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The summary report for the ‘Technology Insights 2011’ suite sets out the current reality, forecasts the future based on the best available intelligence, and assesses the implications and actions for the IT & Telecoms sector
www.e-skills.com/Documents/Research/Tech-Insights-2011/es...
Bill Betten, Technology Director at UBM TechInsights, gives a product teardown in the Presentation Theater at MD&M West.
www.tomshardware.com/news/smic-mass-produces-14nm-nodes-a...
SMIC Mass Produces 14nm Nodes, Advances To 5nm, 7nm
SMIC ramps up 14nm production, proceeds with sub-10nm technologies.
Chinese state media on Thursday said that Semiconductor Manufacturing International Co. had initiated mass production of chips on its 14nm-class fabrication process at its Fab SN1 near Shanghai, China, citing a local official. Perhaps more importantly, the report also claimed that despite being unable to procure advanced chip production equipment, the company is proceeding with its 7nm and 5nm-class nodes.
"With the completion of Shanghai's industry cluster for the 14nm chips, more advanced projects in the 7nm and 5nm processes will be accelerated," said Chen Jia, a research fellow on strategy, in a conversation with state-owned Global Times.
14nm Is Here, So Is N+1
SMIC has been talking about its N+1 fabrication technology - loosely considered the company's 7nm-class node — since early 2020 and described it as a low-cost alternative to TSMC's N7 node that relies on deep ultraviolet (DUV) lithography tools. N+1 aims to reduce power consumption by 57%, increase performance by 20%, and reduce the logic area by up to 55% – 63% (for select structures) compared to a similar chip implemented using SMIC's 14nm.
Recent findings from TechInsights prove that Fin Pitch (FP), Contacted Poly Pitch (CPP) and Metal 2 Pitch (M2P) sizes of SMIC’s N+1 are larger (FP) or the same as TSMC’s N10 fabrication process, which might point to the fact that this is a TSMC's N10-like technology with relaxed rules , but it is not. Extensive Design Technology Co-Optimization (DTCO) features and high-density logic libraries enable a logic transistor density of 89 million transistors per square millimeter (89MT/mm^2), which is comparable to what TSMC’s N7 and Intel’s 10nm offer, making N+1 a viable 7nm-class alternative (at least for logic, as scaling SRAM is tricky).
SMIC has been producing MinerVa Semiconductor's Bitcoin mining chip since July 2021 without disclosing it. The company uses its DUV equipment to make those tiny ~25W mining chips. They are simple enough to achieve acceptable yields for commercial applications and serve as a vehicle to understand more about the process performance, power, and defect density (at least as far as logic cells are concerned).
"The manufacturing of 7nm chips in China is also progressing faster than expected," said Xiang Ligang, a technology analyst, reports state-run Global Times.
With SMIC's N+1 qualified and ready for at least limited production, it is evident that the company can live without extreme ultraviolet (EUV) production equipment which it cannot procure due to sanctions from the U.S. government. However, whether or not the company will be able to produce large and complex system-on-chips using its N+1 node is something that remains to be seen.
From a logic transistor density standpoint, SMIC's N+1 could be an alternative for TSMC's N7. However, the world's largest contract maker of chips already has far more advanced fabrication technologies that appeal to developers of highly-complex CPUs, compute GPUs, and various sophisticated data center grade chips. As a result, landing high-profile customers for N+1 could be tricky for SMIC. Remember that to serve Huawei's HiSilicon (probably the largest chip developer in China); it will need to obtain an export license from the U.S., as many tools used at SMIC's fabs come from America and Huawei is under strict sanctions.
5nm from SMIC?
SMIC briefly mentioned its N+2 technology in 2020. While this one is yet another evolutionary step from its 14nm node, China's analysts seem to label it a '5nm-class' technology since it is one step ahead of N+1, considered a '7nm-class' node. However, DUV tools with 193nm ArF laser have known limitations regarding resolution, and intensive usage of multi-patterning to lower critical dimensions of circuits affects yields.
Since SMIC has been working on its N+2 node for well over two years now (and companies tend to mention new nodes when they have a more or less clear vision of their goals and ways to achieve them), it is reasonable to expect this fabrication process to come to fruition sometimes in 2023. However, since entering the U.S. government's entity list in late 2020, SMIC has been keeping a low profile on any announcements about its achievement. The company only said that it would focus on developing more advanced chip packaging technologies to enable heterogeneous integration and compensate for the inability to procure equipment necessary for sub-10nm technologies.
That said, it is very intriguing to see a state media revealing SMIC's '5nm' technology in its rather detailed report about SMIC's mass production of 14nm chips.
A Convoluted Announcement
Truth to be told, SMIC has been producing chips using its 14nm-class manufacturing technology since late 2019 (one of the products is Huawei's HiSilicon Kirin 710A at its SN1 fab. Still, while formally the process caters to mass production, actual volumes were so small that at some point the company ceased to report the contribution of the node to its revenue and merged it into one category with its 28nm node, which has not been a massive contributor to the company's earnings either.
Wu Jincheng, director of the Shanghai Municipal Commission of Economy and Digitalization, reiterated that SMIC had begun mass production of 14nm chips. He did not mention anything about more advanced nodes at a press conference on Wednesday, according to Global Times, which brought up 'independent' experts who spoke about N+1 (7nm-class) and N+2 (5nm-class) fabrication processes.
Since all interested parties already know about SMIC's 14nm capabilities, the state media report from Shanghai looks like a convoluted way of re-emphasizing the company's '5nm' intentions as the U.S. government's plans to strengthen restrictions against the rapidly developing Chinese semiconductor sector.
www.yahoo.com/finance/news/chinas-top-chip-maker-smic-093...
China's top chip maker SMIC may have achieved tech breakthrough, experts say
China's top chip maker has likely gained the ability to produce 7-nanometre chips, according to a Canadian tech analysis firm, marking a significant breakthrough as the world's second-largest economy pushes towards technological self-sufficiency to counter US sanctions.
Researchers at TechInsights made the conclusion after they reverse-engineered a sample chip made by Semiconductor Manufacturing International Corp (SMIC), extracted from a cryptocurrency mining machine.
Analysts and industry professionals believe it is technically possible for SMIC to produce 7nm chips with existing deep ultraviolet (DUV) systems, under the leadership of co-CEO Liang Mong Song, a chip-making expert who was previously an executive at industry-leading Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co.
In a widely-circulated resignation letter from Liang in December 2020 that he later withdrew, he wrote that he had led a 2,000-strong engineering team to complete the development of 7nm technology at SMIC. He said the company could start trial production in April 2021.
SMIC has not made any public comment about the possibility that it has achieved 7nm capability, even though the type of chip that TechInsights analysed has been in production since last July.
SMIC declined to comment on TechInsights' report.
While SMIC's improved capability could mark a technological milestone for the Shanghai-based company, some experts question the commercial viability of using less advanced DUV systems, which is used in a wide range of chip-making processes, to produce 7nm chips.
"In theory, I believe DUV's [chip production] limit is 7nm, but the yield and performance may not be great at that limit," said Woz Ahmed, managing director of consultancy Chilli Ventures and former chief strategy officer at British semiconductor and software design giant Imagination Technologies.
Most industry players are using extreme ultraviolet lithography (EUV) systems to produce 7nm or more advanced chips.
Moreover, the transistor density, power and speed characteristics of 7nm chips made by different manufacturers can vary widely, Ahmed added, so it may not be meaningful to compare SMIC's chips with those produced by rivals.
The findings come as the US government continues to lobby authorities in the Netherlands - home to key semiconductor equipment supplier ASML - to further restrict sales to SMIC.
SMIC, which was put on a US entity list in December 2020, is already unable to import equipment for making chips below 10nm, including the latest EUV machines.
The Chinese company currently relies on less advanced DUV systems from ASML to expand its capabilities, focusing on using mature 28nm and above technologies to produce chips for cars and home appliances, rather than for high-end smartphones and tablets, which have moved onto more sophisticated chips.
News that SMIC may have achieved 7nm capability could be enough to "trigger more US restrictions to tame the rise of China's semiconductor industry", said Arisa Liu, a senior semiconductor research fellow at the Taiwan Institute of Economic Research.
Before the TechInsights report, there were few details about the progress of SMIC's 7nm process. The development has not been mentioned in SMIC's financial reports, which maintained that the company's most advanced technology is 14nm.
Efforts by Washington to sideline China in global semiconductor value chains have set off alarm bells in Beijing. Mainland Chinese officials have expressed anger over the Chip 4 Alliance, a US-led supply chain coalition that includes Taiwan, South Korea and Japan.
While the ability to mass produce 7nm chips would place SMIC ahead of American and European peers, the Chinese company remains one to two generations behind TSMC and South Korea's Samsung Electronics.
Samsung has already started to produce chips using its 3nm process, while TSMC is expected to catch up later this year.
The 3DS uses a new graphics processor designed by relatively unknown company Digital Media Professionals.
9to5google.com/2023/09/17/iphone-15-pro-titanium-essentia...
A look back at Essential Phone, the Android phone that beat iPhone 15 Pro to titanium
Apple this week launched the iPhone 15 Pro, its first smartphone made with a titanium frame. That launch will bring the material to the masses, but it also reminds us of 2017’s Essential Phone, the short-lived Android phone that had a premium build that was so far ahead of its time.
At a launch event for the Essential Phone, or "PH-1,", I was blown away by the hardware. The ceramic back and titanium frame were just so incredibly premium and well-crafted, and that’s an impression that lasts right down to today.
And, to a certain extent, I think Essential’s use of titanium might be better than Apple’s.
The polished titanium frame of the Essential Phone picks up fingerprints but at nowhere near the rate of the iPhone 15 Pro, which frankly looks gross based on hands-on coverage from our sister site 9to5Mac as well as other outlets such as The Verge. Presumably, that’s due to the brushed and slightly matte texture.
I’d also argue that the PH-1’s ceramic backing only further bolstered the premium frame, adding a material that ages way better than glass.
www.globaltimes.cn/page/202309/1298224.shtml
Hype on iPhone 'ban' shows US has a guilty conscience
The biggest destroyer of the global economic and trade order is being paranoid. This is perhaps the most incisive and vivid explanation of why the US government and media outlets have seen a rumored ban on iPhones as China's retaliation against the US.
US National Security Council spokesman John Kirby told reporters on Wednesday that the US believes China's reported move to institute and expand a government ban on iPhones "seems to be of a piece - of the kinds of aggressive and inappropriate retaliation to US companies ... That's what this appears to be," according to a Bloomberg report on Thursday.
Not only did the US official say it's retaliation, but US media outlets have hyped the rumored government ban and misinterpreted it as China's retaliation against Apple for the sake of Huawei.
But there are no laws, regulations or policy documents in China that prohibit the purchase and use of mobile phones of overseas brands, such as Apple. And compared to the situation faced by Apple in China, Huawei is far from receiving fair treatment in the US.
With no specific and detailed facts to verify the existence of such a ban, we have no idea why the US government and media outlets are so eager to escalate an unverified rumor as being China's retaliation. They could have communicated with the Chinese authorities first to clear up any misunderstandings. If they insist on making a political interpretation of a rumor, then the only reason is because they know they have done too many unconscionable things to suppress Chinese companies with unilateral sanctions, and they are too anxious and concerned about retaliation now. The concern in Washington is not toward Apple, but rather toward the sustainability of their unethical business practices.
There is no denying that after a series of security incidents involving Apple's iPhones, it is possible that some consumers, and not just in China, may be concerned about whether or not iPhones have higher security risks.
It will take time and facts for global consumers to find out whether iPhones have security risks. But one thing is certain - as long as Apple abides by Chinese laws and regulations and operates based on the rules of the international order, protecting consumers' data stored in their mobile phones to ensure information security, it would not face any policy barrier in China.
Despite some potential consumer concerns, US tech companies are doing pretty well in China. For instance, China overtook the US to become Apple's largest market in the second quarter of this year for the first time, according to research firm TechInsights. Also, Tesla's revenue in China reached $5.73 billion in the second quarter, up 51.33 percent year-on-year. The growth rate apparently outpaced the increase of its revenue in other global markets.
If anything, US sensitivity to a rumored ban only lays bare its anxiety about losing the market. Deep down, the root cause is that it knows what it has done to Chinese companies would arouse retaliation if it happened to US companies.
Indeed, US media outlets may not even be able to tell which American move the rumored Chinese ban on iPhones is in retaliation for, because there are too many cases of the US suppressing Chinese companies and products in the name of "national security."
Why didn't US media outlets question their own government's behavior, which sabotaged the international trade order in the first place? How brazen are they to label China as the party that retaliated without mentioning what the US did first?
To name a few issues, the US did not just impose strict sanctions on Huawei but also asked its allies to do the same. It exerted pressure on TikTok to force a sale of shares to American companies with hooligan means. Washington has also used so-called human rights issues as an excuse to sanction Chinese manufacturing sector and Chinese companies.
If Washington is really worried about Chinese retaliation and US companies' interests, why not reflect on what the US has done to China and its companies? Putting aside political calculations, which are not in the interest of bilateral economic relations, and returning to the path of seeking the right solution, is the most effective therapy for Washington's paranoia and anxiety.
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Here's the top reader comment on this Tom's Hardware article on the new Apple iPhone 15:
www.yahoo.com/finance/news/just-tried-iphone-15-pro-04011...
I'm disappointed. So the only real change is the "action button" which many Samsungs have had for years, as well as Nokia. The other "new" thing is the USB-C, courtesy of European Union regulation, not Apple's. But I do want to be fair; you can only come up with so much every 12 months. I wish Apple would adopt a keyboard with numbers like Android did ages ago. And also, a pause button for the video camera, like Android did ages ago. Also, I miss the ability to shut off the phone with one button, but that's a personal one..
www.pcgamer.com/apples-new-iphone-chip-has-us-worried-abo...
Apple's new iPhone chip has us worried about TSMC's 3nm silicon and next-gen GPUs
Not much faster, no more efficient and barely any more transistors.
For starters, the A17 Pro's transistor count bump over its A16 Bionic predecessor is pretty modest. It clocks in at 19 billion where the A16 had 16 billion.
... the modest uplift in transistors means the CPU core count hasn't changed. The A17 Pro has two performance and four efficiency cores, just like the A16.
What's more, Apple is only claiming 10% performance uplift from the new CPU. That's super disappointing from an SoC on a brand new production node. What's more, that 10% increase includes both the benefits of the TSMC N3 silicon and what Apple says are revised cores with wider decode and execution units.
TSMC itself says the N3 silicon should be good for 10% more performance alone. So you really would think the new node plus revised cores would add up to more than 10% overall.
Then there's power efficiency. Normally you'd expect a new node to offer lower power consumption for the same performance.
Despite all that, Apple isn't making any claims for improved battery life over the outgoing iPhone 14 Pro. The battery life rating of the 15 Pro is exactly the same as before.
Taken altogether, it's hard to see where the benefits of the new 3nm silicon are kicking in. The new SoC doesn't get a big uptick in transistor count. It's not enabling a major performance bump. And it doesn't seem to be much more efficient.
www.businessinsider.com/us-navy-chinas-shipbuilding-capac...
China has the capacity to build PLA combat ships at 200 times the rate that the US can, per leaked US Navy intelligence
▫️ China's shipbuilding capacity has dwarfed US capabilities, per leaked US Navy intelligence.
▫️ A Navy spokesperson confirmed the leaked material's authenticity to Fox News Digital.
▫️ China has the world's largest navy and could have a fleet of 440 ships by 2030, per the Pentagon.
China's shipbuilding capacity is 232 times greater than the US, per leaked US Navy intelligence.
A leaked US Navy briefing slide with the information circulated online in July, per The War Zone, an online newsletter. The slide was titled "PLAN vs. USN Naval Force Laydown," and appeared to be marked "unclassified."
According to the data seen in the slide, China's shipyards have a capacity of over 23.2 million tons, more than 232 times greater than the US capacity of less than 100,000 tons.
The slide also appears to contrast the "battle force composition" of both navies, taking into account "combatant ships, submarines, mine warfare ships, major amphibious ships, and large combat support auxiliary ships."
A US Navy spokesperson told Fox News Digital in an article published on September 14 that the briefing slide is authentic.
The spokesperson said the slide "provides context and trends on China's shipbuilding capacity," but warned that the Navy did not intend for it to be read as a comprehensive "deep dive" into China's commercial shipbuilding industry.
"The slide was developed by the Office of Naval Intelligence from multiple public sources as part of an overall brief on strategic competition," the spokesperson said.
China has been hard at work at bolstering its naval capabilities. The country has the world's largest navy, with more than 355 vessels in its fleet, per a US Naval Institute report from 2021.
The device's gyroscope is provided by InvenSense (ITG-3200). Typically, ST Micro has won every major slot for this award.
Фахівці #TechInsights розібрали новий флагман #Samsung #Galaxy S10+ на деталі і підрахували собівартість смартфона. Вийшла цифра з урахуванням вартості усіх комплектуючих, складання та тестування, але до якої не включені витрати на розробку, дослідження, маркетинг і логістику. blogchain.com.ua/dorojche-nij-s9-ale-nenabagato-iaka-sobi...
George Koo's latest article on Huawei releasing its new 5G and satellite capable Mate 60 Pro phone during U.S. Commerce Secretary Raimondo's visit:
asiatimes.com/2023/09/us-commerce-secretarys-china-visit-...
US commerce secretary’s China visit overshadowed
In contrast, word on Huawei’s new smartphone spread like wildfire on China’s social media
Washington’s policymakers failed to appreciate that China is no technological slouch. When pushed against a wall, China will back its national interest with the needed funds and talent to overcome any obstacle.
It’s time for Washington to accept the fact that efforts to suppress China is a wasteful national priority and damaging to national interests. We Americans will rue the day when our insistence on making China our adversary became a reality.
www.reuters.com/technology/huawei-raises-mate-60-shipment...
Huawei raises Mate 60 shipment target -Securities Times
BEIJING, Sept 12 (Reuters) - China's Huawei Technologies has raised the second-half shipment target for its Mate 60 series smartphone by 20%, the country's official Securities Times reported on Tuesday.
The company expects new smartphone shipments for 2023 to reach at least 40 million units, the report said.
www.reuters.com/technology/what-is-huaweis-new-smartphone...
What does Huawei’s new phone series mean for Apple in China?
Huawei was once the world's largest smartphone firm by sales but saw its market share steadily slump after the United States cut its access to chip-making tools essential for producing the most advanced handset models. The company was left only able to sell limited batches of 5G models using stockpiled chips.
Its market share in China, the world's largest smartphone market, has fallen to 11% so far this year compared to 27% in 2020, in part also due to its move to sell its budget brand Honor in what it described then as a bid to ensure its survival.
The U.S. restrictions left Apple as the main maker of premium smartphones in China. Over the same period, Apple's market share in China rose to 19% from 11%，according to data from research firm Counterpoint.
Analysts say the Mate 60 might mark Huawei's comeback as a rival, with sales helped by patriotic fervor as state media and internet users cheer the launch as a blow against the United States amid rising tensions between Washington and Beijing.
Ming-Chi Kuo, an analyst with TF International Securities, said he expects the Mate 60 Pro to ship between 5.5 to 6 million units for the second half of this year, up 20% from previously planned volumes.
And cumulative shipments of Mate 60 Pro could reach at least 12 million units 12 months after launch, according to Kuo.
www.cnn.com/2023/09/07/investing/apple-stock-iphone-china...
Apple lost $200 billion in two days after reports of iPhone ban in China
wccftech.com/qualcomm-2024-losses-in-billions-thanks-to-h...
Qualcomm To Lose Up To 60 Million Chipset Orders in 2024 Thanks To Huawei’s Kirin 9000S, Potential Profit Loss In The Billions
The U.S. sanctions may have forced Huawei into a corner as far as its smartphone business is concerned, but the Chinese firm has remained relentless and managed to circumvent those trade limitations with the Kirin 9000S, its first custom SoC that materialized after a brief hiatus and is found in the newly released Mate 60 Pro 5G.
While it is not the most capable chipset when doing performance and efficiency comparisons, its inception signifies Huawei’s intentions of not relying on the likes of Qualcomm in the future, who is said to potentially lose out on billions due to this new silicon, according to one analyst.
Despite the trade sanctions placed on Huawei, it was still one of Qualcomm’s biggest customers, purchasing between 23-25 million units in 2022 and 40-42 million units in 2023. With the Chinese firm said to completely adopt Kirin chipsets in 2024, at least according to analyst Ming-Chi Kuo, it means Qualcomm is set to ship around 50-60 million units less next year, putting a significant dent in its revenue stream for the entire 2024.
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Here's a teardown of the phone. Bloomberg reported that it runs faster than than the iPhone 14. No question it's a 5G phone. The satellite connection appears to be a 6G feature, according to a source from HK.
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And here's a first look at the phone:
Bloomberg interviews of TechInsights on the Mate 60 Pro:
www.bloomberg.com/news/videos/2023-09-08/techinsights-s-h...
Mate 60 Pro hands on - Ben's Gadget Review:
www.reuters.com/technology/teardown-huaweis-new-phone-sho...
Teardown of Huawei's new phone shows China's chip breakthrough
www.techinsights.com/blog/techinsights-finds-smic-7nm-n2-...
TechInsights Finds SMIC 7nm (N+2) in Huawei Mate 60 Pro
Bloomberg's report on TechInsights teardown:
www.bloomberg.com/news/videos/2023-09-04/huawei-teardown-...
www.reuters.com/technology/huaweis-new-smartphone-uses-mo...
Huawei's new smartphone uses more China-made parts than previous models, TechInsights says
"It looks like more than half, maybe two-thirds of the silicon is domestically grown capability, where in the phones we were seeing 2-3 years ago, a third was domestic. That's another really big advance they've made," Dan Hutcheson, an analyst with TechInsights, told Reuters.
www.phonearena.com/news/huawei-mate-60-pro-5g--selling-st...
Demand is strong for Huawei's first 5G phone in nearly three years
Huawei reportedly has some patent applications related to EUV lithography that might make a difference. Look, every time the U.S. thought it had Huawei down for the count, the company came up big. When it comes to smartphone innovation, you don't want to be betting against Huawei.
www.msn.com/en-us/money/markets/new-phone-sparks-worry-ch...
New phone sparks worry China has found a way around U.S. tech limits
(Washington Post) As Commerce Secretary Gina Raimondo was visiting China earlier this week, a sea-green Chinese smartphone was quietly launched online.
It was no normal gadget. And its launch has sparked hushed concern in Washington that U.S. sanctions have failed to prevent China from making a key technological advance. Such a development would seem to fulfill warnings from U.S. chipmakers that sanctions wouldn’t stop China, but would spur it to redouble efforts to build alternatives to U.S. technology.
The timing of the phone announcement on Monday, while Raimondo was in Beijing, appeared to be a show of defiance. Chinese state media declared it showed the U.S. that trade war was a “failure.”
www.tomshardware.com/news/huaweis-new-mystery-7nm-chip-fr...
Huawei's New Mystery 7nm Chip from Chinese Fab Defies US Sanctions
SMIC produces N+2 smartphone SoC from Huawei's Mate 60 Pro.
finance.yahoo.com/news/while-under-us-sanctions-where-093...
While under US sanctions, where did Huawei get the advanced chips for its latest Mate 60 Pro smartphone?
www.globaltimes.cn/page/202308/1297346.shtml
Huawei revealing its latest smartphone during @SecRaimondo China visit shows that any futile attempt to deny China access to high tech will not work: #OneMinuteInsights with Soochow University Chair Professor Victor Gao
www.reuters.com/technology/why-is-huaweis-new-smartphone-...
Has Huawei overcome U.S. sanctions by developing its own 5G chip?
www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2023-09-01/huawei-s-myste...
Huawei’s Mystery Phone Shows Wireless Speeds as Fast as Apple
▫️Wireless speeds akin to Apple’s latest models, suggesting 5G
▫️The device has enthralled Chinese investors and tech industry
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gagadget.com/en/307796-huawei-will-create-its-own-version...
Huawei will create its own version of the HarmonyOS operating system to replace Windows and Linux on PCs
Now it's 3: Huawei and SMIC shock the semiconducting industry by introducing 3 nm chips:
www.tomshardware.com/tech-industry/huawei-patent-reveals-...
Huawei patent reveals 3nm-class process technology plans — China continues to move forward despite US sanctions
Huawei and SMIC could produce 3nm chips using DUV tools and multi patterning.
May 28, 2024
www.phonearena.com/news/huawei-smic-plan-to-produce-3nm-c...
Despite being handicapped by U.S. sanctions, Huawei and SMIC have a plan to produce 3nm chips
MAY 29, 2024, 3:40 PM
www.tomshardware.com/tech-industry/semiconductors/smic-an...
SMIC and Huawei could use quadruple patterning for CSelf-aligned quadruple patterning (SAQC) is now patented in China.hina-made 5nm chips: Report
Self-aligned quadruple patterning (SAQC) is now patented in China.
March 24, 2024
www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2024-03-22/huawei-tests-b...
Huawei Tests Brute-Force Method for Making More Advanced Chips
March 22, 2024 at 3:34 AM
🔸 State-linked SiCarrier, Naura, also exploring SAQP technology
🔸 Method could help China make certain 5nm chips with old tools
(Bloomberg) — Huawei Technologies Co. Ltd. and a state-backed chipmaking partner in China have filed patents for a low-tech but potentially effective way to make advanced semiconductors, raising the prospect that China could improve chip production techniques despite efforts by the United States to halt its progress.
The companies are developing technologies that involve self-aligned quadruple patterning, or SAQP, and should reduce their reliance on high-end lithography, according to patent filings to the Chinese intellectual property authority. That may allow them to produce advanced chips without ASML Holding NV’s state-of-the-art extreme ultraviolet lithography equipment. Netherlands-based ASML, the sole provider of EUV machines, cannot sell them into China because of export controls.
Quadruple patterning is a technique for etching lines on silicon wafers multiple times to increase transistor density — and therefore performance. Huawei’s patent application, released on Friday, describes a method that uses the technology to make more sophisticated semiconductors. “Adoption of this patent will increase the design freedom of circuit patterns,” said the filing to China National Intellectual Property Administration.
SiCarrier, a state-backed chipmaking gear developer that works with Huawei, was granted a patent that involves SAQP, in late 2023. Its patent employs deep ultraviolet lithography, or DUV, chipmaking machines and the SAQP technology to achieve certain technical thresholds seen on 5 nanometer chips, according to its filing. The practice can avoid the use of EUV machines while reducing manufacturing cost, it said.
Quadruple-patterning technology is good enough for China to make chips at 5nm, but China still needs to get its hands on EUV machines in the long run, according to Dan Hutcheson, vice-chairman at research firm TechInsights. “It can mitigate them, but not completely overcome the technical issues of not having EUV,” he said.
Leading chipmakers like Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Corp. use EUV machines to produce advanced chips because they have the highest production yields — meaning the cost per chip is minimized. If Huawei and its partners use alternative methods for semiconductor production, their cost per chip may be higher than the industry’s standards.
The most advanced chips now in commercial production use 3nm technology, including chips that TSMC makes for the likes of Apple Inc. China is currently capable of making 7nm chips, two generations behind, but advancing to 5nm would put it only a single generation behind the global leaders.
The US and its allies have been tightening China’s access to semiconductors and chipmaking equipment for years, with the Biden administration arguing such controls are necessary for national security. That includes bans on the export of ASML’s EUV chipmaking machines and Nvidia Corp.’s most powerful graphic processors, used for training artificial intelligence services.
But Chinese companies are investing billions to develop their domestic chip capabilities and Huawei unveiled a breakthrough smartphone last year that was powered by an advanced 7nm processor. That suggested the country’s tech sector is making progress despite the efforts of the US, the Netherlands and Japan.
In response, the Biden administration is looking for additional means to contain China’s progress. It’s pressing allies like South Korea and Germany to join the effort, and is considering blacklisting even more Chinese chip firms linked to Huawei, including SiCarrier.
A cohort of Chinese chip equipment makers including Naura Technology Group Co. and Advanced Micro-Fabrication Equipment Inc., are also looking into complementing multiple patterning technology with etching systems to produce 7nm or more advanced chips because EUVs are out of reach, according to a memo authored by Citigroup’s analysts including Jamie Wang and Kevin Chen.
“Chinese semiconductor companies mainly resort to SAQP to produce advanced chips, which could increase the density of etching machines in China,” it said.
Beijing this year has thrown its backing fully behind the nation’s most prominent suppliers of chipmaking gear. This month, Premier Li Qiang visited the offices of Naura Technology in a widely publicized personal tour, usually orchestrated to signal central government support.
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