Chinese semiconductor equipment maker Advanced Micro-Fabrication Equipment (AMEC) announced six new equipment models on September 1, 2026, at CSEAC 2026 held in Wuxi, Jiangsu Province. The lineup consists of one etching tool, four thin-film deposition tools, and one silicon carbide (SiC) epitaxial growth tool.
Looking at the composition of these six models, a process sequence emerges. Taking the three tools aimed at 3D NAND, they connect the stages from stacking insulating films, to drilling narrow and deep memory holes, to filling metal into the wordlines at each layer. AMEC also added titanium/titanium nitride deposition for logic semiconductors and 8-inch SiC epitaxial growth for power semiconductors.
However, this does not mean all six models are entering mass production simultaneously. While the Primo XD-RIE's Beta unit has moved into customer evaluation, the evaluation status of the four individual thin-film deposition tools has not been disclosed.
Arranging the Six Tools by Process Step
Organizing the six announced tools by process step and overlaying the evaluation status confirmed through statutory disclosures up to the end of June 2026 yields the following picture. Because the statutory disclosure reference date is roughly two months earlier than the September announcement, it remains possible that evaluations have progressed further since then. Also, the number of wafers processed simultaneously merely reflects the tool's parallel configuration and cannot be used to compare speed across different models.
| Equipment | Process / Main Target | Published Specifications | Publicly Disclosed Evaluation Status |
|---|---|---|---|
| Primo XD-RIE | Ultra-high aspect ratio etching, 3D NAND/DRAM | Depth-to-width ratio of 70:1 to 90:1, low-temperature processing, multi-stage pulsed power | Alpha unit completed in-house continuous testing. Beta unit is under customer evaluation |
| Performo QuaStar ON | Oxide/nitride film stacking, 3D NAND | 4 reaction chambers × 4 stations, processes up to 16 wafers simultaneously | Announced as a new model. Customer evaluation of this specific model has not been disclosed |
| Performo QuaStar GE | Dielectric thin films, memory/logic | Supports SiO2, SiN, SiON, SiOC, SiC. Processes up to 12 wafers simultaneously across the tool | A related PECVD tool is under customer evaluation, but whether the model number matches has not been disclosed |
| Prefima Unicore AM | Molybdenum atomic layer deposition, 3D NAND wordline filling | 12-inch compatible, 4 stations, millisecond-level gas switching | Announced as a new model. Customer evaluation of this specific model has not been disclosed |
| Preforma Uniflash SPTi/TiN | Pre-clean before deposition, titanium/titanium nitride deposition, advanced logic and other applications | Up to 5 reaction chambers, 2-station configuration for a total of 10 stations | A related Ti tool is under customer evaluation. The TiN tool has completed evaluation for advanced logic applications, but in neither case has model number matching been disclosed |
| PRISMO PDS8 | High-temperature epitaxial growth, 8-inch SiC | Up to 4 reaction chambers processing 4 wafers simultaneously, vertical reactor | The semi-annual report states that a major domestic customer evaluated an unnamed new 8-inch SiC epitaxial tool on a mass-production line, and that AMEC received additional orders from that customer. Whether this matches PDS8 is unconfirmed |
When the six tools are categorized by process step and evaluation status, the 3D NAND stacked-film deposition, memory hole processing, and wordline filling tools form a connected sequence supplied by a single company. However, the only model for which customer evaluation of the specific tool can be confirmed from primary sources is the Primo XD-RIE. The SiC tool appears to correspond between the September-announced PDS8 and the "new 8-inch SiC epitaxial tool" mentioned in the semi-annual report, but the report does not include a product name. For the remaining thin-film tools, evaluation status can be traced only at the level of related categories—PECVD, Ti, and TiN—and cannot be definitively linked to the adoption record of each of the four newly announced models individually.
Whether evaluation status can be tied to a specific model name or only to a broader process category changes the significance of the announcement. AMEC has disclosed that as of the end of June 2026, it had shipped 54 types of equipment and installed a cumulative total of more than 8,800 process stations across more than 220 production lines. However, this is a company-wide cumulative figure, not the number of units delivered for the six models announced this time.
A Tool Lineup Spanning Three 3D NAND Process Steps
Rather than arranging memory cells on a flat plane, 3D NAND stacks insulating and sacrificial films alternately to form cells vertically. The more layers stacked, the more storage capacity can be obtained from the same footprint. On the other hand, the memory hole that penetrates the entire stack becomes narrower and longer, making it harder to keep the diameter and angle consistent between the top and bottom of the hole.
AMEC's 2025 annual report explains that 3D NAND with more than 200 layers is now in mass production, with memory hole depth-to-width ratios reaching 40:1 to 60:1 or higher. The 70:1 to 90:1 range targeted by the new Primo XD-RIE is a design range aimed at even higher layer counts going forward. It indicates neither an actual layer count nor a yield achieved on a customer line, but it does show that the tool targets shapes with a higher aspect ratio than previous generations.
The preceding process step is handled by the QuaStar ON. It processes stacks of oxide and nitride films in parallel across 4 reaction chambers and a total of 16 stations. If film thickness varies from layer to layer, it affects the subsequent memory hole etching and electrical characteristics, so simply increasing the number of wafers processed is not sufficient. Film thickness uniformity across stations, defect density, and continuous operating time before chamber cleaning all affect mass-production viability, but these figures have not been disclosed.
After the holes are drilled, the wordlines that serve as gates at each layer are formed. The Unicore AM is a tool that fills molybdenum using atomic layer deposition (ALD). Competitor Lam Research explains that at fine dimensions, molybdenum can lower resistance compared to conventional tungsten and potentially eliminate the need for adhesion and barrier layers. Lam claims its own tool achieves resistance improvements of over 50% and has been adopted for mass production at NAND fabs in South Korea and Singapore.
These figures are company-reported values specific to Lam's product, not a measure of the Unicore AM's performance. Rather, they indicate that the molybdenum ALD tool category is already in mass-production competition. AMEC needs to demonstrate not only the ability to deposit the material, but also gap-fill capability and resistance characteristics. Low defect density and stability during mass production will also be evaluation criteria at customer sites.
Four Thin-Film Tools Expand Sales Opportunities
Etching equipment has been AMEC's core business. Of the company's 2025 revenue of RMB 12.385 billion, etching equipment accounted for RMB 9.832 billion. In contrast, among the six models announced this time, four tools handle thin-film processes: two PECVD tools, one molybdenum ALD tool, and one integrated Ti/TiN tool.
The QuaStar GE targets silicon oxide and silicon nitride, as well as silicon oxynitride, carbon-doped silicon oxide, and silicon carbide. It is a tool for depositing dielectric thin films for memory and logic applications. The Uniflash SPTi/TiN integrates pre-clean before deposition, PECVD titanium deposition, and ALD titanium nitride deposition. AMEC cites applications in contacts and electrodes.
If a company can propose deposition tools for steps before and after etching to the same customer fab, it increases the order opportunities available from that customer's capital spending. Furthermore, if process conditions across steps can be jointly optimized, this creates differentiation beyond the price of individual tools. However, lining up tools from the same manufacturer does not automatically optimize the entire process. Customers qualify each tool individually by process step and evaluate it alongside existing materials, recipes, and measurement data.
According to Bernstein Research estimates cited by the South China Morning Post, Chinese manufacturers collectively held about 31% of China's domestic dry etching equipment market and about 27% of the deposition equipment market in 2025. This is not AMEC's individual market share, but it is one estimate showing that Chinese manufacturers have captured less of the deposition equipment market than the etching equipment market. AMEC has simultaneously announced four thin-film deposition tools, broadening the range of processes it can offer to customers. Whether each model actually advances to customer evaluation will depend on future disclosures.
Mass-Production Readiness Cannot Be Judged by Wafer Count Alone
The announcement highlights simultaneous wafer processing counts that catch the eye: 16 wafers for the QuaStar ON, 12 for the QuaStar GE, and 4 for the PDS8. However, the target materials, reaction temperatures, chamber structures, and wafer diameters differ across tools. Simply lining up these numbers does not reveal which tool is faster or cheaper.
Mass-production fabs check items beyond just the processing time per wafer. Uniformity of film thickness or hole shape, defect density, and tool uptime come under scrutiny first. Beyond that, total cost of ownership—including maintenance time, consumable parts, and chemical/gas consumption—becomes a deciding factor. For tools with multiple reaction chambers, whether the remaining chambers can keep running while one is under maintenance, and how tightly chamber-to-chamber variation can be controlled, also matter.
At present, the Primo XD-RIE is the only model for which specific evaluation status can be directly confirmed. AMEC has completed continuous in-house operational testing of the Alpha unit, and the Beta unit is under customer evaluation. This represents a stage past initial proof-of-concept in development, but it does not mean mass-production qualification is complete. In the 8-inch SiC epitaxial tool category, the semi-annual report describes mass-production line evaluation and additional orders for a new tool whose model number was not disclosed. Whether this is the same model as the PDS8 cannot be confirmed. Meanwhile, the number of additional orders, customer names, and the contribution to revenue from mass production have not been disclosed.
Future indicators to watch include the completion of multi-customer evaluations for each of the six models, additional orders, per-model revenue, and disclosure of processing speed, uniformity, yield, and uptime. If the three tools for the 3D NAND process steps are qualified on the same mass-production line, AMEC will move closer to a structure in which it supplies multiple process steps together, centered on its etching equipment. Conversely, if adoption of the individual models cannot be confirmed, this announcement will remain at the stage of an expanded product lineup.