EUV lithography

The chipmaking technique that prints the finest circuit patterns using 13.5-nanometre extreme ultraviolet light.

• Lithography projects a circuit pattern onto a light-sensitive coating on a silicon wafer; shorter wavelengths can resolve finer features.
• EUV's 13.5 nm is about 14× shorter than the 193 nm ultraviolet used before, avoiding the need to expose each fine layer several times.
• The light comes from tin droplets hit by a powerful laser about 50,000 times a second; air and glass absorb it, so it all runs in vacuum with mirrors.
• ASML of the Netherlands is the only supplier; its newest 'high-NA' machines cost roughly $350–400 million each.