Potential US ban on SMIC could choke China's semiconductor supply chain

[Beast]

SMIC makes a breakthrough in its 7nm

This N+1 process for 7nm will probably come out in end of year. But its not really a real 7nm. It is more like 8nm. TSMC 7nm is still better but this 8nm will be much better than 14nm produced by SMIC and will be closed to what Huawei want for kirin 990.

 

[CAPRICORN-88]

This N+1 process for 7nm will probably come out in end of year. But its not really a real 7nm. It is more like 8nm. TSMC 7nm is still better but this 8nm will be much better than 14nm produced by SMIC and will be closed to what Huawei want for kirin 990.

Well. Most of us are aware of the N+1 process but that is all Huawei needs at this moment.
It is just the beginning of things to come.
Trump seriously believes that he can choke off SMIC and China semiconductors industries with his executive orders.
This is more significant.
The sign is on the wall.
USA is just beginning to lose the high tech chip war as well.

 

[antonius123]

Well. Most of us are aware of the N+1 process but that is all Huawei needs at this moment.
It is just the beginning of things to come.
Trump seriously believes that he can choke off SMIC and China semiconductors industries with his executive orders.
This is more significant.
The sign is on the wall.
USA is just beginning to lose the high tech chip war as well.

But how about Trump's restriction on SMIC which means they can't get equipment, parts and service from the vendor? understand that for cutting edge chip production SMIC is still dependent on overseas vendor.

 

[Beidou2020]

But how about Trump's restriction on SMIC which means they can't get equipment, parts and service from the vendor? understand that for cutting edge chip production SMIC is still dependent on overseas vendor.

SMIC will get DUV 28nm resolution lithography next year. EUV lithography is under development.

 

[antonius123]

SMIC will get DUV 28nm resolution lithography next year. EUV lithography is under development.

How about the EDA tool/software?

 

[CAPRICORN-88]

But how about Trump's restriction on SMIC which means they can't get equipment, parts and service from the vendor? understand that for cutting edge chip production SMIC is still dependent on overseas vendor.

Anyone who truly understands the state of the art manufacturing in China will knows that these are mere inconveniences and distractions and will not be a real obstacles for China too big to fail Huawei or SMIC.
What China truly needed is just a bit more times before their own proprietary LPP lithography is ready.

SMIC has already prepared themselves like Huawei and has stocked up sufficient chips for these maintenance.

Now every mobile phones & telecommunication equipment manufacturers in China are preparing themselves for the worst scenario. That is why what Trump did is in fact good for China.
Fot short term political gain, Trump has sacrificed its entire long term forest.
Once listed as unreliable vendors, these US chips makers will faced tremendous hurdles in the near future.

 

[Beidou2020]

How about the EDA tool/software?

Empyrean

 

[Beast]

But how about Trump's restriction on SMIC which means they can't get equipment, parts and service from the vendor? understand that for cutting edge chip production SMIC is still dependent on overseas vendor.

How is it when N+1, N+2 is a Chinese process?

Anyone who truly understands the state of the art manufacturing in China will knows that these are mere inconveniences and distractions and will not be a real obstacles for China too big to fail Huawei or SMIC.
What China truly needed is just a bit more times before their own proprietary LPP lithography is ready.

SMIC has already prepared themselves like Huawei and has stocked up sufficient chips for these maintenance.

Now every mobile phones & telecommunication equipment manufacturers in China are preparing themselves for the worst scenario. That is why what Trump did is in fact good for China.
Fot short term political gain, Trump has sacrificed its entire long term forest.
Once listed as unreliable vendors, these US chips makers will faced tremendous hurdles in the near future.

They will met a tremendous competitor who offer competitive tech and throat cutting price which aim to kill off American business

 

[antonius123]

Empyrean

Is it already in par with competitor?

SILICON | Why Chinese EDA tools lag behind · TechNode

In the second of two parts, Steward Randall explains why EDA dependency is not going away any time soon.

technode.com

 

[Beidou2020]

Is it already in par with competitor?

SILICON | Why Chinese EDA tools lag behind · TechNode

In the second of two parts, Steward Randall explains why EDA dependency is not going away any time soon.

technode.com

Yes

 

[Tair-Lahoti]

China needs time to develop its own technology and here is how SMIC buying time:



China's top chipmaker Semiconductor Manufacturing International Co. is stocking up on production equipment and crucial replacement parts in a sign that it has been braced for months for the U.S. to tighten export restrictions, Nikkei Asia has learned.

SMIC's purchases from American, European and Japanese suppliers exceed the company's needs for 2020, several industry sources familiar with the matter said. Purchases include machinery for key production processes such as etching, lithography, wafer cleaning, and testing, as well as more than a year's worth of consumable parts, which must be replaced on a regular basis to keep machines running and daily operations on track.

SMIC is even working with other Chinese chipmakers to create a shared reserve of such parts, the sources said, adding that a central warehouse has been set up to store these items.


The chipmaker's efforts echo those of its biggest client, Huawei Technologies, which scrambled to secure chip supplies as Washington tightened restrictions on exports to the Chinese smartphone maker.

"SMIC has been on very high alert since the start of this year, when the industry became aware that the U.S. could further restrict Huawei's non-American suppliers from using American technologies, which in fact later happened in May," one of the people familiar with the matter said. "They are rushing to buy many spare parts for existing chip production machines that will be needed to ensure business continuity in case there are any restrictions."