Japanese materials and chemicals company Asahi Kasei has introduced the TA Series of Sunfort dry film photoresist, developed to support advanced semiconductor packaging used in rapidly expanding fields such as artificial intelligence (AI), automotive electronics, and the Internet of Things (IoT).
The new TA Series is designed to deliver ultra-high-resolution patterning capabilities using both conventional stepper exposure systems and laser direct imaging (LDI) technologies. It addresses a growing demand for finer, denser circuitry in the back-end processes of semiconductor manufacturing, particularly in panel-level packaging, which accommodates larger substrates than traditional wafer-level methods.
Asahi Kasei’s latest development reflects its strategic push within its Materials sector to expand its presence in the semiconductor packaging space. The Sunfort brand, a mainstay of the company’s Electronics business, plays a central role in this initiative. Under its medium-term management plan, Trailblaze Together, the company aims to achieve a 25% increase in operating profit between fiscal 2024 and 2027, in line with global growth in demand for electronic components.
Historically, liquid photoresists have been favored for forming redistribution layers (RDL) in semiconductor devices due to their superior resolution. Dry film photoresists, while easier to handle and better suited for panel-level processing, have struggled to match that resolution—until now. The TA Series bridges this gap by enabling fine resist patterning with a width of 1.0 µm on a 4 µm pitch design via LDI exposure. Subsequent plating using a semi-additive process (SAP) allows for the creation of conductive lines just 3 µm wide, suitable for high-density interconnects on package substrates and interposers.
“As semiconductor applications evolve rapidly, particularly in AI and next-generation computing, we recognized the need for precision, efficiency, and scalability,” said Yu Hasegawa, Managing Executive and Senior General Manager of the Electronics Interconnecting Materials Division at Asahi Kasei. “The TA Series is the result of close customer collaboration and years of R&D focused on practical manufacturing challenges.”
To support its expanding international customer base, Asahi Kasei is also enhancing its global support infrastructure, especially in Asia and North America, ensuring timely delivery of technical assistance and tailored solutions.
