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Wednesday 2 September 2026
Keywave Technology innovative radar sensors spark a smart sensing revolution
Keywave Technology is a fabless semiconductor company founded in December 2022 that specializes in radio frequency (RF) integrated circuit (IC) design and advanced radar sensing solutions. Capitalizing on the explosive growth of Edge AI and opportunities for technological innovation, the company builds ultra-low-power microwave radar chips, modules and spatial sensing devices to track multiple targets with centimeter-level precision spatial positioning applications.Keywave Technology currently business focuses primarily on the UK market, where it has achieved significant success in projects spanning lighting, energy-saving systems, HVAC optimization, and smart applications involving precise occupancy tracking, smart environmental sensing and human-machine interaction.Jenny Cheng, founder and CEO of Keywave, established an office in Zhubei as early as 2023 and marked a strategic expansion into Taiwan's core semiconductor and electronics ecosystem. Recognized strong growth of Taiwan’s electronics manufacturing and semiconductor market, she formally launched an "Asia Business Division" team in 2026 with over 20 members.Following collaboration and engagement with major Taiwanese electronics manufacturing, and OEM/ODMs, Keywave has developed two radar sensor product lines, operating at 5.8 GHz and 24 GHz targeting markets such as AI robotics, smart spaces, smart buildings, automation, and edge AI sensing. Through proof-of-concept (PoC) initiatives and product design, the Keywave R&D team has focused on applications requiring high-precision spatial sensing and trajectory tracking. These innovative products, characterized by high accuracy, rapid sensing capabilities, energy efficiency, and cost-effectiveness. Now these solutions are being officially introduced to Taiwan’s industrial internet of things (IoT) and automation sector, paving the way for new business opportunities.MP Kan, VP of Technology and CTO at Keywave, outlined the shortcomings of traditional microwave radar and infrared (PIR) sensing technologies. Benchmarked against radar devices from leading global analog integrated circuits (ICs) manufacturers, he identified the primary drawbacks of these existing solutions: false detections leading to unintended activations, a technical inability to detect motionless objects or resting human bodies, and issues regarding high costs and excessive power consumption.In contrast, Keywave KW007, the compact 5.8GHz ultra-low-power radar sensor, achieves exceptional efficiency by drawing only 30µA to 100µA of operating current, enabling continuous motion detection for years on a single AA battery depending on sensitivity and the selected detection distance.This exceptional energy efficiency relies on smart sensing algorithm with proprietary multi-dimensional "Space and Time" sensing technology. This approach differs from traditional radar designs, which utilize high-performance DSP chips and extensive memory, resulting in inflated costs and high power consumption.In June 2026, Kan was invited to France to attend the inaugural European Semiconductor FSNP Meetup. Held on June 4, 2026, at Château de Seguin near Bordeaux, this was an exclusive, invitation-only event for the semiconductor industry, co-hosted by the European chip R&D platform EuroCDP and Silicon Catalyst.EU. He presented this ultra-low-power microwave radar sensing technology based on time-and-space correlation algorithms. The technology’s key strength lies in its integration of proprietary "Spatial Intelligence" and trajectory tracking, enabling it to accurately distinguish actual human movement from environmental noise in dynamic settings. It currently supports a sensing range of up to 20 meters and effectively prevents false triggers caused by natural wind, indoor fans, vibrations, or environmental noise.By combining radar sensors with AI technology, Keywave KW307, a 24GHz human presence and occupancy sensing module, enables the development of advanced, intelligent applications capable of detecting not only people and objects but even micro-motions like typing, breathing, or minor gestures. Given the regulatory restrictions in EU’s General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) and California's CCPA/CPRA regarding the major concerns of camera-based systems capturing real-person images or personal identifiers, Keywave’s radar sensors have secured a significant market advantage by measuring motion, distance, and velocity.These microwave radar sensors facilitate applications such as office occupancy monitoring, object trajectory analysis, and climate and lighting control, while integrating seamlessly with the Industrial IoT devices, robotics, and smart home sectors to rapidly expand the scope of smart use cases. Kan also revealed that the next-generation radar sensor currently under development aims to push detection boundaries from a few hundred meters to several kilometers. This will explore the business potentials for deeper integration with drone and robotics applications to assist autonomous systems with spatial awareness and reliable presence detection in variable or low-light conditions.The most impressive technological breakthrough of Keywave Technology lies in its ability to achieve precise stationary presence detection and micro-motion tracking by analyzing the minute chest movements caused by breathing, even when a person is completely motionless. The current popular demonstration of Smart Spaces include powering privacy-compliant occupancy tracking for automated lighting and optimized HVAC adjustments. There are more use cases in the industrial controlling and detecting systems.The company is currently actively forging partnerships across various sales channels, including IC distributors, ODM/OEM manufacturers, and system integrators. In addition to offering engineering evaluation kits, development boards and support to technical teams, Keywave is seeking strategic partners to collaborate closely on the co-design of new applications with hardware and software system integrators.For further viewing the ultra-low-power radar porducts of Keywave, the company will exhibit at Microelectronics UK 2026, taking place at ExCeL London on September 29–30, 2026. The showcasing booth stand is located at Stand G16, ExCeL London, Royal Victoria Dock. At Keywave, we have been working on exciting new developments designed to help our partners navigate complex engineering challenges, optimize performance, and drive innovation. Visiting our booth will give you an exclusive look at our latest product demonstrations, upcoming technology roadmap, and a chance to speak directly with our technical experts.Credit:Keywave TechnologyKeywave radar sensor accurately tracks and records the movement trajectories of individuals.Credit:Keywave Technology
Tuesday 1 September 2026
Rising Packaging Complexity Elevates Glass in Semiconductor Manufacturing
As transistor scaling becomes more difficult and costly, advanced packaging has become one of the most important paths for extending Moore's Law. Technologies such as 2.5D integration, 3D ICs, chiplets, and heterogeneous integration allow the semiconductor industry to continue improving system-level performance by bringing more functions, memory, and interconnects closer together inside increasingly sophisticated package architectures.The rise of artificial intelligence is accelerating this shift. AI accelerators, high-bandwidth memory, and large-scale computing systems require higher bandwidth, lower latency, better power efficiency, and greater integration density. As a result, advanced packaging is no longer simply a back-end process consideration. It is becoming a central technology platform for enabling next-generation computing performance.This transition is also changing the role of materials. In advanced packaging, materials do more than provide mechanical support. They influence manufacturability, warpage control, dimensional stability, interconnect density, electrical performance, yield, and long-term reliability. As package architectures become larger and more complex, glass is drawing greater attention as a potential materials platform for demanding semiconductor packaging environments.Corning is among the materials suppliers addressing these requirements, drawing on its experience in glass formulation, dimensional control, and high-volume manufacturing to develop glass-based solutions for advanced packaging.Materials Move to the Center of Advanced PackagingAs advanced packaging becomes more central to semiconductor evolution, its technical challenges also become more difficult to manage. Larger package sizes increase the risk of warpage and mechanical distortion. Higher interconnect density requires finer patterning and more stable electrical behavior. The integration of chiplets, HBM stacks, interposers, and heterogeneous components creates more complex physical architectures, where differences in materials, thermal behavior, and mechanical stress must be carefully controlled. At the same time, manufacturers must maintain tighter tolerances and higher yields across increasingly demanding process flows.These pressures are making materials a more decisive factor in advanced packaging. Next-generation packages must not only connect more components in a smaller, denser space; they must also maintain electrical performance, structural stability, thermal reliability, and dimensional precision throughout manufacturing and operation. As AI packages continue to scale in complexity and functionality, the materials used in carriers, substrates, and other packaging structures can directly influence what can be manufactured efficiently and what can perform reliably at scale.In this environment, conventional materials may face limitations. Maintaining both dimensional stability and interconnect density becomes more difficult as package sizes grow. If a material cannot preserve flatness, surface quality, and mechanical stability across increasingly demanding process flows, it can affect bonding, patterning, alignment, and ultimately yield.That is why glass is gaining relevance in semiconductor applications. Glass offers potential advantages in flatness, dimensional stability, surface quality, and precision processing. These attributes are especially important as advanced packaging moves toward larger form factors, thinner wafers, and higher-density integration.Glass Carriers Support ManufacturabilityOne of the most immediate applications of glass in semiconductor manufacturing is as a carrier substrate supporting thin-wafer processing for HBM, 3D stacking, and other advanced packaging technologies. As wafers become thinner to support HBM and 3D stacking, manufacturers face growing challenges in warpage control, wafer handling, and yield.Thin wafers can be fragile and difficult to process without temporary support, especially during thinning, bonding, redistribution, and fan-out processing. Glass carriers can help address these challenges by providing a stable, highly flat supporting platform. In advanced packaging, a carrier must hold the wafer securely,  maintain dimensional stability through demanding process conditions, and also support precise handling and release without introducing additional process risk.Glass offers potential advantages in flatness, dimensional stability, surface quality, and precision processing.Corning's advanced packaging carriers are designed for temporary bonding in advanced semiconductor packaging processes, including silicon wafer thinning, fan-out packaging, and advanced 2.5D/3D packaging. The company's carrier portfolio includes both standard glass carriers and advanced packaging carriers, reflecting the need to support different levels of process complexity across the semiconductor manufacturing flow.For manufacturers, the value of glass carriers lies in enabling more stable, high-yield processing. By providing flatness, stability, and precision, glass carriers can help reduce warpage and handling challenges in increasingly demanding packaging environments. This makes them an important enabling material for the production side of advanced packaging.Glass Core Technology Targets Performance at ScaleWhile glass carriers address the immediate manufacturability challenges of thin-wafer processing, glass core substrates point to a longer-term shift in package architecture. As AI and high-performance computing packages become larger and integrate more chiplets, HBM stacks, and high-density interconnects, conventional organic substrates can face increasing pressure from warpage, dimensional variation, and electrical limitations. Glass is therefore being evaluated not only as a temporary process support, but also as a potential structural platform for next-generation packages.The technical appeal lies in glass's dimensional stability, flatness, and ability to support finer interconnect geometries. These properties can help package designers increase interconnect density, improve layer-to-layer alignment, and build larger system-in-package structures while maintaining tighter process control.Corning's own activities show that glass has already moved beyond laboratory research in adjacent advanced-packaging processes. Its high-precision glass carriers are used for temporary bonding in wafer thinning, fan-out processing, and advanced 2.5D and 3D packaging.According to Corning, the company has shipped hundreds of thousands of carrier wafers to top-tier customers, that include foundries, HBM manufacturers, and outsourced semiconductor assembly and test providers. Corning also offers glass carriers across a range of coefficients of thermal expansion and says its advanced packaging carriers can reduce in-process warpage by as much as 40%.Carrier applications are distinct from permanent glass core substrates. The combination of production-oriented carrier deployments provides practical evidence of the industry's broader direction. As packages become larger and more tightly integrated, glass is emerging as a materials platform that could support both near-term process stability and longer-term opportunites in package density, electrical performance, and scalability."What we're seeing across the ecosystem is growing recognition that advanced packaging challenges cannot be solved through design alone," said Eric Chiang, Business Development Director, Packaging & Wafers, Corning Incorporated. "Materials innovation is becoming an increasingly important contributor to overall package performance and manufacturability."Corning Brings Glass Expertise to Advanced PackagingCorning's role in semiconductor packaging builds on decades of display glass leadership and a 175-year legacy in materials science. Capabilities in precision glass formulation, ultra-flat surfaces, dimensional stability, surface quality, tight process control, and high-volume manufacturing are increasingly relevant as advanced packages become larger, thinner, and more complex.Glass carriers and glass core technology give Corning two complementary paths into this market. Carriers support thin-wafer handling, warpage control, process stability, and yield. Glass core technology is being explored to address longer-term needs for larger package formats, finer interconnects, and improved electrical performance.Through close collaboration with semiconductor ecosystem partners and customers, Corning has developed a clear understanding of how advanced packaging is evolving. The company is applying that insight, together with its glass science and manufacturing expertise, to develop materials solutions that support the industry's next generation of packaging performance and manufacturability.
Monday 31 August 2026
Tescan Connects Buried Defect Localization to Nanoscale Analysis at SEMICON
Tescan will participate in SEMICON Taiwan 2026 from September 2 to 4 at Booth R8201, 4F, Taipei Nangang Exhibition Center Hall 2 (TaiNEX 2). Under the theme "Streamlined Failure Analysis for Advanced Packaging," Tescan will present a correlative workflow that connects defect localization, rapid access to regions of interest (ROIs), site-specific sample preparation, and nanoscale characterization.Chiplet architectures, heterogeneous integration, advanced packaging, high-bandwidth memory (HBM), and wide-bandgap power devices are increasing structural complexity and introducing more diverse material stacks. As critical defects are often buried within packages or devices, failure analysis (FA) laboratories need an efficient end-to-end workflow that preserves sample context from non-destructive inspection through root-cause analysis.From Defect Localization to Nanoscale AnalysisTescan structures the workflow across four stages: Inspect, Access, Prepare, and Analyze. Tescan UniTOM HR 2 micro-CT provides non-destructive 3D imaging of internal package structures, warpage, and potential defects. Tescan FemtoChisel then uses gas-assisted femtosecond laser processing to expose buried ROIs, followed by precise cross-sectioning and sample preparation with Tescan SOLARIS X 2 plasma FIB-SEM under real-time SEM guidance. Tescan TENSOR 4D-STEM completes the workflow with nanoscale structural and materials characterization.By maintaining defect location and sample context across successive stages, the integrated workflow reduces repeated localization, rework, and unnecessary sample transfers. This helps R&D, process engineering, yield enhancement, and high-volume manufacturing (HVM) teams shorten time-to-answer and improve confidence in analytical results.Femtosecond Laser Processing Accelerates Workflows for Large, Complex SamplesDesigned for semiconductor sample preparation and failure analysis, Tescan FemtoChisel supports cross-sectioning, decapsulation, delayering, cavity preparation, and large-volume material removal. Gas-assisted femtosecond laser processing increases throughput while preserving the structural integrity and surface quality required for downstream high-resolution SEM, FIB-SEM, or TEM/STEM characterization.FemtoChisel Forum Presentation: From Hours to MinutesOn 2026, September 4 from 15:05 to 15:30, Hervé Macé, Semiconductor Solution Sales Development Director at Tescan, will present at the Semiconductor Advanced Inspection and Metrology Forum in Room 402 on the fourth floor of TaiNEX 1.Tescan FemtoChisel: From Hours to Minutes: High-Throughput Gas-Assisted Femtosecond Laser Workflows for Advanced Semiconductor Analysis and CharacterizationThe presentation will highlight how gas-assisted femtosecond laser processing accelerates sample preparation for large structures and complex material stacks while maintaining the quality required for downstream high-resolution characterization.Explore the Workflow at Booth R8201Tescan will host SPIN. MATCH. ENJOY. at Booth R8201 from 10:00 on 2026, September 2 and 3. Visitors can match Tescan technologies with their signature drinks while learning how non-destructive inspection, laser-based ROI access, and FIB-SEM sample preparation work together. Tescan specialists will also be available to discuss real-world failure analysis challenges and application requirements. Learn moe about Tescan at SEMICON Taiwan 2026 here.