FinFET Photoresist Patent Landscape 2026
FinFET Photoresist Patent Landscape in 2026
The FinFET photoresist patent space is a concentrated, mature field dominated by Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co. (TSMC) and GlobalFoundries, which together account for the majority of filings among the largest applicants. Annual activity peaked in 2017 and has since declined sharply, signaling that the field has transitioned into a decline phase with the leading foundries consolidating their positions.
TSMC leads a heavily concentrated field of foundry incumbents
Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co. Ltd. holds the top position among all applicants, reflecting its role as the dominant foundry innovator in FinFET patterning process integration.
The top five filers account for 58% of the combined total of the hundred largest filers, indicating a tight oligopoly. A meaningful tier gap separates TSMC from mid-tier players such as Shanghai Huali Integrated Circuit Corp. and the Institute of Microelectronics, Chinese Academy of Sciences.
| # | Applicant | Patent records | Share |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co. Ltd. | 27 | |
| 2 | GlobalFoundries US Inc. | 13 | |
| 3 | GlobalFoundries Inc. | 13 | |
| 4 | Shanghai Huali Integrated Circuit Corp. | 10 | |
| 5 | Institute of Microelectronics, Chinese Academy of Sciences | 9 | |
| 6 | SMIC (Shanghai) Corp. | 8 | |
| 7 | Samsung Electronics Co. Ltd. | 7 | |
| 8 | Alsephina Innovations Inc. | 6 | |
| 9 | International Business Machines Corporation | 5 | |
| 10 | Elpis Technologies Inc. | 4 |
| # | Applicant | Patent records | Share |
|---|---|---|---|
| 11 | Applied Materials Inc. | 3 | |
| 12 | Texas Instruments Inc. | 3 | |
| 13 | United Microelectronics Corp. | 2 | |
| 14 | National Institute of Technology Karnataka | 2 | |
| 15 | Shanghai Huali Microelectronics Corp. | 2 | |
| 16 | Van Dal Mark | 2 | |
| 17 | Vanleenhove Anja Monique | 2 | |
| 18 | Van Steenwinckel David | 2 | |
| 19 | Indian Institute of Technology (Banaras Hindu University) Varanasi | 1 | |
| 20 | Canon Inc. | 1 |
The leaders’ entrenched positions and the field’s decline-stage lifecycle imply that new IP claims are likely incremental or defensive rather than foundational, raising the barrier for new entrants seeking to carve out broad claim scope.
Filings from the most recent 18–24 months are subject to publication lag and may be under-counted; the apparent absence of records in 2023–2024 should not be interpreted as a complete halt in activity. Longer-window growth, applicant concentration, and technology-route coverage are therefore more reliable signals than the latest-year bar alone.
Activity peaked in 2017 and has contracted sharply; semiconductor device classes dominate the IPC mix
The annual filing trend and technology composition together reveal a field that had a single, well-defined peak and has since contracted, while remaining anchored in semiconductor device and process integration classes rather than photoresist chemistry per se.
Annual filing trend
Filings reached their high point in 2017 with 10 records, then fell and partially recovered to 9 in 2020 before dropping to near zero by 2022–2024. The two records appearing in 2025 should be treated cautiously given publication lag. The overall trajectory is consistent with a declining lifecycle stage.
↗ Hover for values · click a bar to ask EurekaTechnology composition
H01L (Semiconductor devices) dominates the IPC distribution by a wide margin, reflecting that most filings address device structure and fabrication process rather than the photoresist material itself. H10B (Memory device manufacture) and G03F (Photolithography and photomechanics) are the next most represented classes, with G03F standing out as the branch most directly tied to resist and lithography chemistry.
↗ 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.
Method of forming trench on finfet and finfet ther…
A method is provided for forming a trench on a FinFET. In an exemplary embodiment, a first inter-layer dielectric layer is formed between a first gate and a second gate of the FinFET in an interposed manner. A second inter-layer dielectric layer is formed above the first inter-layer dielectric layer, the first gate of the FinFET, and the second gate of the… (excerpt from the patent abstract)
| # | Patent | Citations |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Double patterning for lithography to increase feat… | 96 |
| 2 | Double patterning for lithography to increase feat… | 76 |
| 3 | Double patterning for lithography to increase feat… | 39 |
| 4 | Semiconductor device and method of fabricating the… | 31 |
| 5 | SRAM integrated circuits with buried saddle-shaped… | 23 |
| 6 | Methods for patterning a hardmask layer for an ion… | 22 |
| 7 | Semiconductor Device and Method of Manufacture | 21 |
| 8 | Methods of avoiding shadowing when forming source/… | 20 |
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 R&D investment decisions
Four structural dimensions—lifecycle stage, applicant concentration, collaborative activity, and geographic spread—each carry actionable implications for teams evaluating entry or expansion in FinFET photoresist.
Decline stage: foundational innovation window has closed
The field is in a decline phase, with annual volume easing back sharply from its 2017 peak. Broad, foundational claims in standard FinFET patterning integration are likely already occupied. R&D teams should evaluate whether incremental process improvements or adjacent sub-fields (e.g., resist materials for gate-all-around or 2D-material channels) offer a more defensible entry point.
Lifecycle: DeclineOligopoly of foundries and integrated device makers
The top five filers hold 58% of the combined total among the hundred largest filers, with TSMC alone ranking first. GlobalFoundries (counted across its US and international entities) and Chinese foundries Shanghai Huali and SMIC constitute the next tier. This concentration means freedom-to-operate analysis is essential before entering any claim space already staked by these incumbents.
High concentrationGlobalFoundries–IBM co-filing is the dominant partnership
The most active co-filing relationship in this corpus is between GlobalFoundries and IBM (International Business Machines Corporation), with five jointly assigned records. GlobalFoundries and GlobalFoundries US Inc. share one jointly assigned record, and SMIC Shanghai and SMIC Beijing share one. These collaborations are primarily between vertically aligned or formerly allied entities rather than cross-industry partnerships, suggesting a closed innovation ecosystem.
Foundry-anchoredUS filings dominate; China is the second-largest jurisdiction
The United States is the primary filing jurisdiction, followed by China, South Korea, Taiwan, and WIPO PCT routes. India and Europe (EPO) are represented but at low volume. The US-heavy profile reflects both the location of leading foundries’ IP strategies and the importance of the US market for semiconductor process patents.
US-led, China risingGo 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 |
|---|---|---|
| GlobalFoundries Inc. | International Business Machines Corporation | 5 |
| GlobalFoundries Inc. | GlobalFoundries US Inc. | 1 |
| SMIC (Shanghai) Corp. | SMIC (Beijing) Corp. | 1 |
Co-filing pairs, ranked by the number of jointly-filed patent families.
TSMC leads on process integration; GlobalFoundries anchors its position via IBM collaboration
The two leading applicants differ in their technology emphasis and collaborative posture: TSMC focuses overwhelmingly on semiconductor device fabrication process classes, while GlobalFoundries built its position partly through co-development with IBM.
Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co. Ltd.
TSMC is ranked first with 27 patent records, concentrated in H01L 21 (semiconductor fabrication processes) and H01L 29 (semiconductor device structures). Its momentum trend is flagged as a new entrant in the most recent window, suggesting recent activity after a gap rather than sustained high-volume filing. This profile is consistent with targeted, defensive filings to protect advanced node process integration.
27 patent recordsGlobalFoundries (US and international entities)
GlobalFoundries appears through two entities—GlobalFoundries US Inc. and GlobalFoundries Inc.—each with 13 patent records, with its technology emphasis spread across H01L 21, H01L 27, and H01L 29. Five of its records were co-filed with IBM, underscoring the historical R&D alliance between the two. No recent momentum data is available for GlobalFoundries beyond its standing record count.
13 patent records per entity| Applicant | Recent (3 yrs) | Trend |
|---|---|---|
| Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co. Ltd. | 2 | ▲ new entrant |
Under-served IPC branches adjacent to the dominant semiconductor device class
Several IPC classes appear at low share relative to the dominant H01L branch, representing areas where current patent density is sparse and where technical adjacency to FinFET photoresist suggests plausible, though unvalidated, entry points.
G03F · Photolithography and photomechanics
With only 6 patent records and a 4% share of IPC assignments, G03F is notably sparse given that photoresist patterning is mechanistically central to FinFET fabrication. This branch covers resist formulations, exposure tools, and mask technology directly relevant to advanced-node lithography. NXP Semiconductors (represented in the corpus as the entity focused on G03F7) is the only filer with meaningful concentration here. An entrant with expertise in EUV or high-NA resist chemistry could potentially establish a differentiated claim position in this sub-class.
Search this in Eureka →G01R · Electric and magnetic measurement
G01R appears with only 3 patent records and a 2% share, pointing to sparse coverage at the intersection of in-line metrology and FinFET patterning process control. Resist profile measurement and critical-dimension uniformity monitoring are practical process challenges for which patent coverage appears thin. Equipment or metrology specialists could find space here, though the very small record count means this observation should be validated with a broader corpus search before drawing investment conclusions.
Search this in Eureka →How leading applicants differ across IPC technology routes
Strength of each leader across the main technology routes.
| Player | H01L 21 · Semiconductor devices | H01L 29 · Semiconductor devices | H01L 27 · Semiconductor devices | H10B 10 · Memory device manufacture | H10D 84 · Semiconductor devices (general) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| GlobalFoundries Inc. | Strong · 25 | Strong · 14 | Strong · 17 | Moderate · 9 | Emerging · 5 |
| Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co. Ltd. | Strong · 26 | Moderate · 10 | Moderate · 8 | Absent | Emerging · 2 |
| International Business Machines Corporation | Strong · 11 | Strong · 8 | Moderate · 5 | Moderate · 5 | Moderate · 3 |
| Shanghai Huali Integrated Circuit Corp. | Strong · 9 | Strong · 8 | Absent | Absent | Absent |
| Institute of Microelectronics, Chinese Academy of Sciences | Strong · 7 | Strong · 8 | Absent | Absent | Absent |
| Samsung Electronics Co. Ltd. | Strong · 5 | Absent | Strong · 4 | Absent | Absent |
| SMIC (Shanghai) Corp. | Strong · 8 | Absent | Absent | Absent | Absent |
Frequently asked questions
The corpus analyzed contains 39 patent families in scope, representing the global body of IP directly relevant to FinFET photoresist as identified in the PatSnap Eureka search.
Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co. Ltd. (TSMC) is ranked first with 27 patent records, well ahead of the next-ranked applicants GlobalFoundries US Inc. and GlobalFoundries Inc., each with 13 records.
The field is in a Decline stage. Annual filings peaked in 2017 and have eased back sharply since, with near-zero records recorded in 2022–2024. This trajectory indicates that foundational innovation in conventional FinFET photoresist integration has largely concluded.
The United States is the leading jurisdiction, followed by China, South Korea, Taiwan, and WIPO PCT. India and Europe (EPO) are represented at low volume. Note that a single patent family can appear in multiple jurisdictions, so jurisdiction counts can exceed the family total.
Yes. The most active co-filing pair is GlobalFoundries and IBM (International Business Machines Corporation), which share 5 jointly assigned records. SMIC Shanghai and SMIC Beijing share 1 jointly assigned record, and GlobalFoundries and GlobalFoundries US Inc. share 1.
G03F (Photolithography and photomechanics) has 6 patent records at a 4% share, and G01R (Electric and magnetic measurement) has 3 records at a 2% share — both sparse given their direct technical relevance to resist patterning and process metrology. H10P and G06F are also observed at 2% and 1% share respectively.
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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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