UMC and AP Memory collaborate on silicon capacitors for AI

Taiwanese semiconductor foundry United Microelectronics Corporation (UMC) and AP Memory Technology Corporation have announced a collaboration to develop power supply technologies for AI and High-Performance Computing (HPC). The partnership combines UMC’s Deep Trench Capacitor (DTC) manufacturing technology with AP Memory’s silicon capacitor design to implement high-density capacitors within advanced semiconductor packages.

As AI GPUs and high-performance processors demand increasing and more stable power, traditional capacitor placement on circuit boards can lead to voltage fluctuations due to electrical losses and distance from the chip. By utilizing DTC technology to create fine grooves in the silicon substrate, the companies aim to place capacitors closer to the computing chips, reducing parasitic inductance and stabilizing power delivery.

The companies have completed initial functional verification and tape-out for AP Memory’s ‘S-SiCap Gen2D’ silicon capacitor. Future efforts will focus on system-level performance evaluations, reliability testing, and expanding the collaboration to include integrated interposers and land-side capacitors.