Lam Research opens Centre for Engineering in Bengaluru for semiconductor research

US-based semiconductor equipment provider Lam Research has opened a new India Centre for Engineering in Bengaluru to carry out research and development, engineering, and testing of wafer fabrication hardware and software used in the creation of memory components such as DRAM, NAND, and logic technologies. 

This is Lam’s third facility in India. It has two other facilities, also located in Bengaluru, which focus on software and hardware engineering and provide support to the company’s global manufacturing operations. 

According to Lam Research, the new centre will be equipped with design and testing equipment, which will allow their engineers in India to design, test, and validate new deposition and etch technologies on site. Until now, they had to send the design for testing to other locations. This will shorten the design cycle significantly. At the new lab, Lam engineers can connect with their overseas colleagues in virtual reality (VR). 

In an interview with TechCircle, last month, Rangesh Raghavan, corporate vice president, and general manager of LAM Research India said that the company will open an R&D facility in India in September. 

“This important facility is an expansion of Lam’s R&D operations and will play a critical role in the creation of new technologies needed in a time of rising semiconductor manufacturing complexity,” Tim Archer, president, and CEO of Lam Research said in a statement. 

Archer pointed out that the new centre will allow the company to leverage the “tremendous pool of technical talent” in India. 

Semiconductor design and manufacturing-related activities have intensified in India after the central government announced the ₹76,000 crore PLI for chip design and fabrication. Vedanta Group has announced plans to set up manufacturing facilities in India. In June Applied Materials, another US based hardware and software provider to chip manufacturers, said it is investing $50 million to purchase land in Bengaluru to build an R&D lab. 

India can become one of the leading suppliers of materials, equipment, and services in the global semiconductor space by 2030, according to an April report by Indian Electronics and Semiconductors Association (IESA). The report shows that India can account for $85-100 billion of the $550-600 billion global semiconductor market by 2030.