Journey 6 chips from Horizon Robotics are getting launched across 100 models this year. Huge entrance into the market.
30B in this rule is for the whole final package including HBM.Do 14nm or 16nm process build chips with over 30B transistors?
Chinese equipment makers normally use 28nm as a way to avoid attention, so probably they could go as low a 14nm or less. Overlay is not a function exclusive of the scanner, metrology plays a big role. The alignment is exclusive of the scanner but overlay looks like is a process in optical lithography, long story short is interesting that SMEE listed the Diffraction Based Overlay tool for 7nm, why not 28nm? That for me is that they are saying an discrete way that their scanners can produce chips in that process node, 7nm.I think ASML DUVi is now banned in China
Regarding Optic Valley conference and the pic of SSA800i scanner, it was expressly labeled for 28nm, not 14/16nm.
Of course DUVi is needed also for 28nm, but for 14/16 you need a better machine, with stricter overlay tolerances. As of today I have read no info on SMEE to be at 14/16nm.
A mistake in the article. YMTC was ahead of everyone else before the sanctions by the Hegemon.