Huawei Plans To Make 3Nm Chips, But When?


(MENAFN- Asia Times) Huawei Technologies, a Shenzhen-based telecommunication equipment maker, is reportedly planning to make 3 nanometer chips with deep ultraviolet (DUV) lithography machines despite low yields and high costs.

An article published by Tom's Hardware, an American technology website, reported Tuesday that Huawei and Semiconductor manufacturing International Corp (SMIC) together plan to produce 3nm chips by using patented self-aligned quadruple patterning (SAQP) lithography methods. The article said that 7nm-class process Technology features 36 to 38nm metal pitches while 5nm-class nodes have metal pitches of 30 to 32nm. It said metal pitches for 3nm chips will be about 21 to 24nm.

Metal pitch is the metric to measure the minimum distance between two horizontal interconnects. In 2019, Intel tried to produce a 10nm chip, which had metal pitches of 36nm. But the project failed due to low yields.

The Tom's Hardware article said the cost of 5nm or 3nm chip production will be high, making it not feasible for commercial devices. It said the chips can be used in supercomputers or military equipment.

The article was widely cited by Taiwanese media on Wednesday.

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Asia Times

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