Custom semiconductor fab equipment and process development
Atomic Semi is building an in-house semiconductor fabrication operation from the ground up, designing and manufacturing their own fab equipment rather than licensing it. The tech stack—spanning CAD tools (Solidworks, Onshape, Fusion 360), simulation (COMSOL), embedded systems (Rust, C/C++, RTOS), and CNC control (Fanac, Siemens, Mazak)—reveals a capital-intensive, hardware-first engineering culture. Heavy hiring in mid-level and intern engineering roles signals rapid team scaling to execute equipment builds in parallel with process development.
Atomic Semi designs and manufactures semiconductor fabrication equipment for an internal fab operation, founded in 2023 and based in San Francisco. Rather than procuring equipment from established vendors, the company is building tools in-house—including lithography systems, deposition tools, and metrology subsystems—alongside the processes they enable. Current focus spans precision motion systems, thin-film fabrication methods, and fab automation. The organization is structured around engineering (majority), manufacturing, and operations, with active hiring across all three areas.
CAD tools include Solidworks, Onshape, and Fusion 360; simulation via COMSOL; electronics design via KiCad and Altium; and circuit simulation via LTspice. Figma, Blender, and KiCad are currently being adopted.
Active projects include designing lithography systems, deposition tools, and motion control subsystems; standing up ERP and ramp systems; and executing experiments on new semiconductor and thin-film fabrication processes. Improving equipment reliability and reducing downtime are cited pain points.
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