Technological Competitiveness Among Global Leader Companies: Patents Analysis of Atomic Layer Deposition Technology

In recent years, the semiconductor industry has become more important than any other industry due to the remarkable development of computers, smartphones, and artificial intelligence. As the gate length of semiconductor transistors evolves to the nanoscale, nanotechnology is becoming a highly competitive technology among individual companies in the semiconductor industry. Companies in the semiconductor industry are engaged in a nanotechnology war to gain market leadership. This study focuses on atomic layer deposition (ALD) technology, considered the core technology of nanotechnology in the semiconductor industry. We collected 5,161 ALD patents registered from 2003 to 2022 by 34 leading companies in major semiconductor countries, including the United States, South Korea, Japan, China, Taiwan, and the European Union (EU). We analyzed the patent performance of the company over 20 years. First, the 34 leading companies were divided into early movers and laggards based on the timing of their first ALD patent registration and into growing and declining companies based on the growth rate of their patent registration performance over 20 years. Next, the analysis by company was integrated into an analysis by country and an analysis by industry sector. The contribution of this study is that we were able to organize and analyze the dynamic competition between companies, sectors, and countries in the atomic layer deposition process. We also presented the implications of this study on the competition for ALD patent technology leadership among semiconductor technology leaders, as well as the limitations and solutions of the study.