Alpha Holdings Signs Contract for 8nm MPW Project Design Service

[Asia Economy Reporter Hyunseok Yoo] Alpha Holdings announced on the 2nd that it signed an MPW design service contract for an 8nm process with its subsidiary Alpha Solutions on the 29th of last month.

MPW is a service that fabricates prototype chips of client companies on a single wafer and provides them. This contract is for the 8nm verification of HDMI 2.1 and DP PHY IP being developed by Alpha Solutions.

This contract is expected to have a positive effect on both companies. Alpha Solutions has laid the groundwork for entering the 8nm semiconductor IP market through wafer verification. Alpha Holdings will be able to secure a fine process reference through the development of 8nm MPW. Additionally, it is expected to receive MPW production cost support from the Korea Semiconductor Research Association.

Alpha Solutions is a top-tier semiconductor IP development company in Korea, providing semiconductor IPs such as HDMI and LVDS to global clients including Japanese DTV companies and major Chinese semiconductor firms, based on differentiated design capabilities. Recently, it has been independently developing a high-performance 8nm HDMI IP and is now only one step away from silicon verification.

Alpha Solutions plans to verify the HDMI 2.1 and DP PHY IP under development through the 8nm MPW. It is expected to proactively secure 8nm semiconductor IP to enter the 8nm and 10nm semiconductor IP markets in the future.

HDMI is a video and audio standard used to transmit both video and sound through a single cable. The HDMI 2.1 product certification standard was finalized in 2020, and official certification has been underway since October. Accordingly, global electronics set manufacturers are preparing to launch products applying HDMI 2.1 in 2021.

In particular, as the era of 8K resolution is fully underway, demand for HDMI 2.1 IP is expected to surge. This is because HDMI 2.0 is limited to 4K resolution. HDMI 2.1 is anticipated to be adopted in many SoC products starting in 2021. Alpha Solutions plans to expand sales through entry into the HDMI 2.1 market.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.