SK hynix to refocus on hybrid bonding, advanced packaging in coming years

SK hynix focused on advanced packaging tech for high-demand HBM, aiming to meet AI market needs.

Lee Gyu-jei, who heads packaging development at SK hynix, poses for a photo. [YONHAP]

SK hynix, the world's second-largest maker of memory chips, said Monday that it will focus on developing advanced packaging technologies for next-generation high bandwidth memory (HBM), aiming to solidify its leadership position in the booming artificial intelligence (AI) market.

HBM is in high demand, particularly for U.S. chip giant Nvidia's GPUs, which are key components of AI. SK hynix leads that market with its fifth-generation HBM3E. The latest 12-layer HBM3E products are scheduled to enter mass production in the third quarter.

The production of HBM involves the stacking of multiple dynamic random access memory chips, creating technologies essential to address challenges such as heat dissipation and warpage.

Lee Gyu-jei, who heads packaging development at SK hynix, highlighted the importance of next-generation packaging products like hybrid bonding. These technologies are designed to allow for higher chip stacking and boost performance and capacity while keeping product thickness within standard specifications.

“Although heat control is still a challenge due to the narrower gap between the chips, these new packaging technologies are expected to solve the issue and meet the increasingly diverse performance needs of customers,” Lee said in an interview with the company's newsroom, emphasizing that the timely development of such technologies is crucial to meeting the diverse needs of the market.

Lee attributed SK hynix's leadership in the HBM market to its development of key packaging technologies, including mass reflow-molded underfill (MR-MUF), which was introduced with HBM2E in 2019. MR-MUF injects a liquid protective material between stacked chips, significantly reducing heat.

He called the mass production of HBM2E with MR-MUF a “game changer” in the HBM market that had helped SK hynix lead the industry in the face of the AI era.

For its fifth-generation HBM3E, particularly the latest 12-layer iteration, SK hynix has developed Advanced MR-RUF packaging technology, aiming to enhance heat dissipation for an increased number of stacked chips.

Advanced MR-MUF allows for chip stacking that is 40 percent thinner than previous generations with less heat and warpage.

Lee noted that Advanced MR-MUF will be applied to a wider range of applications in an effort to further solidify SK hynix's lead in the HBM space.

The company plans to ship 12-layer HBM4 in the second half of next year and is preparing for a 16-layer HBM4 in 2026, depending on customer demand.

“SK hynix will continue to enhance its existing Advanced MR-MUF with excellent heat dissipation performance while also securing new technologies,” he said.

Yonhap