SMIC (Semiconductor Manufacturing International Corp), the largest Chinese semiconductor manufacturer, has the capacity to produce 7nm chips from 2023. At the beginning of September of that year this company shook up the integrated circuit industry by demonstrating that it had been able to manufacture these semiconductors despite not having access to UVE photolithography equipment (extreme ultraviolet) produced by the Dutch company ASML.
These highly sophisticated machines are necessary to manufacture cutting-edge chipsand ASML cannot sell them to its Chinese customers because the US, which controls some of the patents used by this equipment, prohibits it. Still, in 2023 SMIC and Huawei worked hand in hand to manufacture 7nm ICs without using ASML’s EUU machines. Of course, they used deep ultraviolet (UVP) equipment that this company from the Netherlands also produces.
UVP machines are not as advanced as UVE machines, but with proper refinements they can be used to manufacture cutting-edge integrated circuits. And now China has two semiconductor manufacturers capable of producing 7nm chips. As we have just seen, one of them is SMIC, and the other, according to Reutersis Hua Hong Semiconductor, the country’s second largest integrated circuit producer.
The shadow of ‘multiple patterning’ is very long
Hua Hong Semiconductor’s division specializing in third-party chip manufacturing is called Huali Microelectronics, and, again according to Reutersis preparing to start production of 7nm integrated circuits at its Shanghai plant. The sources that have revealed this information assure that Huawei has collaborated with Huali Microelectronics on this project, which invites us to reach two reasonable conclusions.
It is very likely that with the help of Huawei, Huali has developed ‘multiple patterning’ techniques
The first is that Huali’s 7nm lithography will most likely play an essential role in GPU production capacity for artificial intelligence (AI) from both Huawei and other Chinese companies. And the second conclusion is actually a plausible hypothesis. And, like SMIC, Huali does not have access to ASML SVU equipment. For this reason, it is very likely that with the help of Huawei it has developed security techniques. multiple patterning to be able to manufacture 7nm chips with the UVP machines in its possession.
A priori, UVP machines are suitable for manufacturing semiconductors up to 10 nm. And with EUVs it is possible to exceed 3 nm. However, by refining the processes involved in transferring the pattern to the wafer and turning to multiple patterning It is possible to go beyond these integration technologies. This technique broadly consists of transferring the pattern to the wafer in several passes with the purpose of increasing the resolution of the lithographic process. It may have an upward impact on the cost of chips and a downward impact on production capacity, but it works.
Either way, Huali Microelectronics is going to face the same challenges that SMIC has dealt with for the last three years: the multiple patterning seriously limits the number of viable chips per wafer that is possible to manufacture. And, therefore, it increases its cost. Still, it is very important for Chinese AI chip designers to have access to two companies capable of producing their designs with advanced photolithography technology. And for Hua Hong Semiconductor it is crucial to have the ability to manufacture, thanks to Huali, cutting-edge integrated circuits and not just 22 nm or larger (this is the most advanced photolithography it had so far).
Image | Generated by Xataka with Gemini
More information | Reuters
In Xataka | TSMC is already the highest-earning chipmaker on the planet. It has beaten two semiconductor giants
GIPHY App Key not set. Please check settings