CEO of chip company reveals how far behind China's chip making capabilities are
Dutch firm ASML is the only company in the world that makes Extreme Ultraviolet (EUV) Lithography machines that cost hundreds of millions of dollars each. These machines allow complex circuitry patterns to be placed on silicon wafers using lines thinner than human hair. The latest version of the machine, the High-NA EUV, allows chipmakers to place even more complex circuitry patterns on the wafers to help produce more advanced chipsets.
ASML CEO Christophe Fouquet says that the advancements made by China's largest foundry SMIC and manufacturer Huawei have been impressive as both firms have been able to shrug off U.S. export changes and sanctions to produce a 7nm chip that supports 5G. Still, the executive does point out the obvious. Even though SMIC is the third largest foundry in the world after TSMC and Samsung Foundry, sanctions preventing Chinese firms from obtaining EUV machines prevent the country from producing cutting-edge chips.
ASML still ships Deep Ultraviolet Machines to China. | Image credit-ASML
While SMIC does have older DUV (Deep Ultraviolet) Lithography machines, the inability of Chinese firms to obtain EUV machines places them 10 to 15 years behind the West according to Fouquet in a machine-translated interview published in NRC. Reportedly, SMIC has an order in for one EUV machine but at this point, that order will not be fulfilled. SMIC has received DUV machines which allows the foundry to manufacture chips using its first and second-generation 7nm node well behind the 3nm node currently used. Next year, TSMC and Samsung Foundry will start mass-producing chips using their 2nm nodes.
"By banning the export of EUV, China will lag 10 to 15 years behind the West."-Christophe Fouquet, ASML CEO
Huawei and SMIC are looking at developing their own lithography tools hoping to be able to eventually produce chips using the same process node as TSMC and Samsung Foundry. But this could take 10-15 years; by the time China does figure out how to build EUV machines, TSMC, Samsung Foundry, and other foundries in the West will be using later-generation EUV machines capable of developing much more advanced chips.
ASML still does brisk business with China. Thus, allowing the Chinese to service the DUV machines they own, helping them build knockoffs of these expensive tools, is not something that ASML would like to see happen.
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