A fab factory is a manufacturing facility where raw wafers go through a difficult procedure to become integrated circuits (ICs).
A chip must go through 700–1,500 processes and over 500 machines run by a small number of global corporations, including up to 27 cycles of heating to over 1,100 degrees Celsius. Additionally, it needs around 300 gases and chemicals, including acetone and nitrogen, the majority of which must be imported at first, at least in India.
There are many distinct types of semiconductors, with silicon being the most popular. Others are known as compound semiconductors and are based on a mixture of components. These materials include silicon carbide and gallium nitride, which are frequently used in power electronics, vehicles, communications equipment, etc. They are small and more heat resistant.
Various steps involved in creating a chip – First, wafers made of 99.99 percent pure silicon are cut from a salami-shaped bar and polished to guarantee extraordinary smoothness, according to semiconductor maker ASML. On the wafer, conducting material thin sheets are deposited. Second, a photoresist coating made of light-sensitive material is applied to the wafers. UV- exposed regions undergo structural changes that facilitate simpler etching.
Then, they are subjected to lithography, a process that limits the size of the transistors that can be placed on a chip.
Fourthly, a 3D pattern of open channels is revealed on the wafer by having it engraved where it is baked. It makes a precise-depth cavity in the wafer. The wafer is then ionised, which aids in controlling the flow of electricity.
The chip is designed by businesses like Qualcomm or MediaTek, and foundries produce it. Due to the small number of players in the industry in India, the government has established a programme to aid in the development of domestic firms.