Airmembrane Secures Approximately 850 Million JPY for Next-Generation Semiconductor Component Development

Airmembrane has raised approximately 850 million JPY through a combination of capital increases, loans, and grants.

BRIDGE reported that the company announced this funding on October 30. The total amount consists of a third-party allotment of shares, a loan from Sumitomo Mitsui Banking Corporation, and a grant from NEDO under a project supporting the practical research, development, and mass-production demonstration of deep-tech startups in the green transformation field. The specific amounts for each of these three funding sources were not disclosed. With this latest round, the company's cumulative funding total has reached approximately 1 billion JPY.

Global Brain served as the lead investor for the third-party allotment. Participating funds include the 9th Fund, the Takanawa Gateway Earth Benefit Fund, and the Shinhan-GB Future Flow Fund, all managed by Global Brain. Other participants included Astart, KSP through the NextG Investment Limited Partnership, and Mitsubishi UFJ Capital through the Mitsubishi UFJ Capital 9th Investment Limited Partnership. This represents an additional investment for Mitsubishi UFJ Capital.

The company develops graphene EUV pellicles, which are protective components used in the extreme ultraviolet lithography process for advanced semiconductors. These pellicles prevent tiny foreign particles from adhering to the photomask, which serves as the circuit original. Such contamination is a factor that significantly lowers yields during the manufacturing process.

To be effective, EUV pellicles must simultaneously possess extreme thinness for light transmission, heat dissipation to withstand ultra-high temperatures, chemical stability in plasma environments, and mechanical strength to prevent breakage. Airmembrane claims that products meeting all these requirements at a cost viable for mass production are limited globally. The primary challenge in commercialization is the mass production of high-quality pellicles using graphene, which is difficult to handle due to being only one carbon atom thick. The company states it solved this using proprietary continuous synthesis and automatic transfer technology developed at the National Institute of Advanced Industrial Science and Technology. This method reportedly increases synthesis speed by more than 100 times compared to conventional methods and eliminates fine defects and contamination through automated transfer.

Airmembrane intends to use the newly acquired funds to establish a mass-production system. The company plans to set up a measurement system to manage defects, uniformity, and lifespan with high precision to begin pilot production in 2027. A mass-production line for next-generation EUV lithography equipment is planned for launch in 2028.

Separately from pellicles, the company already provides products using graphene synthesized via chemical vapor deposition. These include the FR01 graphene field-effect transistor chip, graphene sheets ranging from A4 size to 1 centimeter square, graphene TEM grids for protein structure analysis in cryo-electron microscopy, and UV irradiation units for making TEM grids hydrophilic.