Samsung Electro-Mechanics unveils chip substrate for autonomous driving

Samsung Electro-Mechanics Co. has developed an advanced semiconductor substrate for autonomous driving, which is expected to drive the top South Korean electronic component maker’s sales and profit growth.

The newly developed high-performance flip-chip ball grid array (FC-BGA) substrate will be used in advanced driver assistance systems (ADAS), the company said on Sunday.

In line with the advancement of self-driving technology, autonomous driving systems require a growing number of high-performance and high-reliability chips that can process large amounts of data at high speed without latency even in extreme driving conditions, it said.

“As the demand for high-end, high-performance semiconductors continues, FC-BGA is becoming the key to differentiating semiconductor performance,” said Kim Eung-soo, executive vice president of the package solution unit at Samsung Electro-Mechanics.

FC-BGA is a package substrate that transmits electrical signals and power by connecting high-density semiconductor chips to the mainboard. It is mainly used for central processing units (CPUs) and graphics processing units (GPUs) that require high-performance and high-density circuit connections.

AI, SELF-DRIVING CARS DRIVE FC-BGA DEMAND

As chipmakers are shifting toward high-density circuit substrates containing more microcircuits to improve system performance, multi-layer substrates like the FC-BGA type are replacing general substrates for electronic components of artificial intelligence, autonomous driving cars and computer servers.

Samsung Electro-Mechanics said its new microcircuit technology has reduced the circuit width and spacing by 20% compared to its existing substrates and enabled more than 10,000 bumps – input and output terminals that connect chips and substrates – in a space that's the size of a passport photo.

The company said the new product also obtained AEC-Q100 certification, a reliability test standard for automotive electronic parts, expanding the application of the latest FC-BGA substrate to other uses such as the vehicle body, chassis and infotainment systems.

Samsung said it will expand its lineup of high-end automotive semiconductor substrates to become the market leader in the segment.

Since starting the package substrate business in 1991, Samsung Electro-Mechanics has been supplying products to major companies, including Apple Inc., Qualcomm Inc. and Intel Corp.

Samsung is already the No. 1 player in the chip package substrates for mobile application processors (APs).

The company has been investing heavily to expand its FC-BGA facilities in Korea and abroad.

Samsung has so far focused on the manufacture of its flagship product, multi-layer ceramic capacitors (MLCCs).

MLCCs control the flow of electricity to provide power to semiconductors. They are essential components of a variety of electronic products, including cars, smartphones, home appliances and laptops.

Write to Jeong-Soo Hwang at hjs@hankyung.com

In-Soo Nam edited this article.