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iPhone 13 and Redesigned MacBook Pro Chip Production Hit With Gas Contamination

I always love people that say Apple will have completely transformed over to their M processor by the end of 2021. That statement for the presentation was most likely was created at the beginning of 2020 before the pandemic created havoc in the electronics production and shipment and distribution. I can see Apple giving the buyer of a new MacBook Pro 16 an option for a M processor or Intel i7-i9 11th gen processor do to the shortage of chips.

If you can not get a 8 cylinder 600 HP motor for a Ford Mustang, you do not stop production or delay production. You stick in a reliable 350 HP motor that you have been using for years to get the cars out. The Intel might be older technology but it still meet the needs of many computer buys.

And I can use a EGPU, and I can use Boot Camp, And I can use carbon copy and boot off an external drive and I can have a more powerful EGPU And I can have 64gb of ram.
 
So was this bad gas actually used in production for a bit? Presumably screwing up some chips? Or was it caught before that and never really was an issue?
 
MacRumors said:


The most important TSMC factory that manufactures Apple's chips destined for next-generation iPhone and Mac models has been hit by a gas contamination, according to Nikkei Asia.

a15-chip.jpg

The factory, known as "Fab 18," is TSMC's most advanced chipmaking facility. TSMC is Apple's sole chip supplier, making all of the processors used in every Apple device with a custom silicon chip.

Industry sources speaking to Nikkei Asia said that all of the processors for Apple's upcoming iPhone and Mac devices are produced at this facility. This presumably translates to the iPhone 13 lineup and redesigned MacBook Pro models with Apple silicon, containing the "A15" and "M1X" or "M2" chips.

Gas used in the production of these chips was found to be contaminated on Thursday night. TSMC told Nikkei Asia: "Some TSMC production lines in the South Taiwan Science Park received certain gases from suppliers that are believed to be contaminated. These were quickly replaced with other gas supplies." Employees who had gone home were called back to the factory to bring the situation under control.

The company said that it is carrying out follow-up operations to ensure that product quality is not affected, and the incident is not believed to have caused a "significant impact on operations." Sources speaking to Nikkei Asia said that the gas contamination had affected the chip manufacturing process, but only in a limited way.

The contamination comes at a particularly bad time for Apple, as the company and its suppliers are currently said to be finalizing components for the final assembly process of new iPhone and Mac models by the end of August.

The iPhone 13 lineup is expected to launch in Apple's normal September timeframe. Redesigned MacBook Pro models featuring Apple silicon chips are also still expected to arrive this year, either alongside the iPhone 13 in September or at a separate event around October.

Article Link: iPhone 13 and Redesigned MacBook Pro Chip Production Hit With Gas Contamination
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So somebody farts in the factory and it’s news now.
 
jakebrosy said:
Not trying to be a troll here. But I have first-hand experience.

I spent a decade at a major chip manufacturer and even something as small as bringing in an unclean ballpoint pen can shutdown an entire fab. Every single thing that enters the production line (front or back end) has to be wiped down with IPA and sealed in a bag that was also wiped down with IPA. These are the cleanest places on the planet.

And that's for things that DON'T necessarily enter a machine. Remember, these machines are as big as most of our bathrooms and each machine costs millions of dollars. They are designed to operate in a sterile environment. A single human hair, at the 5nm scale, will destroy every single 300mm wafer in a 10 or 25-wafer lot. Or more lots if the wafers are mixed and matched in follow-on processes like happens in a lot of gigafabs. Few fabs can afford to keep lots segregated due to the hundreds of depositions, etches and inspections.

Again, we don't KNOW what happened here but it's safe to say that they are bleeding and flushing gas lines, decontaminating dozens (or hundred) of machines, transfer boxes, wafer handlers, inspection stations...they are shut down until this is solved.
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Any information sources as to what gases, what the contamination was, and who the supplier was? I’d like to know what gas and the type of contaminant.

#goanbu.
 
Let's hope,
Apple releases still some 11th Gen Intel Products -
particularly
the MacMini with current 8th Gen CPUs +
the 16inch MacBookPro with 9th Gen CPUs
would be great contenders for such an Upgrade.
OR
perhaps even early Access to some 12th Gen AlderLake CPU,
but with the "Feud" in place, this may not be happening...
 
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WoodpeckerBaby said:
Samsung can’t even keep their own balls rolling this year. They canceled Galaxy Note series due to shortages.
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In all fairness the Note lineup the last few years didn't exactly sell like hotcakes despite what the Note aficionados will tell you. It was rumored for the last two iterations that Samsung was looking at discontinuing the lineup.
 
jakebrosy said:
It is like that. Very much so. Everybody in full-body bunny suits. Lots of latex (which is where I learned I'm allergic to latex). Double gloves (so you can change the outside set without leaving the clean room). I'm looking for photos from the good old days.
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Sometimes. I work in IT infrastructure for a chipmaker, building and swapping out tool controllers (Windows PCs that run the specialized tools in fabs). Some factories require full bunnysuits; others just a hairnet, booties, and gloves. Depends on what's going on in that particular factory. In the real cleanrooms like reticle rooms, yes, there's an entire process for bringing in materials, to prevent contaminants and arcing of static electricity. Tools go into poly bags, special cleanroom paper, notepads, and pens. It can get intense. If it's just a die sort or die prep factory, it's much less stringent.
 
ignatius345 said:
I would never considered that there's a supply chain of specialized gases necessary for my Apple device to be produced. Easy to take these gadgets for granted but it's pretty nuts what goes into them.
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Chip fab is fascinating and hugely complex. I’ve seen some interesting YouTube vids on the subject, and found it is best to start from a historical context in say the late 1970’s and working your way forward to the present. DW (German national broadcasting) did a great explanation of the more recent consolidation of the industry, and the vulnerability imposed by this from an industrial and strategic perspective. We need fab in North America or Western Europe.
 
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