Japan's chip reboot: TSMC, Samsung, Micron pave way for silicon revival

KUMAMOTO, Japan -- Hsieh Yong-fen, a materials scientist turned entrepreneur, opened her company's second Japan-based laboratory in the southwestern prefecture of Kumamoto late last year. Now she is deciding whether to build a third.

As founder and CEO of Hsinchu, Taiwan-based Materials Analysis Technology, better known to the industry as MA-tek, Hsieh is simply following her main clients -- global tech and chip giants like Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co. (TSMC) and Sony -- by expanding in Japan. MA-tek's main work is testing cutting-edge semiconductor materials and certifying new products.