LG Innotek has unveiled an embedded flip-chip ball grid array (FC-BGA) substrate with silicon capacitors integrated inside the package substrate for artificial intelligence chips. The company is also developing technology to embed active devices and bridges. Demand for embedded substrates, particularly FC-BGAs, is growing as higher-performance AI chips require more stable power delivery.

LG Innotek displayed FC-BGA samples with embedded silicon capacitors at KPCA Show 2026, held at Songdo Convensia in Incheon on Sept. 9. The company showed two structures, with silicon capacitors embedded in either the substrate’s core layer or buildup layer.

The core-layer structure accommodates relatively thick, high-capacitance silicon capacitors. The buildup-layer structure embeds thinner silicon capacitors to reduce overall substrate thickness. LG Innotek said the location and specifications of the embedded silicon capacitors can be varied depending on the semiconductor and substrate design.

A silicon capacitor is a passive component made by forming dielectric and electrode layers on a silicon wafer. It stores power required by a semiconductor and supplies it instantaneously to suppress voltage fluctuations. Conventionally, capacitors are mounted on the substrate surface and deliver power to the chip through copper interconnects. Embedding capacitors inside the substrate shortens the power-delivery distance between the semiconductor and capacitor while freeing up mounting area on the substrate surface.

Silicon capacitors are particularly suited to stable power delivery at high frequencies because of their low equivalent series inductance (ESL). AI semiconductors operate at high speeds and can draw large amounts of power instantaneously. Lower ESL helps suppress voltage fluctuations.

Major silicon capacitor suppliers include Murata and Samsung Electro-Mechanics. TSMC also uses internally produced silicon-based deep trench capacitors (DTCs) in advanced packaging.

LG Innotek has been developing embedding technology for about a decade. It initially embedded multilayer ceramic capacitors (MLCCs) in flip-chip chip-scale packages (FC-CSPs). As the AI semiconductor market expanded, the company unveiled FC-BGA technology with embedded silicon capacitors in 2024 and began applying it to mass-produced products last year.

LG Innotek is also developing technology to embed active devices and bridges inside FC-BGAs, in addition to passive components such as silicon capacitors and inductors. Active devices directly control signals and power, while bridges connect multiple chips over short distances to support high-speed signal transmission. The goal is to expand the substrate’s role beyond simply connecting semiconductors to the mainboard.

“We have applied embedding technology for about 10 years, beginning with passive components inside FC-CSPs,” an LG Innotek official said. “It is attracting renewed attention as FC-BGAs become more advanced.”

“In the past, substrates simply served as a medium for transmitting signals, but they are now evolving to provide functionality themselves by incorporating silicon capacitors, inductors and other components,” the official said. “Moving components from the substrate surface to the inside gives customers greater design flexibility and enables thinner products.”

Simmtech is showcasing next-generation semiconductor substrate technologies, including Small Outline Compression Attached Memory Module (SOCAMM) for artificial intelligence servers, at KPCA Show 2026, held Sept. 9-11 at Songdo Convensia in Incheon.

Key products on display include SOCAMM, next-generation Low Power Compression Attached Memory Module (LPCAMM), enterprise solid-state drive (SSD) modules and Compute Express Link (CXL) memory modules.

Simmtech is the largest supplier of module printed circuit boards (PCBs) and memory semiconductor package substrates used in SOCAMM. Nvidia's Rubin CPU uses eight SOCAMMs, with each SOCAMM containing four low-power DRAM (LPDDR) packages. Simmtech supplies both SOCAMM module PCBs and LPDDR package substrates.

The company is also showcasing ultra-thin and ultra-fine substrate technologies, including Ultra-Thin Substrate, Hybrid Substrate, Small Via, Fine Bond Finger and Fine-Pitch/Dual-Size Small Outline Package (SOP) technologies.

Simmtech is displaying substrate technologies designed to address rising power consumption and heat generation in AI semiconductors. Bar Via, Chunk Via and Thick Cu Pattern technologies improve heat dissipation for high-power semiconductors. The company is also showcasing Rigid-Flex Substrate using Cu Post and Cavity technologies, as well as Wettable Flank substrates.

Simmtech is also presenting preliminary research on glass substrates, a technology that replaces conventional organic cores with glass. The technology can reduce warpage in large-area packages while facilitating ultra-fine wiring and improving signal integrity.

"The importance of substrate technology is greater than ever as the AI semiconductor market grows," a Simmtech official said. "Through this exhibition, we will share our next-generation semiconductor substrate technologies and future vision with customers and industry officials and strengthen our technology leadership in the global market."

TLB will introduce artificial intelligence (AI)-based smart manufacturing technologies at its printed circuit board (PCB) production plant in Ansan. The company will use AI to optimize production conditions and deploy autonomous mobile robots and other technologies on the factory floor.

Ansan City said Sept. 8 that it will develop TLB into a lead AI factory as part of its AI transformation (AX) demonstration industrial complex project at the Banwol and Sihwa National Industrial Complexes. The technologies will first be demonstrated at TLB’s Ansan plant before successful applications are expanded to other manufacturers in the industrial complexes.

The AX demonstration industrial complex project integrates AI and data into manufacturing processes to improve productivity, reduce costs and strengthen corporate competitiveness. A total of 28 billion won in central government, local government and private funding will be invested through 2028.

The project will also establish a manufacturing AI open lab where companies can directly test AI technologies. Universities and research institutions will analyze problems at manufacturing sites and develop and demonstrate the necessary technologies. An AX comprehensive support center will assess each company’s level of AI adoption and connect it with appropriate technologies and experts. Plans also call for a secure data zone where manufacturing, energy and logistics data can be used, as well as an integrated support platform linking manufacturers with AI technology companies.

“The Banwol and Sihwa industrial complexes have been a key foundation supporting Ansan’s industrial competitiveness, and we need to transform them into future-oriented industrial complexes through manufacturing innovation and improvements to working conditions,” Ansan Mayor Lee Min-geun said. “We will create a virtuous cycle in which production innovation using AI and data strengthens corporate competitiveness, while a better working environment attracts young people and talent.”

Simmtech is strengthening cooperation with key domestic and overseas suppliers. The company signed long-term supply agreements with some partners to address uncertainty in raw material procurement.

Simmtech said Sept. 8 that it held its 2026 Simmtech Supplier Day at the Sheraton Grand Incheon Hotel in Songdo. The event was attended by 34 representatives, including chief executives and sales executives, from 17 major domestic and overseas suppliers.

The company discussed joint responses to supply-chain issues with raw material and equipment suppliers and signed long-term supply agreements with some companies. Discussions covered mid- to long-term materials development roadmaps, production capacity expansion plans and measures to address raw material procurement. Working-level meetings were also held in procurement and sales, as well as marketing and development.

Following welcoming remarks by Simmtech CEO Chun Youngsun, executives from each business division gave presentations. The company shared its outlook for the semiconductor memory market and growth prospects for artificial intelligence (AI)-related businesses, the status of its global production bases, package substrate technology trends, manufacturing differentiation strategies and future investment plans. It also presented its business roadmap for SOCAMM, a next-generation memory module substrate for AI servers.

"As demand for AI semiconductors expands and the market for high-end substrates grows rapidly, strengthening the supply chain with key partners has become more important than ever," a Simmtech official said. "We will strengthen mutually beneficial cooperation based on long-term partnerships with our suppliers."

INTEKPLUS has won its first order for glass substrate inspection equipment from a Japanese customer, potentially expanding its substrate inspection business beyond flip-chip ball grid array (FC-BGA) substrates into glass substrates.

According to industry sources on Sept. 8, INTEKPLUS recently received an order from a major Japanese substrate maker for an automated optical inspection (AOI) system for glass substrate R&D. The equipment will be delivered in the second half of this year. The number of systems and the contract value were not disclosed. Given the outlook for the glass substrate market, the order could lead to longer-term business opportunities.

The equipment for Japan builds on INTEKPLUS’s existing substrate inspection technology, enhanced to accommodate the characteristics of glass substrates. Handling technology allows fragile glass to be transported and secured safely during inspection and is designed to work with the customer’s existing glass substrate handling solution. Inspection precision has also been improved to address increasingly fine circuit pitches as advanced packaging substrates become more highly integrated.

The system uses white light scanning interferometer (WSI) technology to measure the three-dimensional shape of glass substrates after plating and wiring processes. It inspects the height and shape of fine bumps, flatness and warpage. Surface defects such as cracks and chipping are detected through automated final visual inspection (AFVI). Precise inspection is particularly important as glass substrates become finer and larger, because even small variations in shape or defects can cause failures in subsequent processes.

INTEKPLUS also made an initial delivery of its next-generation FC-BGA inspection equipment to the same customer, along with an R&D-use panel three-dimensional (3D) inspection system. Both systems are designed for larger and finer substrates. Additional orders are expected as the customer increases production.

The customer is a Japanese semiconductor substrate manufacturer that produces FC-BGA substrates. It recently established a pilot line for advanced packaging and is developing technology to form redistribution layers (RDLs) and other structures on glass substrates or glass interposers after through-glass via (TGV) processing.

INTEKPLUS has conducted sample tests of glass substrates for major South Korean substrate makers and global customers. Using glass substrates produced by customers, the company verified the performance and applicability of its inspection equipment.

Existing INTEKPLUS substrate inspection equipment is also being used for glass substrate development. Two major South Korean substrate makers use existing INTEKPLUS systems at their research centers to inspect internally produced glass substrate samples. Because finished glass substrates have structures similar to FC-BGA substrates, existing 3D measurement and visual inspection technologies can be applied.

Demand is expected to expand from R&D systems to mass-production equipment once customers begin volume production of glass substrates. At the mass-production stage, throughput and handling of large substrates become important alongside inspection precision, increasing demand for new equipment. INTEKPLUS plans to expand sales of glass substrate inspection equipment, primarily to its existing FC-BGA customers.

“Japan is a market where customers have a strong preference for domestic equipment, making it difficult for foreign equipment suppliers to enter, but evaluations and initial deliveries of INTEKPLUS equipment have recently increased as substrates become larger,” an INTEKPLUS official said. “For glass substrates, we have already secured sufficient technology to perform inspections even with equipment previously supplied.”

Samyang Corp. said Sept. 8 that Ahn Tae-jin, a team leader at its Chemical R&D Center's Mobility Tech Center, received a Prime Minister's Commendation at the inaugural Technology Developers' Day ceremony hosted by the Ministry of Science and ICT. Ahn was recognized for leading the development of siloxane-based polycarbonate (Si-PC) compounds for automotive interiors and high-transmittance polycarbonate (PC) materials for automotive daytime running lights.

Ahn has led the development of Si-PC compounds for automotive interiors since 2017. Si-PC combines conventional PC with siloxane components, improving chemical resistance and low-temperature impact resistance, weaknesses of conventional PC. The material retains its impact strength even after exposure to chemicals during painting processes. It has also passed head impact tests, which evaluate safety when an occupant's head strikes interior vehicle components.

The material is currently used in large interior components such as center fascias and crash pads in South Korean vehicles, as well as ambient light covers. Samyang began supplying Si-PC to South Korean automakers in 2019. Cumulative sales through the first quarter of this year reached 10,000 tons, generating more than 50 billion won in revenue. The company has registered 14 related patents, two of which have been recognized as international patents in markets including the US, Japan, China and Europe.

Ahn also led the development of high-transmittance PC for automotive daytime running lights using an isosorbide-based light-transmission enhancer produced by Samyang Innochem. Isosorbide is made by chemically processing starch extracted from plant resources such as corn. When used in plastics, it improves weather resistance, durability and light transmittance. Development began in 2021, with commercial production starting in 2024.

Sales of the high-transmittance PC exceeded 130 tons last year. The material is used in optical components inside automotive headlamps and in optical parts for ambient lighting. It received New Excellent Technology (NET) certification from the Korean Agency for Technology and Standards under the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Resources in 2022. In January, it obtained certification from the Automotive Manufacturers Equipment Compliance Agency (AMECA) in the US. Samyang is pursuing entry into the US market based on the certification.

"The materials recognized through this award are meaningful in that they have strengthened the competitiveness of South Korea's automotive materials industry and contributed to greater self-reliance in materials," Ahn said. "We will continue to focus on developing differentiated materials and expanding commercialization."