India Faces 'Missing Middle' in Semiconductor Value Chain, Warns Semiconductor Equipment Executive at IESA Vision Summit

The semiconductor ecosystem transforms raw silicon into powerful chips through interconnected stages. It begins with design, where engineers use EDA tools and IP cores to architect circuits for specific applications (fabless firms specialize here). Next comes wafer fabrication (front-end manufacturing) in advanced foundries, layering transistors via deposition, lithography, etching, and doping. Finally, assembly, packaging, and testing (back-end) cut wafers into dies, enclose them in protective packages, and rigorously test functionality ensuring reliability before integration into devices. This collaborative chain drives innovation across industries.

Semiconductor equipment and materials are the backbone of chip production. Precision tools (like lithography, deposition, and etching systems) enable nanoscale patterning, while advanced materials (wafers, photoresists, gases, precursors) determine performance, yield, and efficiency. Without cutting-edge equipment and materials, innovation in smaller, faster, more power-efficient chips stalls, impacting AI, 5G, EVs, and every modern technology.

India's focus on semiconductor equipment and materials has intensified under India Semiconductor Mission (ISM) 2.0, launched in the 2026–27 Union Budget with ₹1,000 crore allocation. Shifting from fab-centric ISM 1.0, ISM 2.0 prioritizes indigenous production of equip...