Lithography machine market pattern
The lithography machine can be said to be the "lifeblood" of the chip manufacturing industry. Just as a person cannot survive without a heart, it is impossible to produce chips without a lithography machine. It can be said that the importance of lithography machine for the entire semiconductor industry chain is self-evident.
For many years, the global lithography machine market has been largely dominated by the Dutch company ASML. With its advanced technical strength, especially in the core extreme ultraviolet (EUV) lithography technology, ASML has become the absolute hegemon in this field. Any chip manufacturer that wants to use state-of-the-art processes to make top-of-the-line chips must buy lithography machines from ASML.
However, behind ASML's domination of the entire lithography machine market, there is also a complex history of "deception". We must not forget that before the rise of ASML, two Japanese companies, Nikon and Canon, were the leaders in lithography machine technology. However, in the research and development stage of EUV technology, Japanese companies were squeezed out by the United States and ASML, and fell into a situation of catching up.
At that time, the United States took the lead in establishing the EUV Technology R&D Alliance, but refused to allow Japanese companies to join. In contrast, the Dutch ASML has been qualified to participate in the alliance. In this situation, ASML quickly took the lead in EUV technology, while Japanese companies have not been able to catch up after years of near-"earth-shattering" research and development.
Today, in EUV technology, ASML has achieved an absolute advantage that is almost untouchable. It has become an indisputable fact that any manufacturer that wants to produce the most advanced chips has to bow to it. At the same time, Japanese companies can only compete with ASML to a limited extent in the low-end market, and are far behind in the high-end field.
Opportunities in the Chinese market
Although ASML dominates the high-end lithography market, the rise of the Chinese market has put it under pressure like never before. In recent years, in order to restrict the development of China's chip industry, the United States has imposed strict controls on the export of lithography machines to China. This makes ASML also have to be careful, otherwise it risks losing the huge Chinese market.
In 2018, an EUV lithography machine ordered by SMIC from ASML was subject to U.S. export controls and has not been delivered. The U.S. is restricting exports to China not only for EUVs, but also for DUV, ASML's main product. This has undoubtedly brought a lot of economic losses to ASML.
However, the growth potential of the Chinese market is simply too great. According to statistics, in the third quarter of this year, China accounted for 46% of ASML's total sales revenue. This makes ASML also try to cartes the Chinese market, even if it suffers some losses temporarily, it is not willing to give up.
At the same time, Japan's Canon and Nikon also see opportunities in the Chinese market. Canon is developing a new lithography machine using nanoimprint technology, with the goal of commercializing it within a few years to capture the Chinese marketNikon has launched a number of new products and expanded production in a big way to gain market share in China.
In short, the growth of the Chinese market is changing the global lithography landscape. Since the United States restricts ASML's exports to China, Japanese companies have taken the opportunity to lay out. At present, lithography machine companies in various countries are preparing to show their strength in China. This, in turn, will also promote the improvement of China's lithography machine technology to achieve independent control.
The key to autonomy and control
At present, driven by the vigorous development of the Chinese market, the global lithography machine pattern is undergoing profound changes. Japanese lithography machine companies have increased their efforts to develop the Chinese market, and ASML is also trying to keep the Chinese market. This provides an important opportunity for China to realize the independent and controllable lithography machine technology.
Both Japan's Canon and Nikon saw the opportunity to launch new products to expand their coverage of the Chinese market. They are competing with ASML, a leading company, in an effort to increase their share of the Chinese market. This, in turn, has forced ASML to accelerate the transfer of new technologies to China in order to maintain its leading position.
In the competition between Japanese companies and ASML, Chinese companies will have the opportunity to better master the core technology of world-class lithography machines and lay the foundation for localization. We must not miss this rare strategic opportunity period, we must seize the opportunity, "bring in" to drive "going out", and make every effort to realize the independent and controllable lithography machine technology.
Although the situation is ever-changing, we must be soberly aware that in order to fundamentally solve the problem, we must also rely on independent innovation. China's lithography machine still has a long way to go, and it still needs to make unremitting efforts. "The house is against the corner, and the man is on himself". We must not rely on the charity of others to stand firm.
The goal of domestic lithography machine must be unswerving. In the process, there will definitely be many difficulties and countless mountains to climb. However, as long as the goal is right, the road will get wider and wider. China has enough talent and market to be fully confident that it will be able to do a good job in this last mile.
The people once pointed out: "We can't always let others give us advice." "In order to achieve complete autonomy and controllability of core technologies, we must be self-reliant and make breakthroughs independently. China will never wishfully wait for others to give alms, and will definitely achieve a fundamental breakthrough in the field of lithography machines!List of high-quality authors