5nm refers to the process not the actual size of the transistor, maybe he is referring to the overlay accuracy. For ASML DUV machines is 1.3-1.5nm Single Machine.
Chinese semiconductor thread II
- Thread starter vincent
- Start date
Reading the comments , it sounds like it is not a surprise or a problem of concern that new non-x86 cpu will find itself with many problems that have previously been solved in other architecture. Its taken decades of "hacks" and "workarounds" to stabilize the other line of chips as well.
that's ASML 2050i, but DUV 2100i can achieve 2-1.3nm process... you've heard of SAQP...
Still, it would be useful to know there is at least a strong base of 5nm that China can greatly expand on if things don't work out with EUV / gets delayed
The current stock of 7nm production is barely enough for consumer products of just one company. SSA900 in mass production would ensure that not only Huawei but the entirety of Chinese tech companies can survive chip sanctions
The current stock of 7nm production is barely enough for consumer products of just one company. SSA900 in mass production would ensure that not only Huawei but the entirety of Chinese tech companies can survive chip sanctions
And here bro It bewildered me why ASML sell it's NXT 2050i to China, they should have concentrate their sales on NXT 2000i or even NXT 1980i. My theory is when ASML didn't delivered the already paid NXT 3400 EUV to SMIC, as compensation ASML will develop a China specific DUVL which is the NXT 2050i and NXT 2100i to maintain their business relationship. Now SMEE with the help of SMIC will able to bench mark it with their latest improve DUVL (SSA900A), like they did with SSA800A with NXT 2000I as the Dutch may have belittle the Chinese capabilities to develop an analogous machine.
It is said that Chinese mainland wafer factories are planning to raise prices, and many are already operating at full capacity.
At present, the capacity utilization rate of major wafer fabs in mainland China has increased significantly, and many manufacturers have reached full production, or even exceeded 100%. The industry believes that the continuous increase in production capacity and full production of foundries will create conditions for future price increases.
Morgan Stanley recently reported that Hua Hong Semiconductor's wafer fab capacity utilization rate has exceeded 100%, and it is expected that prices may be raised by 10% in the second half of this year.
SMIC previously mentioned that its capacity utilization rate in the first quarter was 80.8%, a 4% increase from the previous quarter, and customers' willingness to stock up increased. A total of 1.79 million 8-inch equivalent wafers were shipped, a 7% increase from the previous quarter. The company revealed that the international consumer market partially recovered in the second quarter, for example, products such as low-power Bluetooth and MCU began to make up orders; thanks to the 2024 sports year, sales of TV and set-top box related products increased, significantly higher than last year.
broadsword
Brigadier
It is what happens. There is so much money going around that all sorts of people show up. China already has several CMOS imaging sensor and DDIC manufacturers so it is hardly surprising that in such a saturated market a company like that would fail.
The lack of knowledge in the industry by regulators in China also led to some less than optimal situations. But the government this time seems to be funding first the well established players in the market.
It is kind of curious they mention the GlobalFoundries Chengdu project. When that failure was due more to US sanctions than anything else. GlobalFoundries being a US HQ company. Chengdu has since attracted new chip investments including BYD Semiconductor and Hua Hong.
The lack of knowledge in the industry by regulators in China also led to some less than optimal situations. But the government this time seems to be funding first the well established players in the market.
It is kind of curious they mention the GlobalFoundries Chengdu project. When that failure was due more to US sanctions than anything else. GlobalFoundries being a US HQ company. Chengdu has since attracted new chip investments including BYD Semiconductor and Hua Hong.
The tide of unfinished semiconductor factories set off in mainland China in 2020 has recently shown signs of a comeback. Shanghai Wusheng Semiconductor Co., Ltd., which plans to invest RMB 10 billion (the same below), has recently entered bankruptcy liquidation procedures, and the market is worried that the tide of bankruptcy will spread. In addition, the capital market is also more cautious about the prospects of semiconductor companies, and since last year alone, 23 companies in related fields have announced the withdrawal of IPO applications.
According to the financial circle, according to the national enterprise bankruptcy and reorganization case information network, the Shanghai Pudong New Area People's Court recently officially accepted the compulsory liquidation case of Shanghai Wusheng Semiconductor Group. It is reported that Wusheng Semiconductor was established in 2021 with a registered capital of 10 billion yuan, and was originally expected to complete the construction within five years and increase the total investment to 18 billion yuan.
However, less than two years after its establishment, the group and two affiliated companies have been in financial crisis and have been subject to bankruptcy liquidation. Among them, Wusheng Electronics has entered bankruptcy liquidation at the beginning of 2023 and officially declared bankruptcy in January 2024. Another Nanjing Wusheng will complete bankruptcy liquidation in October 2023. This also worries the market that the wave of semiconductor failures set off in 2020 will make a comeback.
Since 2014, with the official mainland promoting the development of the semiconductor industry and the continuous fermentation of US sanctions on Huawei, the mainland has been eager to break through, with hundreds of billions of yuan in industrial subsidies and semiconductor parks blooming everywhere, and countless enterprises have rushed in, setting off a wave of "core building movement".
In 2020 alone, as many as 50,000 semiconductor-related companies were registered in mainland China. In the first half of 2020 alone, the top five provinces and cities in Jiangsu, Anhui, Zhejiang, Shandong, and Shanghai alone invested as much as 160 billion yuan in fully traceable semiconductor projects.
The consequence of the government, project parties, and investors rushing to achieve success is that a large number of semiconductor projects are collectively mired in unfinished turmoil. In just over a year, a total of six 10-billion-level star semiconductor projects in Jiangsu, Sichuan, Hubei, Guizhou and Shaanxi have been suspended.
Including the world's third largest wafer foundry GF and Chengdu GF announced a breakthrough, the unfinished project with an investment of 10 billion US dollars can only be taken over by Hua Hong Semiconductor. There is also the Wuhan Hongxin project, which has vigorously poached Jiang Shangyi, the co-operating director of the front desk TSMC, and finally it was kicked out as a scam, etc., and all kinds of bizarre unfinished incidents have emerged one after another.
With the unfinished semiconductor turmoil, it has also hit the investment confidence of the capital market. According to Lu media statistics, since 2023, there have been frequent cases of semiconductor companies announcing the withdrawal of IPO applications. So far in 2023, 23 companies in the semiconductor field have announced the termination of their IPO applications. Entering 2024, the IPO policy will continue to tighten, and experts believe that the threshold for listing in the mainland will continue to increase in the future, and it will be more difficult for the underqualified semiconductor industry to raise funds from the capital market, which may set off another wave of exit.