Gigaphoton has introduced a neon gas recycling system capable of recovering approximately 50% of neon used in DUV lithography, addressing critical fab supply constraints.

Japanese semiconductor lithography tool maker Gigaphoton has developed a neon gas recycling system named hTGM for its argon fluoride (ArF) excimer lasers, demonstrating a 50% recycling rate. The company believes the rate can be substantially improved through configuration adjustments. The development addresses a critical gap in the chip supply chain created when Russia's invasion of Ukraine in 2022 shut down production from major neon refiners that previously supplied up to 50% of the semiconductor industry's neon gas. Roughly 70% of global neon production is consumed in semiconductor manufacturing, particularly in advanced DUV lithography processes.

In response to the disruption, China, Taiwan, and South Korea expanded domestic neon production and integrated recycling systems into their fabrication processes. Gigaphoton's more efficient ArF lasers with neon recycling capability could further strengthen these closed loops, reducing material costs and lessening dependence on volatile global supply chains.

Gigaphoton is not alone in pursuing this avenue. Japanese environmental protection company Kanken Techno demonstrated a neon recycling system for excimer lasers at SemiCon Taiwan in early September, achieving recycling rates exceeding 90% and suggesting substantial room for further optimization.

Neon is a noble gas—inert and easy to handle—but it vaporizes readily with limited bonding ability, making it naturally scarce in Earth's atmosphere. It is most efficiently recovered through fractional distillation of super-cooled air, typically as a byproduct of other industrial processes. For decades, Ukrainian steel mills with large-scale air-separation units produced crude neon, which two key domestic companies then refined. When those refiners ceased operations in 2022, the shortage reverberated globally.

In response, South Korea accelerated domestic production and launched a national neon recycling initiative centered on in-fab recovery. Taiwan installed purification systems in existing blast-furnace air-separation units to develop its own domestic supply chain, targeting complete self-sufficiency within years. China integrated neon purification into its steel and petrochemical production infrastructure. The United States developed new air-separation units at Gulf-coast petrochemical facilities, though meaningful improvements to American neon supplies are not expected until the end of the decade.

Lithography accounts for approximately 70% of global neon consumption, particularly in advanced DUV processes—though notably not in EUV lithography, which uses tin-plasma lasers instead. As global DUV semiconductor production accelerates with the AI buildout, neon supply has become a critical component of chip supply chains that increasingly represent strategic defense and trade assets.

For manufacturers unable to directly control their supply chains, recycling has become an immediate priority. The first neon recycling systems qualified for use with Cymer excimer ArF lasers arrived in late 2023, and Samsung and SK Hynix became the first major memory makers to implement neon recycling in 2024. Gigaphoton previously offered neon recycling with KrF (krypton fluoride) lasers and has now extended the capability to ArF lasers. The company claims a single hTGM unit for ArF can reduce annual neon consumption by up to 470 kilolitres, translating to substantial cost savings and reduced reliance on unstable supply chains.

However, the 50% recycling rate is not unprecedented. Cymer's excimer laser neon recovery system demonstrated the same efficiency in 2015, and Gigaphoton's own testing suggested potential ArF recovery peaks exceeding 90% in 2017—implying the company should be able to ramp up performance more rapidly. This is especially relevant given that Kanken Techno recently unveiled a recycling system with over 90% efficiency, currently progressing through the certification process with expected approval in the near term.

As neon recycling in chip production becomes effectively solved through multiple technical approaches, the shortage may prove temporary. But the solution itself may be as well. EUV lithography, which builds significantly more complex chips than DUV and requires no neon gas for excimer lasers, represents the industry's future path as more advanced electronics adopt higher-capability chip designs. Emerging alternative technologies promise to generate the same DUV light for advanced semiconductor production without relying on noble or toxic gases.

Solid-state laser technologies have developed rapidly in recent years, though current Chinese efforts remain below required industrial power thresholds. Nanoimprint lithography also shows promise as a DUV alternative while potentially reducing costs by roughly 90%. Substantial performance and certification hurdles remain, along with integration challenges across existing fabrication and supply chains. Nevertheless, the potential exists to dramatically reduce neon requirements in semiconductor lithography. Over the coming years, neon recycling systems combined with alternative manufacturing techniques could reduce reliance on international neon sources to a fraction of current levels.