Co-Founder & Chief Executive Officer
Profile summary: PhD in Mechanical Engineering at Delft University of Technology
Nearfield Instruments
Nearfield Instruments develops high-throughput atomic force microscopy systems for 3D metrology in the semiconductor manufacturing industry, enabling atom-scale resolution at production-level speeds. Their technology addresses the need for precise process control in nano-electronics, enhancing yield and efficiency in semiconductor fabrication.
- Hardware
- Semiconductor
Updated 4 months ago
Funding
Raised to date
$705.1MRaised to date based on public sources. This may differ from the amount the company actually raised and is based only on what is publicly available on the internet.
across 5 rounds
FMIMGQI+4$380M · Series D
Announced Jun 2026 · from article date
Disclosed cumulative: $705.1M
5/5
RoundDateAmountValuationInvestors
Founders
Product
Problem
In advanced semiconductor manufacturing, precise 3D metrology is critical for process control, but traditional methods often lack the resolution and throughput required for in-line monitoring of increasingly complex nano-scale devices. Existing techniques may also be destructive, preventing their use for on-device measurement and real-time process optimization.
Solution
Nearfield Instruments provides high-throughput atomic force microscopy (AFM) systems that enable non-destructive, 3D metrology at the atomic scale, directly within semiconductor fabrication lines. Their QUADRA system, enhanced with Lightning Mode, delivers rapid, high-resolution imaging and data analysis, facilitating real-time process control and yield optimization. By providing accurate, non-destructive measurements on actual devices, Nearfield Instruments allows manufacturers to correlate metrology data with device performance, accelerating time-to-yield and improving high-volume manufacturing (HVM) for advanced memory and logic devices. The system addresses the challenges posed by shrinking geometries, complex 3D structures, and advanced packaging techniques like High Bandwidth Memory (HBM).
Target Audience
The primary customers are semiconductor manufacturers, particularly those producing advanced 3D memory and logic devices, who require high-resolution, high-throughput metrology solutions for in-line process control and yield optimization.
Features
- High-throughput Atomic Force Microscopy (AFM) for rapid 3D metrology
- Non-destructive measurement capability, ensuring device integrity
- Lightning Mode for significantly boosted productivity and throughput
- Proprietary imaging algorithms and data analysis software for advanced process control
- In-line, on-device measurement capabilities for real-time process optimization
- Direct correlation of measurement results with device yield (via E-test)