Chinese Professor: It takes “5 to 10 years” for China to catch up with the pace of semiconductor chip development in the world

Professor Zhou Zhiping, a semiconductor chip expert at Peking University, recently interviewed in the South China Morning Post, said that China is currently a decade behind, from two to three generations of production. compared to industry leaders in semiconductor chip development. Mr. Zhou was the founder and vice president of Hengnan semiconductor chip factory from 1971 to 1978, and became an honorary scientist at the American Academy of Standards and Technology from 1987 to 1989. With 50 years of experience. In semiconductor industry, perhaps Zhou's assertions are reasonable.

Currently, the tensions in the US-China trade war are gradually showing the disadvantages of China. They are very dependent on US chip and semiconductor supplies. Last year, the amount China spent on semiconductor chips reached $ 312 billion, surpassing the amount used to buy crude oil from abroad for the domestic market.

"At the present time, the cost of making semiconductor chips has not decreased, while the related costs are increasing , " Zhou said . The semiconductor industry is no longer growing according to Moore's law, because the smaller the chip is, the more production costs increase. The semiconductor industry must find a way to overcome technological difficulties to make chips smaller. Currently China can produce chips on the 14 nm process, while the US and Taiwan are using the 7 nm process, or even 5 nm, at least 2 to 3 generations further than China.

“China can keep pace with the pace of development, but first solve the ecosystem problem of the semiconductor and supply chain industries. I think we need 5 to 10 years to catch up with other countries. It will also take time to improve the industry ecosystem, especially as China relies on other countries' technology for hardware, software, services and intellectual property. China must also develop related equipment, and also the knowledge to make semiconductor chips. ”

Source : TinhTe