Unstoppable, a major breakthrough in China's chip manufacturing industry chain, 5nm equipment will soon be sent to TSMC

It is reported that the 5nm etching machine manufactured by China Micro Semiconductor Equipment (Shanghai) Co., Ltd. has completed mass production preparations and will be delivered to TSMC in the second half of the year. This is a domestic chipAnother major breakthrough in the manufacturing industry chain.

Due to well-known reasons, the current chip manufacturing has paid the most attention to lithography machines. However, due to various reasons, China is facing difficulties in acquiring advanced lithography machines.The manufacturing industry chain is not discouraged by this, but through their joint efforts, make breakthroughs on the existing basis.

The etching machine is the fastest-growing link in China's chip manufacturing industry chain. Other links have just progressed to 14nm, and the lithography machine is still attacking 28nm.The etching machine has completed the 7nm process, and now it is further to the 5nm process. The etching machine can be described as the most successful technological innovation in China's chip manufacturing industry chain.

In fact, etching machine and lithography machine are one of the two most important links in chip manufacturing.The etching machine physically or chemically removes the excess part of the silicon wafer from the circuit diagram engraved by the lithography machine, so as to highlight the circuit of the wafer.

According to industry insiders, the cost of the lithography machine in chip manufacturing accounts for nearly 30%, while the cost of the etching machine accounts for about 20%-27%. It can be said that the etching machine is onlyIt is an important chip manufacturing equipment next to the lithography machine. It can be seen that China's breakthrough in the etching machine is a huge progress in chip manufacturing.

China's chip manufacturing industries are now vigorously relying on the existing foundation to develop chip manufacturing. In terms of chip production capacity, the current domestic chip manufacturing is mainly based on 14nm and more mature processes to meet domestic requirements.According to industry insiders, 14nm can meet 70% of domestic demand.

As the current global chip market is in a downward phase, companies are more stringent in controlling costs, and 28nm and more backward processes are being promoted in other places, because these processes are more mature, cost-effective, and cost-effective.The reliability is higher, so China's three major chip foundries have become the beneficiaries. In 2021, the revenue growth rate of China's three major chip foundries will rank first, surpassing TSMC.

Seeing that mature processes are favored by the chip industry, TSMC, which has advanced processes such as 5nm, is now expanding its 28nm process capacity in an attempt to compete with the three major chip manufacturers in mainland China.compete.But for the chip industry, advanced technology is the future after all, so China's chip industry chain still needs to speed up the development of advanced technology.

China's progress in etching machines proves that chip manufacturing equipment is not an unbreakable technology, and the rapid progress of etching machines will promote China's chip industry chain to accelerate technologyResearch and development, it can be expected that China's chip manufacturing industry chain will sooner or later break the current shackles and achieve completely independent research and development.

Faced with China's breakthroughs in the chip manufacturing industry chain, ASML, which has advanced lithography machines, is already a little anxious. ASML executives have long stated that they are restricting shipments to China.Lithography machines do not contribute to the healthy development of the global chip supply chain. Sooner or later, China will be able to break through technical limitations, and China's breakthrough in etching machines undoubtedly confirms ASML's prediction, and ASML has also begun to increase shipments of lithography machines to China.strength, hoping to gain more benefits in this market.