三星電子會長李在鎔視察日本先進封裝研究中心

Samsung Electronics Chairman Lee Jae-yong reviews the status of packaging technology development at the Advanced Package Lab (APL) in Yokohama, Japan, on Nov. 1, alongside Hiroichi Kawahira, executive vice president and head of Samsung Electronics’ DS Research Japan (left of Lee), and Takashi Kariya, vice president and head of APL. (Photo: Samsung Electronics)

Samsung Electronics Chairman Lee Jae-yong visited the company’s Advanced Package Lab (APL), an advanced semiconductor packaging research center in Japan, on Nov. 1. It was his first on-site inspection since the facility officially opened two months ago. Lee discussed the progress of advanced packaging development and potential cooperation with major Japanese partners with APL researchers.

APL is an advanced packaging research center that Samsung Electronics opened in Yokohama, Japan, on Sept. 8. The company established a local entity in 2023 to build its research infrastructure in Japan. It plans to invest 40 billion yen over five years starting in 2024. APL focuses on research areas separate from those handled by the packaging research organization under Samsung’s semiconductor research center in South Korea. The two organizations work closely together.

APL serves to connect Japan’s advanced materials, components and equipment ecosystem. It plans to develop various next-generation process materials and technologies, ranging from wafer bonding to glass substrates. The center also intends to expand its role to developing new packaging architectures required for artificial intelligence (AI) semiconductors.

Samsung Electronics plans to steadily increase APL’s research workforce and develop the facility into a global research and development (R&D) hub. Yokohama, a major city near Tokyo, is home to numerous leading universities and research institutions, providing favorable conditions for recruiting specialized talent. Companies involved in advanced packaging are also concentrated in the area.

“We will actively leverage Yokohama’s talent pool and its industry, academic and research infrastructure,” Samsung Electronics said. “We will develop APL into a research collaboration hub that connects Japanese materials and equipment companies with Samsung Electronics’ semiconductor technology capabilities.”