Products TSMC 3DFabric

TSMC 3DFabric

TSMC 3DFabric is TSMC's umbrella platform for 3D silicon stacking and advanced packaging.

It exists because advanced computing can no longer rely only on making one monolithic chip larger and smaller at the same time.

Explain It in 30 Seconds

Modern high-performance systems increasingly combine:

  • compute dies;
  • memory;
  • chiplets;
  • different process technologies.

3DFabric provides technologies for integrating those pieces into a larger system.

The platform includes technologies such as:

Where 3DFabric Sits in TSMC

Customer chip architecture
↓
TSMC process technology
↓
individual dies / chiplets
↓
3DFabric integration
↓
multi-die package / stacked system
↓
customer product

It is the bridge between wafer fabrication and system-level integration.

The Problem It Solves

Traditional semiconductor progress often assumed one large chip would contain more and more functions.

That model becomes difficult because:

  • reticle size limits die size;
  • large dies can hurt yield;
  • not every function benefits equally from the newest node;
  • memory must sit close to compute;
  • different technologies may be better for different blocks.

Chiplets offer another path.

Instead of one monolithic die:

one giant chip

engineers can build:

multiple optimized dies+ high-density interconnect
+ advanced packaging

How the Pieces Connect

SoIC

3D silicon stacking.

It connects dies vertically with very short, dense interconnects.

CoWoS

2.5D integration.

It places logic and memory together through an interposer or related integration structure.

InFO

Fan-out packaging used in mobile, networking and other applications.

3DFabric

The umbrella that connects these different integration methods into a broader system-design toolkit. [S10]

Why Chiplets Change Foundry Economics

Chiplets let customers separate functions.

A design can place:

high-performance logic
on a leading node

while keeping:

analog / I/O / other functions
on more mature and cost-effective nodes

TSMC describes this as a way to improve:

  • time-to-market;
  • performance;
  • energy efficiency;
  • form factor;
  • cost. [S10]

This expands the foundry's role from making dies to helping customers optimize whole systems.

Who Uses 3DFabric?

The platform is especially relevant to:

  • AI accelerators;
  • HPC;
  • networking;
  • mobile processors;
  • chiplet-based systems.

A customer can combine TSMC logic technology with advanced integration rather than treating fabrication and packaging as unrelated decisions.

What 3DFabric Depends On

3DFabric depends on:

  • known-good dies;
  • advanced packaging materials;
  • high-density interconnects;
  • thermal design;
  • substrate technology;
  • HBM availability for many HPC products;
  • testing;
  • design tools that model the full package.

TSMC's advanced-packaging service also requires collaboration with substrate, memory and material suppliers. [S10]

Why 3DFabric Matters to TSMC

3DFabric changes the boundary of a foundry.

Earlier foundry value was centered on:

manufacture the die

3DFabric adds:

integrate the dies into a system

That makes packaging part of TSMC's technology platform rather than a commodity afterthought.

Key Milestones

2012 — CoWoS production foundation

TSMC transferred CoWoS into production. [S21]

2018 — SoIC announced

TSMC introduced a 3D chip-stacking approach and continued broadening its advanced-packaging portfolio. [S22]

2020s — 3DFabric becomes an umbrella platform

TSMC increasingly organized CoWoS, SoIC and InFO as one system-integration family.

2026 — Package scale continues to grow

TSMC's 2026 technology symposium described significantly larger CoWoS integrations for future AI systems. [S24]

What Most People Misunderstand

"3DFabric is one package."

No.

It is a family of integration technologies.

"Packaging happens after the important engineering is finished."

Increasingly false for AI and HPC.

Package design can determine memory bandwidth, interconnect density, power and system size.

"Chiplets are automatically cheaper."

Not always.

They create flexibility, but packaging and interconnect complexity can also increase cost.

Common Questions

Is CoWoS part of 3DFabric?

Yes. [S10]

Is SoIC part of 3DFabric?

Yes. [S10]

Is 3DFabric only for AI?

No. TSMC positions the platform across HPC, AI, mobile and other advanced applications.

Evidence

  • 3DFabric includes CoWoS, InFO and SoIC. [S10]
  • TSMC positions the platform around chiplets, heterogeneous integration, performance and cost flexibility. [S10]
  • Advanced packaging continues to scale for AI/HPC. [S24]

Connected Entities