Major Advancement in Applied Research: FMD Launches the Chiplet Application Hub
News / March 31, 2025
On March 31, 2025, at the Hannover Messe, the Research Fab Microelectronics Germany (Forschungsfabrik Mikroelektronik Deutschland FMD) officially unveiled its new Chiplet Application Hub. Designed to serve as a central platform for the development and application of chiplet technologies, the hub aims to bridge the gap between research and industrial use. By working closely with industry partners, the hub accelerates the development of chiplets made in Germany, elevating industrial research to a new level. At the national level, it complements FMD’s role in the Chips for Europe Initiative, further reinforcing Germany’s technological resilience. The hub’s research, development, and prototyping activities build on the infrastructure of the APECS pilot line, ensuring direct pathways to industrial application.
The Research Fab Microelectronics Germany (FMD) works intensively in the field of heterogeneous integration and is helping to drive chiplet innovation at the European level through the APECS pilot line, which was launched at the end of 2024. Of the total of €730 million in funding allocated for APECS, a significant percentage will be dedicated to the technological development of chiplets. These technologies open up groundbreaking opportunities, particularly for the automotive industry and high-performance computing, as well as for other sectors such as industrial electronics and medical devices. Chiplets support advances in areas such as advanced packaging and the integration of high-performance subsystems, including powerful computing modules, sensor or edge modules, and control units. They also contribute to a more flexible supply chain by enabling the use of semiconductor components from different manufacturers.
To strategically strengthen the industrial use of chiplets in Germany and across Europe, the FMD is establishing the Chiplet Application Hub. The hub will serve as the operational framework for the APECS pilot line, ensuring that companies gain access to the latest chiplet advancements while supporting the continued consolidation of European semiconductor expertise. The FMD, together with industry partners from across the semiconductor ecosystem, is combining its expertise to jointly develop new chiplet solutions for applications in automotive and automation. These collaborative efforts will feed into targeted development roadmaps and pilot projects aligned with the specific needs of industry. In return, industry partners will play a key role in advancing chiplet innovation in close cooperation with the FMD. Combined with the technological capabilities of the APECS pilot line, this lays the foundation for new manufacturing technologies, design methods, and standards, as well as the testing of functional prototypes. As a catalyst for pre-competitive industrial research, the Chiplet Application Hub elevates these activities to a new level, accelerating the transfer of innovation into practical industrial use.