Gate-All-Around Transistor Patent Landscape 2026
Gate-All-Around Transistor Patent Landscape in 2026
The gate-all-around (GAA) transistor patent field is heavily concentrated, with Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co. (TSMC) alone accounting for a commanding share of 8,258 patent families in scope. The field is still expanding on a multi-year basis—with recent three-year filings running 43% above the prior three-year window—though annual volume eased from its 2022 peak and the most recent years are further understated by publication lag.
TSMC dominates a highly concentrated field with a widening lead over all challengers
Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co. (TSMC) ranks first with 4,852 patent families, placing it far ahead of second-ranked IBM at 1,054 patent families. Samsung Electronics ranks third at 548 patent families, followed by Intel at 405 and Qualcomm at 211.
The top five filers account for 78% of the combined output of the hundred largest filers, signaling extreme concentration. The gap between TSMC and the next tier is structural: TSMC’s count exceeds the next four ranked applicants combined.
| # | Applicant | Patent families | Share |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co., Ltd. (TSMC) | 4,852 | |
| 2 | International Business Machines Corporation (IBM) | 1,054 | |
| 3 | Samsung Electronics Co., Ltd. | 548 | |
| 4 | Intel Corporation | 405 | |
| 5 | Qualcomm Incorporated | 211 | |
| 6 | Unisantis Electronics Singapore Pte. Ltd. | 196 | |
| 7 | Tokyo Electron Ltd. | 162 | |
| 8 | Applied Materials, Inc. | 159 | |
| 9 | Interuniversity Microelectronics Centre (IMEC) | 98 | |
| 10 | ASM IP Holding B.V. | 98 |
| # | Applicant | Patent families | Share |
|---|---|---|---|
| 11 | National Taiwan University | 94 | |
| 12 | Institute of Microelectronics, Chinese Academy of Sciences | 81 | |
| 13 | Huawei Technologies Co., Ltd. | 71 | |
| 14 | GlobalFoundries US Inc. | 66 | |
| 15 | Changxin Memory Technologies, Inc. | 44 | |
| 16 | Adeia Semiconductor Solutions LLC | 37 | |
| 17 | IBM United Kingdom Ltd. | 33 | |
| 18 | Tahoe Research Ltd. | 31 | |
| 19 | KLA Corporation | 30 | |
| 20 | Monolithic 3D Inc. | 30 |
TSMC’s scale implies that any organization seeking freedom-to-operate or a differentiated R&D position in GAA transistors must navigate an extensive and fast-growing portfolio. Challengers IBM and Samsung show accelerating recent momentum, suggesting the second tier is actively contesting ground rather than ceding it.
Filing counts for 2024 and especially 2025–2026 are understated due to standard patent publication lag of 18–24 months; the apparent slowdown in those years should not be read as reduced industry investment. Longer-window growth, applicant concentration, and technology-route coverage are therefore more reliable signals than the latest-year bar alone.
Multi-year growth remains positive despite a post-2022 easing in annual volume
Two views of the corpus—annual filing trend and technology branch composition—reveal both the pace of industry investment and the concentration of technical focus. Together they help identify where the field is maturing and where adjacent branches remain comparatively sparse.
Annual filing trend
Annual filings grew steadily from 311 families in 2017 to a peak of 1,630 in 2022, then eased to 1,498 in 2023. The apparent drops in 2024 and beyond reflect publication lag rather than a real decline in investment; the three-year recent window is 43% above the prior three-year window. Engineers should treat the post-2022 taper as an artifact of data timing, not a signal of market retreat.
↗ Hover for values · click a bar to ask EurekaTechnology composition
The dominant branch is H01L (Semiconductor devices), which absorbs the vast majority of filings and reflects the core device-physics and fabrication focus of the field. Secondary branches—H10D (Semiconductor devices, general), H10B (Memory device manufacture), and B82Y (Nanotechnology applications)—show meaningful but substantially lower activity, indicating that memory integration and nanomaterial applications are active but not yet at the same intensity as core device 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.
Nanosheet gate-all-around transistor and method of…
The present disclosure relates to a nanosheet gate-all-around transistor and a method of manufacturing a nanosheet gate-all-around transistor. The nanosheet gate-all-around transistor includes: a substrate having a shallow trench isolation structure on a surface of the substrate; a nanosheet stacking portion provided above the substrate, where the nanosheet… (excerpt from the patent abstract)
| # | Patent | Citations |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Self-aligned wrapped-around structure | 822 |
| 2 | Non-planar gate all-around device and method of fa… | 813 |
| 3 | Stacked silicon-germanium nanowire structure and m… | 542 |
| 4 | FinFET device having a channel defined in a diamon… | 540 |
| 5 | Hybrid CMOS Technology With Nanowire Devices and D… | 491 |
| 6 | Semiconductor nano-rod devices | 459 |
| 7 | Resistive memory with a plurality of resistive ran… | 332 |
| 8 | High density nanosheet diodes | 313 |
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
The combination of high concentration, strong multi-year growth, active university collaboration, and US-centric filing geography shapes the risk and opportunity profile for any organization entering or expanding in this space.
Growth stage, past its 2022 annual peak but still expanding on a multi-year basis
The field is classified as Growth: recent three-year filings are 43% above the prior three-year window. Annual volume peaked in 2022 at 1,630 families and has since eased, though publication lag means 2024–2026 figures understate true activity. For R&D planners, this stage implies continued heavy investment by incumbents and narrowing white space in core device architecture, while process and integration sub-fields may still offer entry points.
Lifecycle: GrowthExtreme top-tier concentration with an accelerating second tier
The top five filers hold 78% of the combined output of the hundred largest filers, and TSMC alone commands 4,852 patent families—more than four times IBM’s 1,054. Despite this, Samsung (+116% recent trend), Intel (+91%), and Unisantis Electronics (+92%) are accelerating sharply, indicating the second tier is not static. New entrants face both a large prior-art thicket from TSMC and a rapidly expanding challenger cluster.
High concentrationTSMC–National Taiwan University leads a university-industry co-filing pattern
The most active co-filing pair is TSMC and National Taiwan University with 97 joint families, followed by Unisantis Electronics with individual co-inventors Harada Nozomu (59 families) and Sakui Koji (58 families). IBM co-files across its UK, Chinese, and German subsidiaries (33, 22, and 13 families respectively), reflecting internal portfolio coordination. Tokyo Electron and its US holding subsidiary share 22 families. National Taiwan University and National Taiwan Normal University also collaborate directly with 12 joint families.
University-industry linksUS filing office dominates; Taiwan and China are the key secondary jurisdictions
The United States leads with 5,779 patent records, nearly five times the next jurisdiction. Taiwan is second at 1,114 records and China third at 926, reflecting the geographic concentration of both design and fabrication activity. WIPO PCT filings stand at 350 and Europe (EPO) at 313, indicating that top filers do seek international coverage but at a substantially lower rate than US-first filings. South Korea at 37 records appears underweight relative to Samsung’s ranking, suggesting selective jurisdiction strategy.
US-led, Asia secondaryGo 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 |
|---|---|---|
| Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co., Ltd. (TSMC) | National Taiwan University | 97 |
| Unisantis Electronics Singapore Pte. Ltd. | Harada Nozomu | 59 |
| Unisantis Electronics Singapore Pte. Ltd. | Sakui Koji | 58 |
| International Business Machines Corporation (IBM) | IBM United Kingdom Ltd. | 33 |
| International Business Machines Corporation (IBM) | IBM China Co., Ltd. | 22 |
| Tokyo Electron Ltd. | Tokyo Electron US Holdings Inc. | 22 |
| Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co., Ltd. (TSMC) | National Yang Ming Chiao Tung University | 20 |
| International Business Machines Corporation (IBM) | IBM Deutschland GmbH | 13 |
| Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co., Ltd. (TSMC) | National Taiwan Normal University | 12 |
| National Taiwan University | National Taiwan Normal University | 12 |
Co-filing pairs, ranked by the number of jointly-filed patent families.
TSMC and IBM anchor the field; Samsung and Intel are the fastest-accelerating challengers
The top eight applicants by recent filing momentum illustrate two distinct competitive postures: TSMC and IBM hold large, broad portfolios concentrated in core semiconductor device classes, while Samsung, Intel, and Unisantis are growing their positions at a markedly faster rate from smaller bases.
Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co. (TSMC)
TSMC leads with 4,852 patent families and a recent-period momentum of +33%, with 2,431 families filed in the most recent three-year window. Its technical focus spans H01L21 (semiconductor processing), H01L29 (discrete semiconductor devices), and H01L27 (integrated circuits), covering the full stack from process to device to circuit. The breadth and volume of this portfolio make TSMC the defining prior-art reference for the entire field.
patent families: 4,852International Business Machines Corporation (IBM)
IBM ranks second with 1,054 patent families and recent momentum of +23% (458 families in the recent window). Its focus mirrors TSMC’s across H01L29, H01L21, and H01L27, reflecting a similarly device-physics-oriented portfolio. IBM coordinates filings across its UK, Chinese, and German entities, and co-files with those subsidiaries at scale. Samsung Electronics is the fastest-growing challenger at +116% recent trend (268 recent families), followed closely by Intel at +91% (166 recent families), signaling that the second tier is intensifying its GAA position.
patent families: 1,054| Applicant | Recent (3 yrs) | Trend |
|---|---|---|
| Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co., Ltd. (TSMC) | 2,431 | ▲ +33% |
| International Business Machines Corporation (IBM) | 458 | ▲ +23% |
| Samsung Electronics Co., Ltd. | 268 | ▲ +116% |
| Intel Corporation | 166 | ▲ +91% |
| Qualcomm Incorporated | 105 | ▲ +35% |
| Unisantis Electronics Singapore Pte. Ltd. | 127 | ▲ +92% |
| Tokyo Electron Ltd. | 37 | ▼ -48% |
| Applied Materials, Inc. | 80 | ▲ +67% |
Under-served branches adjacent to the core device space
Several IPC branches appear in the corpus at substantially lower share than the dominant H01L class, indicating that certain technically adjacent areas have received comparatively little dedicated GAA-specific attention. These are observations of relative sparsity; their value as entry points depends on technical fit and a realistic development path.
H10B · Memory Device Manufacture
H10B accounts for 856 patent records at a 7% share of the branch composition, making it the largest of the sparser adjacent branches. GAA nanosheet architectures offer geometric advantages for high-density memory cell design, and Unisantis Electronics’ existing focus on H01L27 and G11C11 (static and digital memories) demonstrates a plausible technical path. Organizations with memory-design expertise—particularly in DRAM or embedded NVM—could explore GAA-specific process integration for memory arrays as a differentiated entry route.
Search this in Eureka →B82Y · Nanotechnology Applications
B82Y appears at 376 patent records and a 3% share, reflecting that nanomaterial-level characterization and application of GAA structures—such as quantum confinement effects, novel channel materials, or nanowire bio-sensing—remain a comparatively sparse area. Academic filers such as National Taiwan University and IMEC already bridge this territory. For organizations with nanomaterials or compound-semiconductor expertise, this branch represents an adjacent observation worth monitoring, though commercial paths are less defined than in memory integration.
Search this in Eureka →How the leading filers differ by technology route across IPC sub-classes
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 | H10D 30 · Semiconductor devices (general) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co., Ltd. (TSMC) | Strong · 3,987 | Strong · 3,152 | Moderate · 1,928 | Emerging · 683 | Emerging · 670 |
| International Business Machines Corporation (IBM) | Strong · 758 | Strong · 962 | Strong · 555 | Emerging · 191 | Emerging · 89 |
| Samsung Electronics Co., Ltd. | Strong · 314 | Strong · 360 | Strong · 313 | Moderate · 125 | Emerging · 37 |
| Intel Corporation | Strong · 298 | Strong · 311 | Strong · 166 | Moderate · 83 | Emerging · 39 |
| Qualcomm Incorporated | Strong · 165 | Strong · 160 | Strong · 137 | Moderate · 45 | Emerging · 22 |
| Unisantis Electronics Singapore Pte. Ltd. | Strong · 110 | Moderate · 61 | Strong · 183 | Absent | Absent |
| Tokyo Electron Ltd. | Strong · 119 | Strong · 104 | Strong · 72 | Absent | Moderate · 26 |
Frequently asked questions
The corpus in scope contains 8,258 patent families. The United States leads as the primary filing jurisdiction with 5,779 patent records, followed by Taiwan at 1,114 and China at 926.
Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co. (TSMC) is the dominant filer with 4,852 patent families, which is more than four and a half times the count of second-ranked IBM at 1,054 patent families. The top five filers together account for 78% of the combined output of the hundred largest filers.
Yes, on a multi-year basis. Recent three-year filings are 43% above the prior three-year window, placing the field in a Growth lifecycle stage. Annual volume peaked in 2022 at 1,630 families and has since eased, but the apparent decline in 2024–2026 data is largely attributable to the standard 18–24 month patent publication lag.
Samsung Electronics shows the highest recent momentum at +116% in the recent three-year window compared to the prior period, followed by Unisantis Electronics Singapore at +92% and Intel at +91%. Applied Materials is also accelerating at +67%. All of these figures compare recent three-year filing counts to their respective prior three-year counts.
The most active co-filing pair is TSMC and National Taiwan University with 97 joint patent families. Unisantis Electronics co-files extensively with named individual inventors Harada Nozomu (59 families) and Sakui Koji (58 families). IBM coordinates across its UK, Chinese, and German subsidiaries with 33, 22, and 13 joint families respectively.
The most-cited work in the corpus includes patents titled ‘Self-aligned wrapped-around structure’ (822 citations), ‘Non-planar gate all-around device and method of fabrication’ (813 citations), ‘Stacked silicon-germanium nanowire structure and method’ (542 citations), and ‘FinFET device having a channel defined in a diamond-like shape’ (540 citations). These foundational documents define the structural and fabrication basis of the technology.
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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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