Chemical Mechanical Planarization Patent Landscape
Chemical Mechanical Planarization Patent Landscape in 2026
Chemical Mechanical Planarization (CMP) is a heavily consolidated field dominated by semiconductor device manufacturers, with Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co. (TSMC) holding an outsized lead over all other filers. Filing activity peaked in 2019 and has since eased, placing the field in a late-maturity, past-peak phase where incremental process and materials innovation—rather than foundational invention—is the primary competitive lever.
TSMC leads a highly concentrated field with a substantial tier gap
TSMC ranks first among all filers by a wide margin, accumulating more patent records than the next several competitors combined, followed by Samsung Electronics, IBM, Micron Technology, and SK Hynix rounding out the top five.
The top five filers account for 53% of the combined patent records held by the hundred largest filers, a concentration level that signals significant defensive moats at the leading chipmakers and leaves limited room for challengers to operate without design-around risk.
| # | Applicant | Patent records | Share |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co., Ltd. (TSMC) | 30,572 | |
| 2 | Samsung Electronics Co., Ltd. | 9,754 | |
| 3 | International Business Machines Corporation (IBM) | 6,907 | |
| 4 | Micron Technology, Inc. | 4,061 | |
| 5 | SK Hynix Inc. | 3,766 | |
| 6 | GlobalFoundries US Inc. | 3,527 | |
| 7 | Applied Materials, Inc. | 3,054 | |
| 8 | Intel Corporation | 2,927 | |
| 9 | United Microelectronics Corporation | 2,529 | |
| 10 | SanDisk Technologies LLC | 2,292 |
| # | Applicant | Patent records | Share |
|---|---|---|---|
| 11 | GlobalFoundries Inc. | 1,889 | |
| 12 | Texas Instruments Inc. | 1,558 | |
| 13 | Lam Research Corporation | 1,197 | |
| 14 | Versum Materials US LLC | 1,195 | |
| 15 | Renesas Electronics Corporation | 1,137 | |
| 16 | Semiconductor Manufacturing International (Shanghai) Corporation | 1,040 | |
| 17 | Nan Ya Technology Corporation | 996 | |
| 18 | Dongbu Electronics Co., Ltd. | 996 | |
| 19 | Qualcomm Inc. | 984 | |
| 20 | Infineon Technologies AG | 899 |
The leaders’ positions reflect CMP’s role as a process-critical step in advanced logic and memory fabrication: integrated device manufacturers and large foundries have built sprawling portfolios that cover both device-level integration and the planarization sequences enabling sub-10 nm nodes.
Filing counts for 2023–2025 are subject to publication lag and likely understate true recent activity; the apparent drop in those years should not be interpreted as a sudden exit by major players. Longer-window growth, applicant concentration, and technology-route coverage are therefore more reliable signals than the latest-year bar alone.
Filings peaked in 2019; semiconductor device classes dominate the technology mix
The annual filing trend reveals a field that grew steadily from 2017 to a 2019 peak and has since contracted on a multi-year basis, while the technology composition chart shows an overwhelming concentration in semiconductor device classes with a long tail of adjacent materials and process branches.
Annual filing trend
Annual filings climbed from 2017 through a 2019 peak, then declined through 2022 before falling more sharply in 2023–2024; the near-zero 2025 and zero 2026 bars reflect publication lag rather than a real cessation of activity and should not be read as a market exit signal.
↗ Hover for values · click a bar to ask EurekaTechnology composition
H01L (Semiconductor devices) dominates the branch mix, followed at a significant distance by H10B (Memory device manufacture) and B24B (Grinding and polishing); polishing compositions (C09G) and miscellaneous materials (C09K) are present but comparatively sparse, indicating that consumables and slurry chemistry remain under-patented relative to device-integration work.
↗ Hover for values · click a bar to ask EurekaHighly cited patent families surfaced by the query
Citation-heavy patent families returned by the query. Use this section as citation context, not as a curated list of the most topic-specific patents.
Chemical mechanical planarization method and appar…
Disclosed are a chemical mechanical planarization method in a semiconductor manufacturing process, wherein the chemical mechanical planarization method is performed to apply an electric field to the surface of a wafer using an electrophoretic phenomenon during a chemical mechanical planarization (CMP) process in order to control the distribution of charged… (excerpt from the patent abstract)
| # | Patent | Citations |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Apparatus and method for forming semiconductor con… | 1,322 |
| 2 | Contact structure and memory element incorporating… | 894 |
| 3 | Method for controlling a semiconductor (CMP) proce… | 854 |
| 4 | Apparatus and Methods for Cyclical Oxidation and E… | 840 |
| 5 | Memory cell incorporating a chalcogenide element a… | 732 |
| 6 | Power semiconductor devices and methods of manufac… | 722 |
| 7 | Integrated circuit and method for its manufacture | 648 |
| 8 | Phase change material memory device | 622 |
Ranked by total forward citations. Citation counts favour older and broadly cited patent families, and broad or adjacent patents may appear when they match the search scope. Treat this section as citation context, not as a curated list of the most topic-specific patents. Some patent titles may be shown in their original, non-English language where an accurate translation could not be guaranteed.
What the competitive structure means for CMP R&D investment
Four structural observations shape where new entrants and challengers can realistically compete: the field’s maturity stage, its high concentration, the collaborative networks among leaders, and the geographic distribution of filings.
Past-peak: foundational CMP invention has crested
The lifecycle evidence classifies this field as Decline, with annual filings easing back from the 2019 peak and a recent-window growth rate of –29%. New entrants face a field where the dominant process sequences are extensively claimed; R&D investment is better targeted at underserved sub-branches—such as slurry chemistry or post-CMP cleaning—than at core planarization process patents where prior art density is high.
Late maturityTop five filers hold majority share among the largest 100 filers
The top five filers collectively hold 53% of patent records among the hundred largest filers, with TSMC alone vastly outpacing every other applicant. Samsung, IBM, Micron, and SK Hynix form a clear second tier. Any challenger entering this space must budget for freedom-to-operate analysis given the density of foundry and IDM portfolios, particularly in H01L 21 process claims.
High concentrationIBM-GlobalFoundries axis is the most active co-filing pair
The most frequent co-applicant pair is IBM and GlobalFoundries with 139 jointly filed records, reflecting their shared advanced logic development history. TSMC co-files actively with National Taiwan University (70 records) and with its own subsidiaries in Nanjing (20 records) and China (15 records). IBM also collaborates with STMicroelectronics (34 records), JSR Corporation (26 records), and Renesas Electronics (12 records), suggesting that materials and process co-development tends to cluster around established foundry-IDM-supplier relationships rather than open consortia.
Ecosystem clustersUS is the primary filing jurisdiction; PCT and EPO are secondary
The United States is the dominant filing office, followed at a considerable distance by WIPO (PCT) and the European Patent Office. Singapore, Australia, and the United Kingdom account for smaller but non-trivial shares, reflecting the regional fab footprints of leading filers. Coverage outside these jurisdictions is sparse, which may create freedom-to-operate windows in markets where CMP manufacturing is expanding.
US-centric coverageGo beyond the landscape: Eureka’s TRIZ Solution agent breaks down an R&D problem and returns patented concept solutions, each with a technical approach and cited patent & literature evidence.
| Applicant | Collaborator | Co-filings |
|---|---|---|
| International Business Machines Corporation (IBM) | GlobalFoundries Inc. | 139 |
| Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co., Ltd. (TSMC) | National Taiwan University | 70 |
| International Business Machines Corporation (IBM) | STMicroelectronics Inc. | 34 |
| International Business Machines Corporation (IBM) | JSR Corporation | 26 |
| Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co., Ltd. (TSMC) | TSMC Nanjing Co., Ltd. | 20 |
| International Business Machines Corporation (IBM) | IBM United Kingdom Ltd. | 18 |
| GlobalFoundries Inc. | STMicroelectronics Inc. | 18 |
| Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co., Ltd. (TSMC) | TSMC China Co., Ltd. | 15 |
| International Business Machines Corporation (IBM) | Infineon Technologies North America Corp. | 12 |
| International Business Machines Corporation (IBM) | Renesas Electronics Corporation | 12 |
Co-filing pairs, ranked by the number of jointly-filed patent families.
TSMC leads on device integration; IBM and equipment suppliers anchor adjacent routes
The top players divide broadly into integrated device manufacturers and foundries (focused on H01L process claims) and equipment and materials specialists (focused on B24B grinding and polishing claims); momentum trends show broad deceleration across most leaders, with Intel as the notable exception.
Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co.
TSMC leads the CMP corpus with 30,572 patent records, concentrating its portfolio across H01L 21, H01L 29, and H01L 27 semiconductor device subclasses—reflecting CMP’s role as a critical integration step across its advanced logic node roadmap. Recent filing momentum shows a modest –7% trend versus the prior period, the smallest decline among measured leaders and consistent with a firm still actively defending its process IP even as the broader field contracts.
30,572 patent recordsIntel Corporation
Intel ranks eighth overall with 2,927 patent records, focused on H01L 21, H01L 29, and H01L 27—the same device-integration subclasses as TSMC—but at a much smaller absolute scale. Notably, Intel is the only measured leader showing positive recent momentum at +6% versus its prior period, suggesting an uptick in CMP-related filings even as peers broadly reduce activity. This counter-trend warrants monitoring as Intel executes its internal foundry transition.
2,927 patent records| Applicant | Recent (3 yrs) | Trend |
|---|---|---|
| Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co., Ltd. (TSMC) | 2,000 | ▼ -7% |
| International Business Machines Corporation (IBM) | 128 | ▼ -64% |
| SanDisk Technologies LLC | 146 | ▼ -80% |
| Micron Technology, Inc. | 49 | ▼ -55% |
| Samsung Electronics Co., Ltd. | 67 | ▼ -37% |
| Intel Corporation | 67 | ▲ +6% |
| Lam Research Corporation | 1 | ▼ -92% |
| SK Hynix Inc. | 9 | ▼ -55% |
Under-served branches in polishing compositions, materials, and solid-state devices
Several IPC branches appear in the CMP corpus at low relative share, indicating areas where the patent thicket is thinner; these observations are technical in nature and do not automatically translate to commercial opportunity without further freedom-to-operate and market analysis.
C09G · Polishing Compositions
With 1,062 patent records and a 3% share of the corpus, slurry and polishing composition chemistry is notably sparse relative to the device-integration branches that dominate the field. Given that slurry formulation is a well-recognized performance lever for selectivity and defect control at advanced nodes, and that the principal incumbent (Cabot Microelectronics / CMC Materials) appears in the broader ranking, there is a realistic entry path for materials specialists and chemical suppliers willing to target next-generation abrasive and inhibitor chemistries. Prior art density here is substantially lower than in H01L, reducing freedom-to-operate risk.
Search this in Eureka →B24B · Grinding & Polishing (Equipment)
B24B accounts for 1,736 patent records and a 5% share, covering polishing head design, pad conditioning, endpoint detection, and process control hardware. Equipment-side CMP innovation is held primarily by a small number of tool vendors (Applied Materials and Lam Research both show B24B concentration in their tech focus), leaving sub-themes such as novel pad architectures, in-situ metrology integration, and chemical-mechanical synergy relatively open. Entry here requires hardware development capability but faces fewer incumbent portfolios than the device-integration space.
Search this in Eureka →How leading filers differ across CMP technology routes
Strength of each leader across the main technology routes.
| Player | H01L 21 · Semiconductor devices | H01L 29 · Semiconductor devices | H01L 27 · Semiconductor devices | H01L 23 · Semiconductor devices | H10B 43 · Memory device manufacture |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co., Ltd. (TSMC) | Strong · 5,299 | Strong · 4,154 | Strong · 3,054 | Moderate · 1,498 | Emerging · 100 |
| SanDisk Technologies LLC | Strong · 809 | Moderate · 591 | Strong · 1,426 | Moderate · 617 | Strong · 1,147 |
| International Business Machines Corporation (IBM) | Strong · 1,666 | Strong · 1,305 | Strong · 895 | Moderate · 482 | Absent |
| Micron Technology, Inc. | Strong · 781 | Moderate · 229 | Moderate · 350 | Moderate · 221 | Emerging · 78 |
| GlobalFoundries Inc. | Strong · 567 | Strong · 473 | Strong · 314 | Moderate · 127 | Absent |
| Samsung Electronics Co., Ltd. | Strong · 642 | Moderate · 298 | Moderate · 308 | Moderate · 151 | Emerging · 22 |
| Intel Corporation | Strong · 344 | Strong · 220 | Moderate · 158 | Moderate · 147 | Absent |
Frequently asked questions
The corpus covers 10,198 patent families in scope. Applicant rankings within the corpus are measured at the patent-record level, where a family filing in multiple jurisdictions contributes multiple records.
Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co. (TSMC) is the leading filer with 30,572 patent records, a count that exceeds the next several ranked applicants combined. Samsung Electronics (9,754 records) and IBM (6,907 records) rank second and third respectively.
Annual filings peaked in 2019. The lifecycle evidence classifies the field as Decline, with annual volume easing from that peak and a recent-window growth rate of -29%. Filing counts for 2023–2025 are subject to publication lag and understate true recent activity.
H01L (Semiconductor devices) is the dominant branch by a wide margin, followed by H10B (Memory device manufacture) and B24B (Grinding and polishing). Polishing compositions (C09G) and materials (C09K) are present but at low relative share, indicating lighter prior art coverage in consumables chemistry.
The United States is the primary filing jurisdiction, followed by WIPO (PCT) and the European Patent Office. Singapore, Australia, and the United Kingdom account for smaller volumes. Coverage outside these jurisdictions is sparse.
IBM and GlobalFoundries are the most active co-filing pair with 139 jointly filed records. TSMC co-files with National Taiwan University (70 records) and with its Nanjing and China subsidiaries. IBM also collaborates with STMicroelectronics (34 records) and JSR Corporation (26 records).
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Disclaimer. This page is generated from PatSnap Eureka data drawn from a limited snapshot of global patent and scientific-literature records, and is provided for general information and reference only.
Patent data carries inherent limitations: recent filings (typically the most recent 18–24 months) are under-counted due to standard publication lag; counts may be reported at either a patent-family or a patent-record basis and are not always directly comparable; classification, applicant-name, and citation data may contain errors, duplicates, or omissions; and the underlying search query defines and constrains the scope shown. As a result, the analysis may be incomplete or inaccurate and may not reflect the full technology landscape.
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