[News] China’s Homegrown EUV Machines Rumored for Q3 Trial Production, Spelling Trouble for ASML

Has China already made striking breakthrough amid U.S. chip export curbs? According to TechPowerUp, China’s homegrown EUV lithography may longer be a distant goal, as a new system is currently being tested at Huawei’s Dongguan facility.

The information was first revealed by famous tech Twitter accounts like @zephyr_z9 and @Ma-WuKong, suggesting that the EUV machine, which uses laser-induced discharge plasma (LDP) technology, is set for trial production for the third quarter, 2025, with mass manufacturing aimed for 2026.

Notably, Dutch semiconductor giant ASML has been banned from selling its most advanced EUV machines to China. ASML President and CEO Christophe Fouquet used to state that prohibiting the export of these machines to China would cause the country’s semiconductor industry to lag 10 to 15 years, as per Dutch media outlet NRC.

However, China appears to have found an alternative approach to generating EUV laser light. A January report from the South China Morning Post revealed that a research team from Harbin Provincial Innovation developed a “discharge plasma extreme ultraviolet lithography light source,” capable of producing EUV lights with a 13.5 nm wavelength, meeting the demands of the photolithography market.

According to TechPowerUp, China’s new system under testing uses the LDP approach to generate 13.5 nm EUV radiation as well, by vaporizing tin between electrodes and converting it to plasma through high-voltage discharge, with electron-ion collisions producing the required wavelength.

Unlike ASML’s LPP (laser-produced plasma) method, which relies on high-energy lasers and complex FPGA-based controls, the report indicates that China’s LDP offers a simpler design, smaller footprint, better energy efficiency, and potentially lower production costs

According to TechPowerUp, when the US imposed sanctions on EUV shipments to China, Chinese semiconductor development was limited, as standard DUV lithography systems use 248 nm (KrF) and 193 nm (ArF) wavelengths. These are less advanced than EUV’s 13.5 nm radiation, requiring multiple patterning steps to achieve advanced nodes, the report adds.

Though SMIC is reportedly manufacturing 7nm chips with old DUV machines, the Chinese foundry giant is said to be plagued with low yields.

Read more

• [News] ASML CEO Christophe Fouquet: U.S. EUV Export Ban Causes China’s Chip-Making to Lag by 10-15 Years

(Photo credit: SMIC)