China to build large chip factory powered by particle accelerator
What's the story
China is planning a massive chip factory that utilizes particle accelerators for high-volume, low-cost chip manufacturing. This state-of-the-art microchip manufacturing technology may provide the Chinese semiconductor industry with a workaround to bypass US sanctions. The project, led by a team from Tsinghua University, is currently in discussions with authorities in Xiongan New Area to select a construction site.
Details
Revolutionizing semiconductor industry with SSMB
Chinese scientists are exploring a new luminescence mechanism called steady-state microbunching (SSMB) to revolutionize the semiconductor fabrication industry. SSMB technology offers a more ideal light source than current Advanced Semiconductor Materials Lithography's (ASML) extreme ultraviolet (EUV) technology, with higher average power and higher chip production output at lower unit costs.
What Next?
Overcoming challenges in SSMB technology
The main challenge in utilizing SSMB technology lies in guiding the distribution of electrons within the storage ring of the accelerator, causing them to achieve collective synchronous radiation. The device could produce high-quality radiations from terahertz waves at a wavelength of 0.3mm to EUV waves at wavelengths of 13.5nm. The team successfully conducted the first verification phase at the Metrological Light Source (MLS) in Berlin, Germany.
Insights
China's potential rise as microchip leader
With the successful experiment and publication of their findings in the peer-reviewed journal Nature in 2021, China could become a global leader in microchip production. Professor Tang Chuanxiang, a member of the team, believes that SSMB technology could help China get rid of future sanctions but did not discuss the specific progress of an SSMB-based lithography machine. The realization of SSMB-EUV light sources will provide new tools for frontier research in materials science, basic physics, biochemistry, and other disciplines.