Dongjin Semichem begins semiconductor thinner production at Killeen factory
Samsung's Taylor fab hiring for mass production transition
Pilot run expected as early as next month, full mass production set for next year
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Dongjin Semichem, a key semiconductor materials supplier to Samsung Electronics, has begun ramping up production of photoresist thinner at its US facility. The move comes as preparations to supply materials to Samsung's foundry factory in Taylor, Texas, take concrete shape — fueling expectations that the Taylor fab is drawing closer to full operation.
According to the US Federal Register, Dongjin Semichem's American subsidiary, Dongjin Semichem Texas (DST), filed a Notification of Proposed Production Activity with the US Commerce Department's Foreign-Trade Zones Board on Sept. 3, seeking authorization to produce semiconductor photoresist thinner at its factory in Killeen, Texas. The filing was officially published in the Federal Register on Sept. 10.
Dongjin Semichem established its US subsidiary in Texas in June 2022 and has since invested about 260 billion won ($188 million) to build thinner and high-purity sulfuric acid production facilities in Killeen. The company said in an investor relations briefing this year that its thinner factory, scheduled to begin mass production in the second half of 2026, would supply a foundry customer that had already secured large-scale orders for its local plant. That customer is Samsung Electronics' Taylor fab.
The photoresist thinner Dongjin Semichem plans to produce locally is a key chemical used in the photo process, which etches circuit patterns onto wafers. It is applied after a light-sensitive photoresist coating is spread across a wafer surface, washing away excess resist left along the edges.
With Samsung Electronics' Taylor foundry in Texas approaching its launch, local materials and equipment supply chains are also moving into position. Industry sources said the Taylor fab is expected to undergo a pilot run as early as early next month before moving into full-scale mass production next year.
Earlier, Han Jin-man, head of Samsung Electronics' foundry division, said during the second-quarter earnings call that "Taylor Fab 1 is on track and being prepared with the goal of commencing operation this year." Samsung held an equipment move-in ceremony at the site in April to kick off production line construction, and a tape-out — the step that transfers a chip design into actual wafer manufacturing — was completed in July. Industry sources said the pace of prototype production and mass production preparations has accelerated as customer demand, particularly for AI chips, grows rapidly.
Recent hiring activity also points to advancing mass production preparations at the Taylor fab. Samsung Electronics recently posted openings for quality and reliability engineers at Taylor Fab 1, explicitly listing the job scope as "transitioning the new Taylor fab from the qualification stage to the mass production stage." Those hires will be responsible for verifying process stability and production readiness ahead of the fab's mass production launch.
The Taylor fab is Samsung Electronics' primary production hub for its most advanced 2-nanometer foundry process. The facility is said to have reached full capacity even before commencing operation, with major orders secured from customers including Tesla for its next-generation AI chip "AI5," Broadcom for a next-generation networking semiconductor, and Arm for an AI chip targeting smart devices.
Yield rates are also climbing quickly. The 2-nanometer yield, which stood at around 60 percent earlier this year, has reportedly reached the 80 percent range needed for viable mass production, aided by yield stabilization on existing advanced processes such as 4-nanometer and 5-nanometer nodes.
Preparations for a second Taylor factory are also gaining momentum. Han said during the second-quarter earnings call that Samsung is "preparing to break ground on Taylor Fab 2 by the end of this year, targeting mass production in 2030, in order to respond in a timely manner to growing customer demand." Domestic partner companies are also reportedly moving ahead with equipment procurement for the second factory, which is targeting a year-end groundbreaking.
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