Ball Jetting: Fast, Clean, Reliable Achieve fast, precise, and clean solder ball placement with SB²®—ideal for flip chip, reballing, and advanced packaging from wafer to panel level. Learn More. PacTech

Winbond Says Customers Seek LTAs Through 2030; Adata Expects Even Tighter DRAM Supply in 2027 Winbond and Adata expect memory prices to keep rising as AI, data centers, and enterprise storage drive demand. Tight DRAM and NAND supply could worsen in 2027, while long-term agreements signal persistent shortages and pricing strength. TrendForce

SK Hynix to mull options for US$3bn China plant SK Hynix is weighing an investor or stake sale for its Chongqing facility, potentially valuing it at $3 billion. The move could accelerate NAND production growth, while the company separately plans $38 billion in South Korean chipmaking investments. Taipei Times

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Technical Papers A New Optical Ball Grid Array Package Development for Automotive Optical Sensor Automated X-Ray Metrology: Enhancing Quality and Efficiency in Wafer and Panel-Level Applications Alpha Particle Emissions: An Overlooked Risk for Soft Errors in Advanced Packaging Revolutionizing IC Packaging with High-Density RDL Technology EOTPR Fine pitch probing for die-to-die interconnect failure analysis in chiplet devices Die-on-Tab for Compound Semiconductors: Enabling Advanced RF Power Systems Package Assembly Design Kits: The Future of Advanced Package Design MORE TECHNICAL PAPERS

Sponsor OntosIS Atmospheric Plasma System The ONTOS Plasma Head is available for integration into third party equipment. The Plasma Curtain is available in several widths to enable optimization of the gas consumption on smaller devices. Ontos Equipment Systems

TSMC Longtan science park discussions begin again Taiwan has revived plans to expand Longtan Science Park, potentially enabling TSMC to build five advanced-chip fabs. The revised project, awaiting government approval, could create 6,200 jobs, generate NT$310 billion annually and complete infrastructure construction by 2030. Taipei Times

SK Hynix to expand in South Korea SK Hynix will invest 54 trillion won ($38 billion) to expand DRAM and NAND production in South Korea, building new facilities in Yongin and Cheongju. The investment targets surging AI memory demand and next-generation high-bandwidth memory production. Taipei Times

Sponsor Automotive chips need materials that DO NOT fail We asked semiconductor specialists what defines the future of automotive packaging. Reliability, thermal management, and sustainability topped the list. Free Research Report. Henkel AG & Co.

Chiplet Architectures as a Practical Path to Scalable Automotive Compute Automakers are embracing chiplets to meet rising compute demands in centralized and zonal vehicles. The architecture scales performance, cuts costs, enables software reuse, and supports AI, ADAS, infotainment, and reliable software-defined vehicles. EE Times

SK Hynix to invest $38 billion building new memory chip plants as demand soars SK Hynix will invest 54 trillion won ($38.1 billion) in new memory fabs in Yongin and Cheongju to meet surging AI-driven demand. The plants will produce next-generation DRAM, HBM and NAND, with operations beginning between 2028 and 2029. CNBC

Sponsor Highly Thermally & Electrically Conductive TLPS via Filing Paste New filing highlights advanced sintered metal paste enabling faster installation, superior heat dissipation, higher conductivity, and reliable thermal drain performance without long processing cycles. Ormet TLPS

STMicroelectronics Bets on Hardware-Based Post-Quantum Cryptography with ST54M STMicroelectronics launched the ST54M, its first secure element with hardware-based post-quantum cryptography. It combines NFC, eSIM, secure storage and PQC acceleration to help smartphone makers protect data from emerging quantum threats. EE Times

Chip Industry Week in Review The semiconductor industry is accelerating AI hardware innovation, with new HBF, HBM, NAND and optical technologies emerging alongside major fab investments. SK hynix, Samsung, AMD, SpaceX and others are expanding memory, chip manufacturing, packaging and AI infrastructure. Semiconductor Engineering

Sponsor Dedicated Tool for Process Development Advanced plating capability at Uyemura Tech Center: Process Development, UBM, pilot production. ENIG, ENEPIG, EPIG/EPAG, RAIG immersion gold; all substrates. On-site analysis. Uyemura

AMD buys chip startup that hardwires AI models into its silicon AMD plans to acquire AI inference chipmaker Taalas, adding specialized accelerators to complement its GPUs. The deal reflects growing demand for low-latency AI processing and strengthens AMD's push toward integrated systems combining CPUs, GPUs and specialized chips. CNBC

Sponsor Safely Remove Underfilled BGAs Without Damaging the Circuit Board Learn how cold precision milling techniques enable the removal of underfilled BGAs while minimizing risk to components, circuit traces, and board integrity. Circuit Technology Center