The project was launched partly in direct response to the European Chips Act (which entered into force in September 2023), which identified the need for greater R&I capacity, open access to advanced facilities, and skills development in the semiconductor sector. Europe's ambition to close the gap with global competitors in chip design and manufacturing requires mobilising capital investment, expert knowledge, and state-of-the-art equipment at early-to-medium Technology Readiness Levels (TRLs). INFRACHIP responds to this by removing access barriers and building a critical mass of research capacity across member states.
Objectives
INFRACHIP has five core objectives, operating across the full innovation value chain:
• Access provision — open, transnational access to state-of-the-art semiconductor fabrication and characterisation facilities across Europe at no cost to qualified users
• R&I capacity building — supporting multi- and transdisciplinary "path-finding" user projects exploring new materials, manufacturing processes, and disruptive technologies
• Twin green and digital transition — driving sustainable ICT innovation, particularly for secure edge applications, addressing both climate and digital policy goals
• Lab-to-Fab acceleration — channelling project outputs toward Testing and Experimentation Facilities (TEFs), European Digital Innovation Hubs (EDIHs), and Pilot Lines
• Talent and skills development — building a skilled semiconductor workforce through the Research Accelerator Programme and hands-on training courses for early-career researchers
Pathways to Impact
The project's pathway to impact follows a clear logic from open access → guided research → translation → deployment:
• Transnational Access (TA): Researchers, PhD students, academics, and SMEs apply for free, EU-funded access to partner facilities equipped with state-of-the-art tools for nanofabrication, characterisation, and testing.
• Challenge-driven user projects: Funded access projects target proof-of-concept studies, feasibility of new processes, and introduction of novel materials — deliberately operating at low-to-mid TRLs where industry typically underinvests.
• Research Accelerator Programme (RAP): Intensive, hands-on training at partner institutes (including Tyndall and INL) equips early-career researchers with the skills to engage with the infrastructure and progress their own research programmes.
• Lab-to-Fab translation: Project results will be actively channelled into TEFs, EDIHs, and Pilot Lines to bridge the gap between laboratory outcomes and industrial-scale manufacturing.
The result is a structured pipeline where open access to shared infrastructure generates research results at low TRLs, those results are guided toward higher readiness through TEFs and pilot lines, and a continuously replenished skilled workforce sustains the ecosystem long-term.
