The worldwide adoption of the FAMES technologies is undeniably linked to its key trade-off advantages in terms of Power, Performance, Area, Cost. But as chips become smaller and more complex, their production processes require increasingly sophisticated tools, materials, and infrastructure. The technology then has to be challenged from a sustainability perspective, as the question of environmental impacts has now to be addressed within the semiconductor manufacturing value chain: How to improve decision-making in microelectronics by taking into account environmental issues?

However, integrating sustainability in such a complex and rapidly evolving field, where competitiveness and industrial secret are standards, is no simple task. Indeed, environmental impacts are rarely accounted for, and the complexity of the value chain (taking into account process, equipment, infrastructure…) make it difficult to quantify environmental impacts of a product across its lifecycle.

The E-Score platform developed in FAMES aims to answer part of this challenge by providing robust methodologies and tools to give a view of the environmental impacts of FD-SOI from raw materials to manufacturing and promote the design of more sustainable FD-SOI.

The first major step in this direction is the implementation within FAMES of Life Cycle Assessment (LCA), a standardized approach to quantify the environmental impacts, adapted to the specificities of microelectronics. With the implantation of the new Pilot line, digitalisation of clean room and equipment information combined to the R&D environment, where the possibilities of eco-design are maximised due to the early stage of development, there is an unmissable opportunity to help microelectronics evolve in a more sustainable way.

By using a hybrid approach, combining Bottom-Up data from equipment and process, to Theoretical models and Top-Down data from infrastructure, it will be possible, inside the FAMES pilot line, to assess the environmental impacts of the production of new microelectronics components, even at early-stage of development. Furthermore, analysing the environmental hotspots and combining them with the technical expertise already existent will allow the possibility to take more responsible decision with regard to the environmental responsibility of this industry.

This methodology includes 16 categories of environmental impact, such as impacts on climate change, natural resources availability, human health and ecosystem health, giving a more complete picture of the environmental impacts of microelectronics.

This LCA methodology is the first step of the future eco-design platform developed in FAMES. It will serve as the analytical backbone of the tool that will enable stakeholders to evaluate the environmental performance of different process and design options. The methodology also ensures that sustainability becomes a shared, measurable parameter across the value chain. To consolidate this vision, three of the main actors in the European microelectronics R&D sector are working together to share their knowledges and vision.

In the next phases of FAMES, the LCA methodology will support the development of an E-score for designers to evaluate the environmental impacts of FD-SOI technologies. This tool will guide the design of more sustainable manufacturing routes and support decision-making for process optimisation.

This work aims to provide a generic, transferable platform for engineers and FAMES partners that other fabs can adopt, helping to transform the industry toward a more sustainable microelectronic industry.