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What does “ASML alternative” mean?
ASML designs and manufactures lithography machines, which use light to print circuit patterns on silicon wafers. That makes “alternative” ambiguous: it can mean another maker of lithography systems, or another supplier of equipment used elsewhere in a semiconductor fab. Those are different comparisons. The OECD’s 2025 overview names ASML, Canon and Nikon in advanced photolithography, while identifying ASML as the only provider of EUV equipment in its landscape. OECD, Mapping the Semiconductor Value Chain.
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Deposition, etching and wafer cleaning are separate manufacturing steps. Their suppliers may be major semiconductor-equipment companies, but their tools do not perform lithography and therefore do not replace an exposure system.
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Which companies make equipment for each process?
The OECD maps companies to several equipment categories. The names below are examples of suppliers identified in that overview, not a current market-share ranking or a claim that every company offers equivalent products.
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| Equipment category | Companies named in the OECD overview | What the distinction means |
|---|---|---|
| Advanced photolithography | ASML, Canon, Nikon | Canon and Nikon are lithography makers; the OECD identifies ASML as the sole EUV equipment provider in its 2025 overview. |
| Deposition | Applied Materials, Lam Research, Tokyo Electron, ASM | Suppliers’ positions vary by deposition subcategory, so compare the particular method and application. |
| Dry etch | Lam Research, Applied Materials, Tokyo Electron | The OECD names these among leading suppliers; it does not rank them against one another here. |
| Wafer cleaning | SCREEN, Tokyo Electron, Lam Research | These tools clean wafers at relevant fabrication stages; they are not lithography systems. |
| Resist coating and developing | Tokyo Electron, SCREEN | These processes support lithography, but are distinct from the exposure system that prints a pattern. |
| Wafer bonding and alignment | EV Group, SÜSS MicroTec, Tokyo Electron, Applied Materials | These tools are relevant to wafer stacking and advanced packaging rather than lithography exposure. |
What do major equipment makers offer?
Canon and Nikon: lithography alternatives, but not EUV equivalents
Canon and Nikon belong in a comparison of advanced photolithography companies. But the OECD’s 2025 account names ASML as the only firm supplying EUV equipment. A reader looking specifically for another EUV system maker should not treat Canon or Nikon as equivalent replacements on the evidence available here.
Applied Materials, Lam Research and Tokyo Electron: tools for other fab steps
These companies appear across multiple equipment categories. The OECD names Applied Materials, Lam Research and Tokyo Electron among leading dry-etch suppliers, and lists all three in deposition-related categories. That breadth makes them relevant to the wider semiconductor equipment industry, not direct substitutes for ASML’s lithography systems.
ASM and SCREEN: category-specific suppliers
The OECD includes ASM among deposition suppliers and SCREEN among wafer-cleaning suppliers. These examples illustrate why “semiconductor equipment maker” is a broad label: a supplier can be important to a particular process without competing with ASML in lithography.
Tokyo Electron’s stated portfolio
Tokyo Electron says its equipment portfolio includes deposition, coaters/developers, etching and cleaning, as well as testing and 3D-integration equipment. Those descriptions are the company’s own account of its portfolio. Tokyo Electron: About.
How should you compare semiconductor equipment companies?
- Start with the process step. Compare lithography makers with lithography makers; do not group deposition, etch or cleaning tools as replacements for exposure systems.
- Identify the specific application. The OECD notes that supplier positions in deposition vary by subcategory. A broad label alone does not establish that two companies’ tools serve the same fab need.
- Separate portfolio breadth from direct competition. A company that supplies tools across many manufacturing steps may be a major equipment maker without competing in EUV lithography.
- Do not infer fab-level interchangeability. The cited sources do not establish current customer-by-customer qualifications, comparable tool performance or substitution timelines.
How large is the semiconductor equipment market?
SEMI estimated global semiconductor equipment billings at $117.1 billion for 2024, according to the U.S. House Select Committee report citing SEMI’s April 9, 2025 release. That figure covers total equipment billings—not lithography alone and not one company’s revenue. The same report says ASML sold 583 total units in 2024, including 418 lithography systems; unit counts combine different system types and should not be read as a market-share comparison. U.S. House Select Committee report.
Tokyo Electron reports semiconductor production equipment sales of 2.4435 trillion yen and a global No. 4 position for fiscal 2026, attributing the ranking to TechInsights, April 2026. It also reports 24,996 patents and a No. 1 position for fiscal 2025, based on LexisNexis PatentSight data. These are company-reported figures with their stated fiscal periods and ranking bases; they are not directly comparable with calendar-year figures for competitors. Tokyo Electron: About.
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