Posco to develop xenon gas for Samsung Electronics wafer lines

[Provided by Posco]

South Korea¡¯s Posco and Samsung Electronics have agreed to jointly localize xenon gas necessary for employment in wafer fabrication process to lessen reliance on imports.

The two companies Thursday announced their signing of a memorandum of understanding on business cooperation in xenon gas for semiconductors.

Under the agreement, Posco will be responsible for the development of xenon production technology, production, and supply of the gas, while Samsung Electronics for quality certification and purchasing of the gas.

Posco plans to develop a facility to extract xenon from residual gas emitted from a large air separation unit at its steel mill at Gwangyang by the second half of next year, and then start producing of the gas in 2024 and supply it to Samsung Electronics.

Posco will increase production by gradually expanding the gas extraction facility to about 10 units at its steel mills in Pohang and Gwangyang by 2027.

Posco has multiple large air separation devices to produce oxygen, nitrogen, and argon required for its steelmaking process. The steelmaker has been seeking the localization of rare gases such as xenon, neon, and krypton by using the devices since 2019.

Posco said it will contribute to stabilizing the domestic supply chain of rare gases for industrial use by localizing xenon through cooperation with Samsung Electronics, following its successful localization of neon at the beginning of this year.

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