chips

Intel and TSMC lead the revolution of photonic chips. His problem is that China has just done fully in this war

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Douglas Yu, a TSMC executive, The biggest chips manufacturer on the planetwith responsibility in the field of systems integration Explain clearly The disruptive capacity of integrated photonic circuits: “If we manage to implement a good system of integration of silicon’s photonics We will trigger a new paradigm. We will probably be placed at the beginning of a new era. “ The photonic silicon seeks to develop the technology of this chemical element to optimize the transformation of electrical signals into light pulses. The most obvious field of application of this innovation is the implementation of high performance links that, on paper, can be used both to solve communications between several chips and to optimize the transfer of information between several machines. Advanced packaging technologies with which the main semiconductor manufacturers work, such as TSMC, Intel or Samsung, can benefit a lot from a communication mechanism between very high performance chips. And the large data centers in which it is necessary to connect a large number of machines, too. However, there is a particular discipline to which it would be wonderful about the advantages proposed by the photonic silicon: the artificial intelligence (AI). China plans to use this technology in AI, 6G communications and quantum computers Intel and TSMC are some of the companies that have been working on the development of their technologies linked to the photonic silicon, and, as we can intuit, this innovation is no stranger to Chinese companies and research centers. In fact, in mid -May 2024 the Institute of Information Technology and Microsystems of Shanghai (China) in collaboration with the Lausanian Institute of Technology (Switzerland) reached a crucial milestone. Until that time one of the fundamental ingredients of the integrated photonic circuits was the lithium niobate. The lithium tantalate allows the manufacture of large -scale photonic chips and with much lower costs This synthetic salt intervenes in the manufacture of these integrated circuits because its physicochemical properties allow it to optimize the conversion of electricity into light, but it has a problem: the industrial exploitation of this technology is conditioned by The high cost that each wafer hasand also for the size of each of them. What these scientists have achieved is to replace the lithium niobate with other semiconductor material whose properties are even more attractive: the lithium tantalate (litao3). Ou Xin, one of the scientists who have led this project, assures That in addition to paying better than the lithium niobate, the lithium tantaloate allows the manufacture of large -scale photonic circuit and with much lower costs. This is because the manufacturing processes are similar to those currently used to produce conventional silicon semiconductors. This is the context in which, according to SCMPthe chips center for integrated photonics Xplore (Chipx) of the Jiao Tong University of Shanghai has announced that it has started the production of 6 -inch wafers for photonic chips. Interestingly, this production line Use Lithium Niobateso it still has a room to advance and take advantage of the properties of the lithium tantalate. Be as Professor Jin Xianmin, the director of CHIPX, says that the photonic integrated circuits have a huge potential not only in the training and inference of AI models, the classical supercomputing and Quantum computersbut also in the development of communications 6g. Image | TSMC More information | SCMP In Xataka | Today China and the US have parked their differences for a good reason: they will analyze together the risks of AI

The SOC Kirin 9020 of Huawei demonstrates how much China has advanced with the chips. And also how much you have to do

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Huawei and SMIC (Semiconductor manufacturing international corp) They go hand in hand in their adventure to sustain the Chinese semiconductor industry. The sanctions that The US government has deployed During the last two and a half years they seek to stop the development of Chinese companies that are dedicated to the design and manufacture of integrated circuits. The country’s semiconductor industry led by Xi Jinping brings together hundreds of companies, but these two are its spearhead. And they are because presumably are the ones that have the most resources at their disposal to innovate. And they are doing it. In fact, SMIC currently has the ability to manufacture Integrated 6 and 7 nm circuits. In addition, you are about to start 5 Nm chip production and plan to start Its first 3 nod nodes equipped with gaa transistors (Gate-alall-around) in 2026. It is not but that we are bad if we keep in mind that Chinese manufacturers do not have access to equipment extreme ultraviolet photolithography (UVE) of ASML, which are the ideal to produce these semiconductors. The Soc Kirin 9020 is a half success The launch of the new smartphones family Huawei pure 80 It invites us to take a look at your SOC to identify what it proposes and what integration technology is involved in its manufacture. This chip has been produced by SMIC in its 7 Nm node and class N+2. This terminology indicates that it is a 7 Nm and second generation lithograph Mate 60 Pro of Huawei. SMIC already has the ability to manufacture integrated circuits of 6 nm. And soon you can also produce 5 nm chips We have not yet had the opportunity to try any of the pure family 80 smartphones equipped with this SOC, but it is reasonable to anticipate that it will give users a satisfactory experience. Even so, it is evident that your performance by watt will not be comparable to that of The soc that manufactures TSMC in its nodes of 3 and 5 nm. As I mentioned a few lines above, SMIC already has the ability to manufacture integrated 6 NM circuits, and soon it can also produce 5 Nm semiconductors, but it is limited by the performance of the deep ultraviolet lithography equipment (UVP) you have in your possession. It is meritorious that SMIC and Huawei engineers have managed to refine their integrated circuit manufacturing processes what is necessary to produce chips of 5, 6 and 7 nm with the ASML UVP equipment, but a priori it is very unlikely that with these machines they will be able to go beyond the 3 Nm. And it is because the technique of Multiple patterningwhich is what they are using, imposes important limitations. A note: This strategy in broad strokes consists in transferring the pattern to the wafer in several passes with the purpose of increasing the resolution of the lithographic process. His problem is that he usually has an upward impact on the cost of chips and the decline in production capacity. For China it is a big problem not to have the necessary technology to produce avant -garde semiconductors comparable to those who manufacture Intel, AMD or Qualcomm, among other western alignment companies. The great hope of the country led by Xi Jinping is having as soon as possible Your own UVE photolithography teamsand it seems that they are close. In fact, A filtration has revealed that Huawei is already testing a prototype of one of these machines. If this information is finally confirmed and China has its commercial UVE machines in 2026 will have taken a crucial step in its pulse with the US. Image | Hiilicon In Xataka | Nvidia has to deal with the absolute distrust of several US legislators. His plan in China is in danger In Xataka | The US wants to end the chips for the Chinese that are sold abroad. And China knows how to defend oneself

China has just uploaded one of the keys to the future of its chips. It is a very elegant response to the US

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At the end of May, the US administration took a new step in its strategy to stop the Chinese semiconductor industry. After verifying that preventing access to its technology had not been enough to stop the country’s progress led by Xi Jinping, he decided Block EDA software exports. This software is essential to automate the design and key processes that allow progress in the manufacture of semiconductors and in the development of new lithographic technologies. China has taken less than two weeks to move and make your progress public. The context. On May 29, the United States notified the three giants of the EDA software industry (Cadence, Synopsys and Siemens) that They had to cease their services to Chinese groups. These three companies control more than 74% of the global market of these tools. In an attempt to isolate China from a fundamental element to advance in the semiconductor career, the Trump administration attacked one of the few flanks that remained to torpedo. The first answer. The reaction of Chinese software manufacturers EDA was immediate. Yang Lianfeng, president of one of the three main national companies in the sector, described the US decision as “The best development opportunity in history”. The Trump administration maneuver, which sought to close a door to China, ended up promoting the actions of national companies and accelerating processes that had been developing for years. Processes that, inevitably, they would culminate in a self -sufficient industry. The next step, upload to github. One of the particularities of EDA software is its closed nature. China has been keeping its advances in this field with zeal but, after the United States movement, it has not taken long to respond. The Chinese Academy of Sciences, one of the main scientific institutions of the country, has published in GitHub A document in which he explains his advances with Qimeng. This software uses Chinese language models to automate processes in semiconductor manufacturing. The development team states that it can do in days what a human team would have been for weeks. It is important to emphasize that Qimeng is an academic Open-Source project, without industrial purposes. However, Timming has been perfect. The small mouth. Modesty is a characteristic feature of Chinese philosophy. This was shown by Ren Zhengfei, leader of Huawei, publicly recognizing that His chips are a year behind those of the United States. The Academy itself has adopted a similar position, ensuring that (for the moment) its performance is comparable to the Intel proposals in the 1990s and Arm architectures of the 2010. The documentation also highlights the current challenges in the current design of semiconductors, including limited resources, ecosystem diversity and restrictions on the manufacture of this technology. China has a lot to show. It is quite naive to think that China’s current point in EDA software is just comparable to solutions ten years ago. If an academic and open source project is at this point, that of the Chinese EDA giants will have enough to demonstrate. The country is working in silence to Achieve self -sufficiency In an essential field to lead in semiconductors, and make part of their advances public is a clear message that they are working patiently. The country, comparing its product with the American, shows a deep respect for rival knowledge and wisdom (China has even a character to reflect this, and it is the Zhì 智), while making clear its pragmatism: if they cannot access the tool, they will create it themselves. In Xataka | China is moving whole buildings at the same time to build underneath. Because? Because it can

Malaga gets fully into the chips industry. It is due to IMEC, the most important laboratory in Europe

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The Interuniversity Microelectronics Center or IMEC (Interuniversity Microelectronics Center) It is not a research center. It is the most experienced laboratory in the tuning of New integration technologies to manufacture integrated circuits and nanotechnology that we have in Europe. In fact, its engineers They work side by side with ASML techniciansTSMC, Intel or Samsung with the purpose of jointly developing new semiconductor packaging technologies or avant -garde photolithography techniques. This research center is housed in Leuven (Belgium), but in 2030 it will have a new laboratory that will be located in Malaga Techpark, an ambitious technological park installed in this Andalusian capital. José Luis Escrivá, the former Minister of Digital Transformation and Public Function, announced the arrival of Imec to Malaga In January 2024, but a year and a half later we have more important information. According to Malaga today The total cost of these facilities will amount to 615 million euros. The central government will contribute 500 million and the Junta de Andalucía the remaining 115. On the other hand, the Malaga Center of IMEC will have a total area of ​​51,300 square meters, and, more importantly, it will use 200 people of high qualification. After all, these researchers will participate in the search for alternatives to the silicon in integrated circuit production processes, as well as in the development of new photolithography technologies that will pursue make possible the manufacture of chips below 1 Nm. However, in addition to these direct jobs, this research center will attract Malaga to other important companies involved in the semiconductor industry. This is the most ambitious IMEC project: to manufacture 3 angstroms chips According to Imec In 2035 integrated circuit manufacturers will begin large -scale production of 3 angstroms chips (0.3 Nm). This milestone is very important because presumably these will be the first semiconductors made of the UVE Hyper-á lithography equipment in which ASML is already working. However, of course, these machines will not arrive that year; They will be ready much earlier. That will be the time when Chips manufacturers will start large -scale production, but possibly this machine will be prepared at the end of this decade. In 2039 chips manufacturers will go beyond the 2 angstroms Anyway, the interesting thing is that the opening of the optics of these avant -garde lithography equipment will be, again according to IMEC, of ​​0.75 in the face of the opening of 0.55 UVE UVE MACHINESor 0.33 in Conventional UVE teams. In any case, the itinerary of this laboratory anticipates that In 2037 the integrated circuits of 2 angstroms will arriveand in 2039 chips manufacturers will pass this barrier and go beyond the 2 angstroms. In the article we dedicate to Rayleight criteria We explain in a lot of detail what the ‘Na’ parameter consists (Numerical Aperture), But in this text it is enough to know that this variable identifies the opening value of the optics used by the lithographic equipment. In this context this parameter essentially reflects the same as the opening value when we talk about The optics of a photo cameraso it conditions the amount of light that the optical elements They are able to collect. As we can intuit, the more light gathens, the better. Image | Laura Ockel | Wikimedia More information | IMEC In Xataka | China needs to develop a new type of immune chips to US sanctions. And their scientists have just achieved it

After mobiles, cars and chips, China is launching its biotechnological offensive. And the West will not be able to block it with tariffs

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China has just achieved something historical: that an American pharmacist pay 5,000 million dollars for a Chinese drug against cancer. It is the highest figure ever paid by a Chinese medical innovation. Why is it important. This news It is the perfect example of how, in the middle of a war for semiconductors, chips and rare earths, China is beginning to lead an even more strategic industry: biotechnological. Medicines do not know borders or tariffs. The context. In 2011, China approved the first oncological drug developed at home: an improved copy of a western medication. Fourteen years later, a Chinese biespecific antibody threatens best -selling medication in the world, Keytruda, of Merck, which invoice 29.5 billion dollars annually. What has happened. Chinese transformation into biotechnology follows a recognizable pattern. First arrived Betta Pharmaceuticals Pume: A “I” version of Western therapies. It worked equally well, it cost less, but never left China. Then came Beigene Brukinsa: The jump to “I better.” It became the first Chinese oncological drug approved by the US FDA. Today it is sold in 65 countries and generates 2.6 billion dollars a year. The third step was Carvykti by Legend Biotech: A cell therapy that genetically modifies patient cells to attack cancer. Johnson & Johnson associated to take her worldwide. In the foreground. The fourth act is underway with ‘Ivonescimab’ by Akeso Biopharma. This biespecific antibody simultaneously attacks two targets of cancer. Summit Therapeutics He opted 5,000 million dollars for himmaking it the greatest operation of Chinese pharmaceutical license in history. The bet is huge: Ivonescimab intends to dethrone Keytruda as world oncological standard. Global clinical trials will decide if China can create next Blockbuster medicinal. In figures. The numbers show the speed of Chinese advance: 2011: First approved Chinese oncological drug. 2019: First FDA approval for a Chinese drug. 2024: Chinese pharmaceutical licenses grew from 35,000 to 46,000 million dollars. Only five Chinese drugs have achieved FDA approval. Between the lines. Biotechnology implies unique geopolitical advantages against semiconductors. The medications are not blocked with sanctions: they save lives regardless of their origin. Western governments cannot prohibit Chinese oncological drugs without enraging patients, doctors and society in general. China understands and is attracting global pharmaceutical talent with mass financing and flexible regulations. The result: Chinese laboratories developing therapies that Western multinationals buy for a lot of money. Yes, but. Success is not guaranteed. 90% experimental drugs fail in clinical trials. Ivonescimab must demonstrate superiority against Keytruda In non -Chinese patients, something we should not give for granted. In addition, geopolitics can complicate things. Legend Biotech broke links with its matrix for American pressures. And the weather does not help. What is happening now. China has replicated in biotechnology its classic manual in technology: Attract expatriate talent. Generously finance startups. Create national champions Climb globally. The difference: medicines generate less political resistance than chips. It is possible that a striking scenario may occur: Western patients depending on Chinese medical innovations. Irony is perfect: China dominates an industry where its success directly benefits Western citizens. But of course, who captures the economic value is her. Deepen. Akeso’s case is especially emblematic. Its founder, Michelle XiaI felt frustration seeing how the best treatments took decades to reach Chinese patients. And decided to invest the equation: create in China therapies that the rest of the world would need. In Xataka | China is already a power greater than Europe in one of its key industries: the development of medicines Outstanding image | Akeso

“The chips for Huawei are a generation behind the US.” Ren Zhengfei, founder of Huawei says it

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Ren Zhengfei, the founder and general director of Huawei, has made very interesting statements during a conversation with a Chinese journalist from Diario del Pueblo. According to this executive “the Huawei GPUs are still A generation behind of the chips for artificial intelligence (AI) of the US “. A priori it is surprising that the head of this company publicly makes recognition as sharp as this. However, this is not all. In addition, Zhengfei argues that “the US has exaggerated Huawei’s abilities. We are not so strong yet.” His words They arrive at a very important moment For the company that leads. And it is that little more than a month ago two new chips for AI, the GPUs Ascend 910d and 920with which he aspires to gradually snatch the leadership in performance in AI applications that holds both in China and beyond the borders of this Asian country. Correctly understand Zhengfei’s statements requires putting them in context This reflection of the general director of Huawei has not arrived at any time. Currently the governments of the US and China They are negotiating in London The scenario and the conditions in which their commercial relations will be developed in the future, and Huawei has a leading role in this conflict. After all, it is next to SMIC (Semiconductor manufacturing international corp), The largest Chinese chips, China’s spearhead in the technology industry in general and in the semiconductor sector and the AI ​​in particular. All probability the words of Zhengfei seek to take Huawei away from the Center for Care, and, therefore, relieve the pressure to which this company is currently subjected. However, this does not mean that he is lying and has affirmed something that does not really believe. Jensen Huang, the general director of Nvidia, has declared A few days ago, China is not behind in front of the US in AI. And the solvency of Deepseek, Ernie, Qwen, Pangu, Hunyuan or Sensenova endorses its analysis. In inference processes the latest chips of the Ascend family of Huawei are very competitive However, Ren Zhengfei has strain the hardware that Huawei has. It does not talk about the capacities or competitiveness of the great language models for the developed in China. In inference processes the latest chips of the Ascend family They are very competitive. An note before moving forward: inference is broadly the computational process carried out by language models with the purpose of generating the responses that correspond to the requests they receive. However, it is currently reasonable to assume that the NVIDIA GPUs deliver a higher performance in the training processes of the great AI models. All probability this is the idea about The statement of Zhengfei. However, there is more than we should not overlook if we want to understand in all its extension the words of this executive. Chinese culture is solidly strengthened about traditional values ​​that, despite lasting for more than two millennia, are still very present in current Chinese idiosyncrasy. Modesty (qiānxū), humility (qiānxùn) or (qiānbēi), serenity (chénzhuó) or (dàndìng) and respect for rivals (zūnzhòng duìshou) are values ​​that have traditionally been intimately linked to the Chinese character. And there is no doubt that Zhengfei’s words give off this cultural and philosophical. It is difficult to identify the exact historical moment in which these fundamental values ​​were imbricated in Chinese culture, but, curiously, they are very present in ‘The art of war’the classic work that the Chinese strategist Sun Tzu wrote around the 5th century. C. Image | Huawei More information | Diario del Pueblo | Financial Times In Xataka | China’s domain of rare earths has nothing to do with geography: it is born from 39 university programs

In case the chips war did not have enough contestants, a new company has joined the race: Spacex

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Spacex does everything big. Last year he opened in Bastrop, a small town in Texas (USA), The manufacturing plant of largest printed circuit plates in the country. The company of the company led by Elon Musk consists in producing all components, or, at least, most of them, involved in the manufacture of their satellites For the Starlink Network. This strategy will allow Spacex to save costs and reduce its dependence on the distribution chain. However, this is just the beginning of the path you will travel. And is that, according to Digitimes Asiathis company plans to expand its Bastrop facilities with the purpose of tuning the equipment you need to package semiconductors. Before moving forward we are interested in reviewing what the two concepts are in which we have just inquired. A printed circuit plate or PCB for its English denomination (Printed Circuit Board) It is a sheet manufactured in an insulating material, such as fiberglass, which contains on its surface the copper tracks through which electricity will circulate in an integrated circuit or electronic component. On the other hand, Chips packaging It is the process that seeks to protect the integrated circuit by introducing it into an encapsulated or protective housing. In addition, it incorporates the necessary connections to install it into a printed circuit plate and allow it to communicate with other electronic components. Spacex’s irruption in the integrated circuit industry is underway The administration led by Donald Trump has proposed to develop the semiconductor industry as much as necessary for the US to not depend on any other country. Currently this nation Buy 92% from its avant -garde semiconductors to TSMC in Taiwan. And the US government intends to manufacture 28% of avant -garde chips of the planet in 2032 considering as advanced integrated circuits those produced with a more sophisticated integration technology than that of 10 Nm. Currently the chips that Spacex uses are packaged by stmicroelectronics and innolux The steps that Spacex is taking support the strategy that the US government is deploying, but, as I mentioned a few lines above, first of all they pursue save costs and minimize its current dependence on the distribution chain. At the moment Most of the chips That this company from Elon Musk uses in the manufacture of its satellites are packaged by the Franco-Cabalian company Stmicroelectronics and the Taiwanese innolux. Presumably when the expansion of the Bastrop Plant is a list of the packaging will be commissioned by Spacex itself. From that moment on, this company will manufacture its own PCB and package its integrated circuits, so its next logical movement will be in all likelihood to build a semiconductor manufacturing plant. The SpaceX satellite network currently brings together about 7,700 devices in orbit, and this company intends to launch over the next few years 32,000 more satellites with the purpose of giving coverage to the entire planet. In addition, some of these satellites are used by the US government, so controlling the entire production chain of these devices will allow Spacex to optimize the performance of their business and guarantee the safety and integrity of its satellite network. More information | Digitimes Asia In Xataka | China has the CPU ARM for faster servers on the planet. It is from Alibaba and its performance is supported by IEEE

The biggest Chinese chips is about to start production at 5 Nm. Your plan is to have the 3 Nm in 2026

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TO SMIC (Semiconductor manufacturing international corp), The largest Chinese semiconductor manufacturer has cost it more than two years to refine its most advanced integration technology what is necessary to produce integrated 5 Nm circuits. And he has not just traveled this path. Huawei has traveled it from the hand of Huawei. Dr. Kim, an expert in chips manufacturing who has worked in Samsung and currently investigating TSMC in the US, He maintains that SMIC It is about to start the production of 5 Nm chips. It is perfectly credible because, as we have just seen, we know with certainty that this company has been Working in this technology. And, in addition, Dr. Kim is a reliable source. However, this expert has pointed out something crucial that we should not overlook: the performance per wafer that SMIC has currently achieved in its 5 Nm nodes is less than 30%. When semiconductor manufacturers produce a chip wafer, some of those nuclei do not work properly. It is normal. And when they launch a new lithographic node, their performance by wafer usually has a wide margin, but little by little, as engineers refine their integration processes, this parameter improves. A mature lithography can deliver to integrated circuit manufacturers a very high performance, but an incipient technology usually moves in the orbit of 50% performance, so only half of the chips produced work correctly. SMIC 3 and 5 nm chips are possible thanks to the SAQP technique The problem is that for an integration technology to be profitable from an economic point of view, its performance by wafer has to be At least 70%. And, as we have just seen, Dr. Kim argues that the SMIC 5 NM node is below 30%. It is objectively a very poor performance, but we know what this low figure explains: the technique used by this manufacturer to produce these semiconductors. It is known as Multiple patterningand SMIC has used it for more than a year and a half to make 7 NM chips for Huawei and other customers. The 5 Nm chips that SMIC will manufacture for Huawei are possible thanks to a technology known as SAQP This strategy consists in transferring the pattern to the wafer in several passes with the purpose of increasing the resolution of the lithographic process. It works, but is responsible for wafer performance is clearly improvable. However, in all probability the integrated 5 Nm circuits that presumably SMIC will manufacture soon for Huawei are possible Thanks to a technology known as SAQP (Self-alledhed Quadruple Patterning), which is nothing more than a Multiple patterning more aggressive and sophisticated than the one used to manufacture the soc Kirin 9000s of 7 nm and other chips. A report published two days ago by the Taiwanese media Economic Daily News ensures that SMIC will start the manufacture of 3 Nm semiconductors equipped with GAA transistors (Gate-alall-around) For Huawei in 2026. However, this is not all. This article also maintains that this last company has already completed laboratory tests that pursue the manufacture of integrated circuits using carbon nanotubes. Huawei’s plan presumably is to give this innovation to SMIC to adapt it to large -scale production. The enormous effort that Huawei, SMIC and other Chinese companies involved in the design and manufacture of semiconductors are the result of their inability to access the equipment of extreme ultraviolet photolithography (UVE) produced by the Dutch company Asml Because of US sanctions. With these SMIC machines could make 3 and 5 nm chips delivering a performance by wafer similar to that they have achieved TSMC or Samsung. However, the need to produce these integrated circuits using deep ultraviolet equipment (UVP) of ASML, which are less sophisticated, forces them to resort to the SAQP technique. It works, as we have seen, but these companies lose a lot of competitiveness due to the poor performance by wafer and the high cost that this technology entails. More information | Economic Daily News In Xataka | The US has declared the total war on Huawei: he does not want him to sell his chips for the most advanced outside of China

These are the chips that are capable of manufacturing without resorting to the most advanced Machine of ASML

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TSMC is not the largest semiconductor manufacturer on the planet by chance. Morris Chang He founded this veteran Taiwanese company in 1987, but his leadership took several years to consolidate. At that time the most important integrated circuit manufacturer was Intel, but The TSMC domain In this industry during the last two decades it is irrefatable. Today monopolizes approximately 60% of the market of the manufacture of integrated circuits, and nothing indicates that in the short term Intel or Samsung, its two main competitors, will be able to dispute your leadership. The success of this company has mainly based on its ability to manufacture large -scale chips using the most advanced integration technologies available and with a very high wafer performance. Here lies its very high competitiveness. And, in addition, he has managed to preserve this position for many years, which has helped him transmit confidence to his solid clients such as a rock. His economic performance is nothing other than a consequence of his career: in 2024 he entered 34% more than in 2023. TSMC claims to be able to bring asml UVE lithography equipment to the limit This integrated circuit manufacturer has confirmed that the tests of its 2 Nm node are being successful, so you can start the large -scale manufacture of semiconductors using this photolithography during the second semester of 2025. However, its medium -term plans do not end here. And is that at the end of last April advance During his North American Technological Conference that is also testing his next avant -garde integration technology. It will call it A14 (1.4 Nm), will enter large -scale production in 2028 and we already know some of its most interesting characteristics. Kevin Zhang ensures that TSMC does not need the ASML UVE High-Nna lithography team to make 1.4 Nm One of its most important spots will consist that you will use transistors Nanosheet Gaa (Gate-alall-around) Second generation. The first generation will arrive next to the Lithography N2 (2 Nm) this year. In addition, this integration technology will land with the promise to make possible the manufacture of integrated circuits with higher performance, higher energy efficiency and a more flexible design. The usual. However, TSMC, fortunately, has been wet and in its event some figures made public that allow us to assess to what extent the arrival of the A14 node will be important. And, according to this company, the integrated circuits produced with the A14 lithography will be 15% faster than the chips manufactured in the NEN N2 with the same consumption; They will reduce energy expenditure by 30% at the same speed, and, in addition, they will put on the table the possibility of increasing the density of logic by 20%. According to Kevin ZhangSenior Vice President and Deputy Director of Operations of TSMC, the A14 node will be attractive to make chips for consumption devices and for strictly professional applications, such as, for example, GPU for artificial intelligence (AI). There is no doubt that TSMC’s promises about their lithography A14 sound good, but there is more that we should not overlook. Zhang says that they will not use the equipment of extreme ultraviolet photolithography (UVE) and haute opening (High-na) that manufactures the Dutch company ASML in this node. This is a technical capacity exhibition. These machines, the most advanced that currently exist, are suitable for producing integrated circuits of 2 nm and beyond. In fact, The lithography 14a (1.4 Nm) It will be the first in which Intel will use the Uve High opening equipment of ASML. However, as we have just seen, TSMC says it can produce chips capable of dealing with comparable semiconductors of Intel and Samsung using conventional UVE equipment. 2025 will be the year in which the lithographs of 2 nm will start, and, therefore, it will be the prelude to a presumably even more bloody battle: that of the 1.4 Nm. Image | ASML More information | Tom’s hardware In Xataka | ASML’s new lithography team divides chips manufacturers. TSMC considers not using it until 2030

In his obsession to torpedo the Chinese chips industry, the US wants to block an essential to manufacture them: the software, according to FT

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Hard setback for the Trump administration, which dawns this Thursday, May 29 with a clear response from the US International Trade Court to its tariff policy. The organism has declared generalized tariffs illegalafter considering that “they exceed any authority conferred on the president by the IEEPA (Law on Economic Powers in case of international emergency) “. In the middle of the storm, sources of Financial Times They declare that the United States Department of Commerce has begun to urge the main suppliers of electronic design automation software (EDA), in a new attempt to continue trying to knock each of the pillars that sustains the Chinese semiconductor industry. The new order. The Trump administration is starting to inform To the main national companies that offer the necessary software to design semiconductors that they must stop selling their services to Chinese groups. A measure that strengths the commercial war between the United States and China, at a time when the latter country is in full chips national production record and getting closer to develop their own 5 Nm lithography. The big names. There are three big names playing in the American industry: Cadence, Synopsy and Siemens. These three companies They monopolize the bulk of the Global EDA software market And they have been key for China to have been able to develop its current semiconductor industry. Preventing China from accessing this type of solutions is a zancadilla. These tools are essential to achieve advanced lithographic processes and expedite essentials such as design verification, performance simulation, energy consumption, and other key aspects to lead in the manufacture of any chip. Why is EDA software. In the manufacture of a modern semiconductor, tools that make it possible to automate the essential design and verification processes for its manufacture are necessary. Minimizing the margin of error and being especially effective in the refining of your behavior is key to leading this career. EDA software is a fundamental element to ensure that these designs meet the expectations of the manufacturing process, and allows to automate each of the phases of the same. The local industry. SMICthe spearhead in the Chinese semiconductor industry, It has been using Synopsys design suites For more than 20 years. After entering the Entity Listthe company did not lose access to these toolsonly access to them was difficult to be forced to establish license agreements to be able to use them. If Trump’s order is fulfilled, it will not be possible to renew these agreements or access to the software of these companies. Immediately after the intentions of the US administration, local companies such as Empyrean Technology, Primarius Techonologies and Semitonix, have seen the price of the action around 20%. These companies are specialized in the development of software solutions for semiconductors, and are some of the main names that sound after Trump’s threat. Even in the air. Although sources consulted by Financial Times affirm that the United States Industry and Security Office (BIS) is issuing this new directive through letters to companies, some like Synopsys have not taken long to uncheck. “We are aware of the rumors and speculation, but Synopsys has not received any official communication from the Bis. That is why we keep our annual forecasts unchanged, based on our current understanding of the export restrictions of the BIS and in the forecast of an interannual fall of the income from China.” Cadence and Siemens, for the moment, have not made statements about it. In Xataka | China prepares the mate to the US: it will have its own UVE lithography team to make chips in 2025

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