Abstract:

In recent years, the semiconductor industry has faced chip shortages, rising costs, and geopolitical
tensions, which have highlighted the need for efficient production of advanced technologies and
provided insights into supply chain disruptions and economic growth. This review explains the silicon
chip development process and offers a comprehensive analysis of wafer manufacturing's overall
process and global and Indian market contribution. We begin with an overview of the semiconductor
sector's involvement in the global and Indian economies and different approaches to silicon wafer
manufacturing such as front-end and back-end processes also from wafer manufacturing to chip
design to fabrication to ATMP to storage and distribution part with a broad view of process flow.
Moreover, we identify important gaps in the literature and propose future research directions,
emphasizing the need for a bird view of semiconductor process flow and future technologies'
contribution to making production easy and reliable. Our analysis contributes to the ongoing
discussion on how the semiconductor manufacturing process is made more efficient to overcome all
these problems which helps to maintain the stability in the Indian and global semiconductor market.

Keywords: Fabrication, Assembly, Testing, packaging, chip design, storage and distribution

Introduction:

The semiconductor industry is a cornerstone of modern technology, driving innovation across various
sectors such as computing, telecommunications, automotive, and consumer electronics. Over recent
years, the industry has faced significant challenges, including supply chain disruptions, geopolitical
tensions, and fluctuating demand. Despite these obstacles, the semiconductor market has shown
remarkable resilience and growth, particularly with the rise of artificial intelligence (AI), high-
performance computing, and automotive electronics (Ou, S., Yang, Q., & Liu, J. ,2024).

Central to this industry is silicon, a material renowned for its unique properties as both a conductor
and an insulator. Silicon's ability to function as a semiconductor arises from its crystalline structure,
which can be manipulated to alter its electrical conductivity. At a fundamental level, pure silicon is an
insulator due to its stable atomic arrangement. However, through a process called doping—adding
small amounts of impurities can conduct electricity. This dual capability makes silicon indispensable
in the production of integrated circuits and microchips (Z. Li, Waldron, & Detchprohm, 2013)

Semiconductors provide the technological base for innovation and change in nearly every area of the
global economy. Even though the semiconductor business experienced a cyclical a downturn in the
second half of 2022, sales risen to a high of $574 billion in 2022, representing a 3.3% gain over 2021.
The newly released 2022 Semiconductor End-Use Survey study, issued by the World Semiconductor
Trade Statistics (WSTS) organization, suggests a significant shift in the industry. Normally, the
PC/computer and communication sectors dominated the semiconductor chips industry, accounting
for two-thirds of total sales, but in 2022, they experienced significant growth in automotive and
industrial applications, indicating a variety of market drivers.

On another side from 2005 to 2030 Indian semiconductor market has been growing at its own
strength and because of government of India support on domestic demand basis. According to a
joint report by the India Electronics and Semiconductor Association, India’s semiconductor
consumption has grown steadily from $18.12 billion in 2009 to $22 billion in 2019 and is projected to
reach $64 billion by 2026, reflecting a robust CAGR of 16%. By 2030, consumption is expected to
nearly double again, reaching $110 billion and positioning India to account for approximately 10% of
global semiconductor demand. This growth underscores India's strategic role in the global
semiconductor supply chain, driven by rising domestic manufacturing and digitalization efforts. The
market is expected to rise to $64 billion in 2026 and $110 billion in 2030 with telecommunication,
consumer electronics, and IT hardware industries as major growth contributor. Key enablers are the
India Semiconductor Mission and formation of strategic partnerships at the global level, to establish
India as a leader in semiconductor manufacturing and research. This is being done to advance
structures in technology, decrease reliance on imports and create a strong semiconductor market
which will play a very major role in global use of semiconductors.

It is forecasted, that from the beginning of 2023 through 2027, the number of new fabs globally will
increase by 103: 80 for the 300mm wafers and 23 for the 200mm wafers. Of these, 43 are under
construction 22 are in early operation and 14 are in the equipping stage. Capital expenditure on
300mm fab equipment on global level is expected to cross $ 137 billion in 2027 for by demand of
HPC & automotive segments. Worldwide Fab equipment spending is estimated to reach $097 billion
in 2024 and $116.5 billion in 2025, and $130.5 billion in 2026. The foundry segment is expected to
reach $79.1 billion in the same time horizon, although the memory segment is expected to reach
$41.5 billion.

In parallel, India's semiconductor industry is making significant strides with the establishment of
three new manufacturing units: A Tata Electronics Private Limited (TEPL) & Powerchip Semiconductor
Manufacturing Corporation (PSMC) fab for assembling at Dholera, Gujarat Technical Semiconductors
& Assembly Test manufacturing Pvt Ltd for Morigaon, Assam ATMP unit and CG Power Tata
Semiconductor Assembly and Test Ltd ATMP unit Sanand, Gujarat. These projects which should start
production by 2026 dramatically increase India’s semiconductor capabilities to create 20,000 direct
high-tech jobs and indirect 60,000 jobs. The Indian government has aggressively announced funding
for semiconductor manufacturing for which it is providing heavy fiscal incentives to investors. More
so, the construction of a new facility by Micron in Gujarat, which is expected to commence operation
in 2025, will add onto India’s semiconductor industry. Within the compass of next 7 years, that is by
2026, the semiconductor industry in India is expected to provide above 300000 jobs making reliable
the designing of India as the global semiconductor manufacturing destination.

Growth in automotive and industrial applications has resulted in these sectors emerging as the
fastest-growing markets for semiconductor applications in the calendar year 2022, which is
consistent with increasing chip accessibility in advanced manufacturing, electric vehicles, and
intelligent infrastructure systems. According to McKinsey, these areas will improve average chip sales
growth by 14% and 12% until 2030, respectively. This strong demand expectation has prompted
significant investments in semiconductor manufacturing, with upwards of $200 billion set aside for
increased production capacity in the United States.

While the global market appears to be swinging in surprising ways in the near term, long-term
demand growth for semiconductors emphasizes their critical role in driving innovation into the
future. Today, semiconductors power various applications, from consumer electronics and
automotive systems to aerospace and medical devices (Zhang, 2024). As the global semiconductor
industry grows, demand is rising for high-performance technologies such as artificial intelligence (AI),
high-performance computing, and autonomous systems (Naser, 2022). Advanced manufacturing and
testing methodologies are now essential to ensure reliability and performance in increasingly
complex, miniaturized devices. Industry 5.0 initiatives integrate AI and smart sensor technology to
create efficient, sustainable production processes (Naresh et al., 2024). Innovations are also
expanding in optoelectronic devices, such as LEDs and lasers, widely used in communication and
medical fields, with an estimated market value of $20 billion annually (Goodfellow, 1991; Leech &
Ressel, 2003).