Chinese semiconductor industry

CMP said:

Too late to edit my old post so I'm going to add that I think Qualcomm was probably one of the topics behind closed doors during the Cali governor's visit. Not sure what China really gets out of continued permissiveness on Qualcomm though, aside from perhaps there not being enough domestic capacity to make that substitution yet. That would be my best guess. So yeah, if you want a secure device, use a Huawei with a HiSilicon chip. Stay far away from the Huaweis that have a Qualcomm chip. That was a sad chapter in this story.

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do you want to destroy all the Chinese phone OEMs that rely on Qualcomm. All the ones that are increasingly using more of the Chinese supply chain?

Until SMIC can get to 4nm and have enough capacity to supply domestic OEMs, they are going to need Qualcomm

CMP said:

Too late to edit my old post so I'm going to add that I think Qualcomm was probably one of the topics behind closed doors during the Cali governor's visit. Not sure what China really gets out of continued permissiveness on Qualcomm though, aside from perhaps there not being enough domestic capacity to make that substitution yet. That would be my best guess. So yeah, if you want a secure device, use a Huawei with a HiSilicon chip. Stay far away from the Huaweis that have a Qualcomm chip. That was a sad chapter in this story.

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Chinese phones using Qualcomm chips still do OK in the US (motorola + random cheap brands) and do really well in Europe. I believe the US would again attempt to "huawei" these phones out of the us and nato countries if China decided to drop US supply chains.

CLP Compound completed the delivery of the first batch of 8-inch SiC epitaxial wafers to customers​

Zhicheng Semiconductor: Focusing on CVD silicon carbide coating technology for semiconductor equipment with outstanding advantages​

As the global third-generation semiconductor, integrated circuit and other semiconductor industries maintain strong growth, the shipments of silicon carbide epitaxial wafers, silicon epitaxial wafers and downstream chips and devices continue to hit new highs, and the demand and availability of epitaxial equipment continue to grow. Therefore, the market for equipment parts continues to expand.
In recent years , as the global third-generation semiconductor, integrated circuit and other semiconductor industries have maintained strong growth, the shipments of silicon carbide epitaxial wafers, silicon epitaxial wafers and downstream chips and devices have continued to hit new highs, and the demand and availability of epitaxial equipment have continued to grow. Therefore, the market for equipment parts continues to expand. Silicon carbide components used in semiconductor equipment are key precision components. They are located in the reaction chamber and some are in direct contact with the wafer. The process is difficult and is crucial to wafer manufacturing and chip manufacturing.
Shenzhen Zhicheng Semiconductor Materials Co., Ltd. (hereinafter referred to as "Zhicheng Semiconductor") is a leading domestic company in the field of silicon carbide components for semiconductor equipment. Since its establishment, Zhicheng Semiconductor has been mainly engaged in the research and development, production and sales of silicon carbide coated graphite parts and components, and provides related silicon carbide coating services.
Zhicheng Semiconductor has long been committed to technological innovation and research and development. The company independently researches and develops core production equipment such as CVD silicon carbide deposition furnaces, product process formulas and other core technologies. It has overcome more than 100 process and technical difficulties, successfully mastered the process of preparing silicon carbide by CVD method, and achieved large-scale mass production. The key technical indicators of silicon carbide coated graphite base products, the main product using this process, have reached domestic leading and international mainstream levels, accelerating the localization process of the industry.
Benefiting from its excellent R&D capabilities and leading technology reserves, Zhicheng Semiconductor has become one of the few domestic companies that can independently develop CVD silicon carbide deposition furnaces and master a number of core CVD silicon carbide coating technologies. From 2020 to 2022, Zhicheng Semiconductor has obtained a total of 41 domestic authorized patents, including 24 invention patents and 17 utility model patents.
In addition, Zhicheng Semiconductor is also actively promoting the research and development and preparation of new products such as solid silicon carbide and sintered silicon carbide, constantly optimizing the company's product structure and enhancing the company's market competitiveness. The company actively carries out technical cooperation with leading companies in the domestic semiconductor industry chain and responds to the country's support policies for the pan-semiconductor industry.

gadgetcool5 said:

ASML China Export Curbs Came Too Late, Dutch PM Frontrunner Says​

The U.S. can count on full Dutch cooperation on its semiconductor curbs against China, if the latest words from the Netherlands' likely future leader are an indication:

Asked about the incoming export restrictions after it became clear existing measures have been insufficient to prevent China from from working out how to manufacture the most advanced semiconductors, Yesilgoz-Zegerius said, “it was probably better if we had taken them before.”

Her statements put her at odds with some Dutch politicians, including lawmakers from two parties in the ruling coalition, who called for their government to take a stand against the measures.

“Unilaterally changing the rules during a contest where competitiveness and strategic autonomy are at stake is difficult to accept, even by a good ally,” said the Dutch Christian Democrat lawmaker Mustafa Amhaouch, who worked for ASML earlier in his career.

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Yes, there are a few Dutch politicians who oppose the U.S. measures imposed on them, but China cannot count on the Netherlands.

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China needs to keep the Netherlands honest, by displacing their top technology company.

We had been saying this for years right now.

tokenanalyst said:

I do not believe that China and Chinese companies should be "independent", but rather work in a state of reduced dependency and risk awareness and assessment.
-For example, they should be able to make chips on the oldest nodes (40nm +) using 100% Chinese equipment and software. In that way, they will groom a local semiconductor ecosystem without losing access to the cutting edge.
-They must use local alternatives and collaborate-invest in local suppliers as much as possible, they must be able to grow with them.
-Have a risk classification system for its suppliers.
-Companies such as Xiaomi, BBK, Huawei must create technological associations, to promote standards, technological interoperation, investment in R&D in areas of common ground such as Nanolithography, EDA, semiconductor IP, operating systems, compilers, open source technology, etc. . They are much stronger and more capable if they stick together.
-Increase cooperation and investment partnerships with Chinese universities and R&D institutions to accelerate development from laboratory to the market.
-They should not leave everything in the hands of the government because no matter how powerful the Chinese government is and how deep the government's pockets are, if there is little collaboration and will from the companies, most of the initiatives will go nowhere.

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Samsung SDI Files Lawsuit against China’s BOE in US for Trade Secret Infringement​

Samsung Display filed a complaint with the U.S. International Trade Commission (ITC) against China’s BOE, the world’s largest liquid crystal display (LCD) panel maker and Samsung Display’s largest display competitor. Samsung Display claims BOE stole its technology. This is separate from an ongoing patent infringement lawsuit.

According to the display industry on Nov. 2, Samsung Display filed a complaint against BOE and eight other companies including BOE’s subsidiaries with the U.S. ITC on Oct. 31 (local time) for trade secret infringement.

Trade secret infringement is not the unauthorized utilization of disclosed technology like patent infringement, but a theft of technology through partners and current and former employees.

In its complaint, Samsung Display alleged that BOE has infringed upon trade secrets related to Samsung Display’s organic light-emitting diode (OLED) panel and module technology through Samsung Display’s partner company Toptec since late 2017.

In March, the Suwon High Court convicted 11 Toptec employees of leaking Samsung Display’s trade secrets. During the trial, Chinese companies such as BOE were mentioned as potential customers of Toptech.

Samsung Display filed a complaint with the U.S. ITC against China’s BOE for leaking trade secrets because it found evidence that Chinese companies such as BOE were involved in the process of leaking trade secrets from its partner company, Toptech, analysts say.

According to sources in the display industry on Nov. 2, a number of Chinese companies were mentioned in a lawsuit against Toptech employees for allegedly leaking Samsung Display’s technology to China.

The equipment at issue in the case is an organic light-emitting diode (OLED) curved surface laminator, which plays a key role in realizing curved surfaces of smartphone flexible OLED panels. Although the equipment was made by Toptec, the production plan, core design, and structure were proposed by Samsung Display or jointly developed by the two companies together. The technology has been applied to the Galaxy S20 and Note series.

In 2018, the Suwon District Public Prosecutors’ Office indicted 11 Toptec executives for leaking technology overseas while exporting curved laminators to China. Toptec was already supplying the curved laminators to Samsung Display.

In March, the Suwon High Court convicted the executives in the second trial after they were acquitted in the first trial. In July, the Supreme Court confirmed an original verdict that sentenced a former Toptec CEO to three years in prison. During the trial, Chinese display panel companies including BOE, CSOT, Visionox, and Everdisplay were mentioned as potential customers of Toptec’s OLED curved surface laminators.

Samsung Display filed a complaint against BOE with the U.S. ITC for leaking trade secrets because the trial in Korea resulted in a guilty verdict and revealed involvements of Chinese companies such as BOE in the process, legal experts say. The Korean display giant claims that this is malicious technology theft by BOE. In Korea, there are growing concerns about such trade secret infringements by Chinese companies.

In filing the lawsuit, Samsung Display reportedly claimed that BOE is also infringing upon its trade secrets by hiring Korean engineers.

Samsung Display also has a separate patent infringement lawsuit against BOE. The company filed a complaint with the ITC against parts wholesalers, alleging that after-sales service (A/S) panels for smartphones distributed in the United States infringed upon Samsung Display’s diamond pixel patent. The patent infringement case began in earnest in February when BOE voluntarily agreed on investigations.

In June, BOE filed an inter partes review (IPR) suit with the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office against five of Samsung Display’s patents, and Samsung Display responded by filing patent infringement lawsuits in the U.S. Eastern District of Texas and a Chinese court.

OLED technology started in the US, it never went much past lab grade there, then the Japanese at Sony developed it into a product available for sale that you could actually buy, then the South Koreans at Samsung made it cheap enough for mass market use. Every step along the way technology was "stolen".

What I get here is that basically Samsung hired a South Korean company to make some tools for them, and the toolmaker sold the same tools to other companies like BOE. Hardly surprising.

Ranking of A-share semiconductor companies' R&D expenditures in the first three quarters​

in the first three quarters of 2023, the total R&D expenditures of 205 companies were 52.561 billion yuan, with total revenue of 558.963 billion yuan, and the overall R&D expense rate was 9.4%

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Zhongke Feicheng registered a new company in Tianjin, mainly engaged in the sales of wafer defect detection and other equipment​

Tianjin Zhongke Feicheng Technology Co., Ltd. was recently registered and established in Xiqing Economic Development Zone, and the project was launched in Xiqing Saida Inspection and Certification Park. It is mainly engaged in the sales of special equipment for semiconductor devices such as wafer defect detection equipment.
Tianyancha news shows that Tianjin Zhongke Feichi Technology Co., Ltd. was registered on October 20, 2023, with a registered capital of 2 million yuan. Its legal representative is Chen Lu, and it is 100% owned by Shenzhen Zhongke Feichi Technology Co., Ltd.

It is reported that Zhongke Feicheng has always focused on the research and development, production and sales of special equipment for detection and measurement of integrated circuits. Its products mainly include non-patterned wafer defect detection equipment series, patterned wafer defect detection equipment series, and three-dimensional morphology equipment. Measuring equipment series, thin film thickness measuring equipment series, etc., have been used in mainstream domestic integrated circuit manufacturing production lines such as SMIC, Yangtze River Memory, Silan Technology, Changdian Technology, Huatian Technology, and Tongfu Microelectronics.

"Invest in Xiqing" news, at present, Xiqing Economic Development Zone has gathered leading companies in the integrated circuit industry such as SMIC, NXP, Bright Semiconductor, Core Semiconductor, Keyi Industrial, Sanji Technology, and Zhongke Feiqi , forming an integrated circuit industry chain integrating integrated circuit design, production, packaging, testing and equipment with an economic scale of tens of billions of yuan.