Explained: What is a fab plant, how many types of chips are made in world?

There are integrated device manufacturers (IDM) like Samsung and Intel, which both design and manufacture chips

What is a fab plant?

It is a manufacturing plant where raw wafers are turned into integrated circuits (ICs) through a complex process.

Making a chip requires over 500 machines that are controlled by only a few global companies and it goes through 700-1,500 processes, which include heating to over 1,100 centigrade, sometimes as many as 27 times. It also requires over 300 gases and chemicals such as nitrogen and acetone, most of which have to be imported initially, at least in India.

A chip needs a “clean room” with nearly zero dust, lots of water and a stable uninterrupted