Huawei has filed a patent application describing an ultra-hard ultraviolet (EUV) lithography scanner. UDN. If the company can build such a scanner and achieve decent performance, long uptime, and reasonable yields, Chinese companies will have access to sub-7nm technologies.
Image source: huawei.com
Huawei submitted documents to the National Intellectual Property Administration in mid-November, the application is registered under the number 202110524685X, reports MyDrivers. The patent application describes the key components of the EUV scanner, including a 13.5 nm light generator, a set of mirrors, and a lithography system. Unfortunately, this document does not represent the actual ability of Huawei to build this complex machine, which includes many advanced components capable of maintaining perfectly coordinated operation over an extended period of time. In addition, production will have to be provided with the necessary raw materials.
The EUV scanner with a numerical aperture of 0.33 is the most advanced equipment for semiconductor manufacturing today – many companies have tried to build it, but only the Dutch ASML has achieved success at the cost of more than a decade of work and financial support from Intel, Samsung and TSMC. Only five companies around the world use or are regarding to use this equipment: Intel, Micron, Samsung, SK Hynix and TSMC. But they also independently developed or are planning to develop quite complex technological processes that will make it possible to use the capabilities of the EUV scanner. Chinese SMIC was unable to obtain such equipment, although it had already been purchased – in other words, there is a demand for it in the country, and Huawei is apparently trying to satisfy it.
Huawei, a technology giant with $100 billion in annual revenue, is working on a variety of projects in a variety of areas: in the semiconductor industry, its goals are not limited to the release of chips – the company is clearly interested in creating equipment for the production of silicon wafers.
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