FAMES Pilot Line Inaugurated: Europe’s New Chip Innovation Hub
The FAMES Pilot Line was inaugurated at CEA in Grenoble, gathering European partners, industry and public authorities around the €830M initiative. Already operational, FAMES supports the development of next-generation semiconductor technologies across five key technologies, while providing open access to its pilot line to accelerate innovation and industrial transfer across Europe.
A gathering of the European microelectronics community
The inauguration of the FAMES Pilot Line on the CEA campus in Grenoble marked an important milestone for Europe’s semiconductor ecosystem. The event brought together research partners, industrial stakeholders and public authorities to celebrate the progress of the €830 million initiative dedicated to developing next-generation semiconductor technologies in Europe.
Hosted by Anne-Isabelle Etienvre, General Administrator of CEA, Julie Galland, Director of Technological Research at CEA, and Sébastien Dauvé, CEO of CEA-Leti, the ceremony welcomed representatives from the eleven partners of the FAMES consortium, including imec, Fraunhofer-Gesellschaft, VTT, CEZAMAT WUT, Tyndall National Institute, Silicon Austria Labs, UCLouvain, Grenoble INP-UGA, SiNANO Institute and the University of Granada. Representatives from national public authorities, the European Commission and the Chips Joint Undertaking were also present.
A strategic infrastructure already in operation
Beyond its symbolic dimension, the inauguration highlighted a project that is already well underway. Running for the past two years, the FAMES Pilot Line is designed to accelerate the development and industrial validation of key semiconductor technologies for Europe.
At CEA-Leti, this ambition is exemplified by a new state-of-the-art cleanroom capability. The new facility is compatible with the latest generation of semiconductor pieces of equipment, including a potential EUV lithography tool. Ultimately, it will add 2,000 m² of cleanroom space, with 1,200 m² scheduled for delivery in 2026, and complementing the existing 11,000 m² of cleanroom facilities and supporting advanced 300 mm tools.
The deployment of FAMES-funded pieces of equipment is already in progress. To date, 28 tools have been installed at CEA-Leti, including the first one in the new cleanroom, while around 100 pieces of equipment are expected to be progressively deployed across the four FAMES hosting sites in France, Ireland, Finland and Austria.
Bridging research and industrial validation
Designed as a user-oriented infrastructure, the FAMES Pilot Line aims to bridge the gap between technological research and industrial needs by providing open access to technology platforms and accelerating technology transfer to industry.
Five key technologies structure the program: advanced FD-SOI transistors, embedded non-volatile memories (eNVM), 3D integration, RF components for 5G and 6G frequencies, and passive components for power management. These technologies are expected to support the needs of strategic markets such as automotive, telecommunications, Edge AI, Industry 5.0, healthcare and space.
During its first two years of operation, FAMES has already delivered promising technical results, including a first PDK to 10 nm FD-SOI node, enabling digital device performance evaluation, the integration of new ferroelectric memories and the development of innovative RF architectures, to name a few.
Embedding sustainability into semiconductor innovation
Sustainability is also a central component of the initiative. The infrastructure has been designed to support ambitious environmental objectives, including reduced energy consumption and optimised resource management. In parallel, the technologies developed within FAMES aim to enable more energy-efficient microelectronics.
With FAMES, Europe strengthens its ability to develop and industrialise next-generation semiconductor technologies while reinforcing collaboration between research organisations, industry and public authorities across the continent.
Contacts and contributors
Francine Papillon, FAMES Communication and Dissemination Head (CEA-Leti) and Estelle Fege (CEA-Leti)
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