That was an inferometer in the picture I think.
Chinese semiconductor thread II
- Thread starter vincent
- Start date
Looks like SIOM next gen EUV illumination system. This looks like is looking to replace the MMA arrays found on dry and Immersion ArF lithography machines.
Multiple teams are currently developing EUVL technology, but it’s still too early to determine which approach will succeed (or receive support). No system has yet produced a working chip, and scaling production is another hurdle. Some teams focusing on LDP, others on LPP (including solid-state LPP), and many developments occurring behind the scenes, it’s best to reserve judgment until more information is known.
He is le tired
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We already know there’s one team getting the accelerated support to first adoption treatment.
I think the established approach will likely succeed first with low level EUV and allow them to atleast catch up a little bit and prevent stagnation due to lack of EUV, but China's investments in other approaches like SSMB will allow them to leapfrog the west in lithography in 10-20 years time-frame and we will likely see Chinese chip surpassing TSMC in NM terms.
They are essentially doing the EV approach in chip tech. China invested more in EV back 2009-10 but did not stop investing in ICE cars. Now they are far ahead in EV but still very competitive in ICE cars too.
Interferometer for measuring EUV optics, which means they have something to measure.
How do you know they have yet to produced a working chip, if things happen behind the scenes?
We don’t. The funny thing about the reporting telephone chain is that if in the process of collecting information you hear from a source in July that the equipment hasn’t been used for any usable production yet that source may have last “heard something” back in March and all that has no bearing on whether this is still true in November. People should always treat this kind of news reporting, especially for such a secretive beat, as retrospective at best.
Is a pilot line, they need yields to develop the lithography machine. They are pattern wafers, etch, all the whole thing til have working devices to know what they are going to improve, at least a single pattern process. The same cycle as immersion lithography.