There are more than 100 countries and regions in the world, and there are only 9 countries that can create atomic bomb .
However, there are only single digits in the world that can make lithography machine . In the field of high-end lithography machine (EUV), there is only one player in the world who has successfully developed EUV lithography machine.
(EUV lithography machine developed by Asmay, the Netherlands)
Is it really difficult to develop high-end lithography machines than atomic bombs?
In fact, atomic bombs and lithography machines belong to two different industries and are not comparable.
However, We cannot ignore the fact that that is, countries that can develop high-end lithography machines are indeed much less than countries that can develop atomic bombs.
2 Why is high-end lithography machine so difficult to develop?
is actually mainly because high-end lithography machines integrate the research and development and application of a series of comprehensive technologies such as , such as physics, optics and chemistry. It is very difficult to develop .
(lithography machine giant - ASML)
Let's take the Netherlands ASML (Asmai) company as an example. Only about 20% of the patents and equipment of the EUV lithography machines they developed are provided by their companies, and some things such as photoresist and lenses need to be provided by other companies. Rather than saying that the EUV lithography machine was developed by , the Dutch ASML company, , it is better to say that it is an EUV lithography machine developed by Western countries. The difficulty of developing a lithography machine in
is mainly concentrated in the following points:
, light source problem .
lithography machine, as the name suggests, uses light to engrave circuits on silicon wafers , thereby achieving the chips people need.
This kind of light is not the kind of sunlight we usually see. It is a kind of ultraviolet ray, and the light sources used by different levels of lithography machines are also different.
DUV lithography machine mainly uses short-wave ultraviolet rays;
(Before the emergence of EUV lithography machines, people used DUV lithography machines that lasted for decades to engrave chips)
EUV lithography machine mainly uses extreme ultraviolet rays . The EUV lithography machine produced by
ASML mainly uses an extreme ultraviolet light source provided by a US company. Extreme ultraviolet rays are only reached by short-wave ultraviolet rays undergoing multiple reflections.
A stable and continuous output extreme ultraviolet light source is the top priority for high-end lithography machines to produce chips. If
does not have a stable light source, the yield rate of the produced chips will be greatly reduced. This will not only increase the cost of producing chips, but also affect the performance of the chips and the production efficiency of the company.
The second is the reflective lens of the lithography machine.
EUV lithography machine mainly uses optical reflective lenses developed by Zeiss, a veteran international optical giant. It is said that even optical giants such as Hasselblad and Leica are difficult to reach.
(It is said that Zeiss is the only company that can develop optical reflector lenses from EUV lithography machines)
optical reflector lenses occupy an important position in EUV lithography machines, which is to carve the circuit diagram on the master onto the silicon wafer in a certain proportion, which is one of the key steps in manufacturing chips.
If there is no well-made reflector lens, it is difficult to carve the chip even if there is a stable ultraviolet light source.
The third is EUV photoresist.
EUV photoresist can be said to be the most inconspicuous thing in lithography machine . It does not occupy a high proportion in the entire EUV lithography machine, but if anyone underestimates photoresist , he will definitely suffer a big loss.
It can be said that photoresist occupies no lower position in the chip than light sources or reflectors.
EUV lithography machines are difficult to carve high-end chips because of the lack of photoresist. Or, the big
is roughly sculpted into defective products.
Currently, Japan occupies a leading position in the field of photoresist, among which JSR, Tokyo Ainghua, Fujifilm and Sumitomo Chemical account for the most. Fujifilm and Sumitomo Chemical can also produce photoresist for EUV lithography machines.
In addition to the above problems, there are also problems such as the operating table of the lithography machine and ultra-clean workplace. Only by solving these problems can you have the opportunity to create high-end lithography machines.
China has the ability to develop its own lithography machine
ASML CEO once told the whole world very arrogantly that even if China gives the map of the lithography machine to China, China cannot make it.
There is an old Chinese saying: Riding a donkey to read the songbook, and walking and reading.
Wait for the moment when they slapped themselves in the face.
never thought that the slap in the face came too quickly.
In 2020, an executive of ASML announced that he would sell DUV lithography machines to China that do not require US licenses. The purpose of selling DUV lithography machines in
ASML is very clear.
One, As a businessman, you must sell lithography machines to make high profits, and develop the next generation lithography machines yourself to provide financial guarantees. After all, the performance of DUV lithography machines is much worse than that of EUV lithography machines, so it doesn’t matter if you sell some.
Secondly, suppresses domestic manufacturers of lithography machines.
Although my country can now develop domestic DUV lithography machines, it has no advantages compared with lithography machines produced by ASML, especially in terms of unit price.
Once ASML dumps DUV lithography machines into China, it will undoubtedly make the originally fragile domestic lithography machine manufacturers worsen, and may even directly destroy China's lithography machine manufacturers.
I have to say that ASML is really very cruel.
However, from this incident, we can see that foreigners are not only afraid of our country's attitude of concentrating our efforts on major tasks, but also want to erase China's own ability to develop lithography machines through despicable means so that they can make money as much as they want.
In addition, the CEO of Japanese JSR company once threatened that even if you give China a photoresist formula, it is difficult to mass produce high-purity and high-precision EUV photoresist.
I have to say they are really arrogant.
However, the more arrogant a person is, the more likely he is to be slapped in the face.
Many chemical companies in my country have been in the field of photoresist. Some chemical companies have conquered some patents for photoresist and have even developed EUV photoresist suitable for EUV lithography machines, which directly broke Japan's monopoly in this field.
(Although domestic photoresist has achieved a breakthrough from scratch, its market share has always been relatively low, especially in the high-end photoresist market, and there is almost no Chinese photoresist)
Now my country has layout in the fields of optical system, objective lens system, dual operating table, control system and photoresist.
Although some of these fields have made breakthrough progress and some of them have not made breakthrough progress yet, it is only a matter of time before they can create high-end lithography machines with the wisdom and ability of the Chinese.
Once China successfully develops a high-end EUV lithography machine, it will be bad news not only for ASML. If domestic high-end EUV lithography machines can be produced in large quantities, then the price of EUV lithography machines will undoubtedly be reduced to a bargain price.
In addition, China has little to fear the suppression of Western countries led by the United States on my country in the chip field.
Are you looking forward to China's successful development of EUV lithography machine?
