Great Country Academician

Heroic Core 05, strictly speaking, is not the first generation of carbon-based chips.

Although it can be produced in small batches and has passed a series of test experiments, it still cannot change the fact that it is just an ‘experimental’ product.

That’s right, Xiongxin 05 is only the first batch of experimental products with relatively mature computing functions in the development of carbon-based chips, and it is still a long way from commercial launch.

A chip with 10 million carbon-based transistors per square millimeter, let alone in 2025, even if it was put in 2015 ten years ago, the number of integrated transistors cannot be compared with that of silicon-based chips.

In 2015, Intel officially released the fifth-generation processor, using 14nm process, with a transistor count of 1.9 billion.

The carbon-based chip in Xu Chuan’s hand has a total transistor count of only 1 billion, which is nearly twice the distance from Intel’s fifth-generation product.

However, carbon-based chips and silicon-based chips are two different products and cannot be completely generalized.

A carbon-based chip constructed with a billion carbon-based transistors can match or even exceed Intel's fifth-generation processor in terms of performance.

1 billion vs. 1.9 billion, half the number of transistors, the performance is not inferior at all, and even exceeds in some aspects.

This is enough to show the superiority and development potential of carbon-based chips.

After all, at present, carbon-based chips are still in the state of research and development. Whether it is from the design software, instruction set system, chip design and other aspects, they are almost all derived from imitating silicon-based chips.

Although theoretically, the gap between carbon-based chips and silicon-based chips is not large, and almost everything that can be used in silicon-based semiconductors can be directly applied to carbon-based semiconductors.

But these two are two different elemental materials after all, how can they be 100% compatible.

Applying the design of silicon-based chips to carbon-based chips is currently just a helpless move, after all, the development of carbon-based chips is the first time in history.

In this field, they have reached the forefront of the world.

Simply put, there are no stones in front for them to cross the river by feeling their way, and the road behind them requires them to grope forward bit by bit.

If it is a real carbon-based chip, then the relevant circuit design, architecture, etc. need to be redesigned based on carbon-based semiconductor materials.

Now, to put it bluntly, even the finished chips that can be used are only semi-finished products.

If they really rely on carbon-based semiconductor materials to develop and improve a set of supporting systems in the future, and achieve real carbon-based chips.

At that time, the entire industry will be under their control, and silicon-based semiconductor companies such as NVIDIA, TSMC, ASML, Intel, and Qualcomm will have to kneel down and call them daddy.

In short, although the technology has just started, the performance of Xiongxin 05 has initially demonstrated the superiority of carbon-based chips.

Whether it is the thermal design power consumption of 30WTDP or the main frequency of 5.8Hz, it has greatly demonstrated the potential of carbon-based chips, which are far beyond the reach of silicon-based chips.

After briefly introducing the performance of Xiongxin 05, Zhao Guanggui took out another carbon-based chip from the cabinet.

Looking at the sample in the protective box, he said with emotion: "At present, this carbon-based chip has a certain commercial value."

"However, there are still many shortcomings in terms of design and preparation."

"For example, the engraving of carbon-based transistors, although it is a 28-nanometer process, in fact, SMIC uses a 65-nanometer argon fluoride lithography machine engraving technology, and superimposes multiple exposure technology to achieve 28 nanometers."

"In other words, the current upper limit of the nano process of our carbon-based chips is still restricted and affected by the lithography machine to a certain extent."

Hearing this, Xu Chuan asked curiously: "But I remember that carbon-based chips seem to be able to bypass the lithography machine? Use other engraving methods? I have read similar papers before."

After a slight pause, he continued: "And if I remember correctly, you didn't use the lithography machine to prepare the 'MOSFET metal-oxide semiconductor field effect transistor' and 'JFET junction field effect transistor' in the laboratory before?"

For the technology related to chip preparation, he really doesn't know much, after all, he is not a researcher in this field.

However, Xinghai Research Institute is studying carbon-based chips, and he has read some papers in the field of chips.

For example, the engraving technology of carbon-based chips, the design of circuit diagrams, etc.

Chips are known as the jewels of modern industry, and their manufacturing process involves multiple process steps.

Including oxidation lithography, ion implantation, chemical mechanical grinding, etching, deposition, metallization, cleaning, etc.

Among these process steps, lithography technology is particularly important. It is one of the core processes for chip preparation and accounts for more than 35% of the chip manufacturing cost.

Generally speaking, the main reason why chips can only be produced by lithography machines is that lithography technology has high resolution, high efficiency and multi-level manufacturing capabilities.

The higher the chip, the higher the requirements for lithography machines.

At present, the only manufacturer in the world that can produce low-nanometer-level lithography machines is ASML in Windmill Country.

This is the dominant player in the field of lithography machines. It has extreme ultraviolet (EUV) lithography machine technology and is a key device capable of producing the most advanced process chips. It is relied upon by chip manufacturing giants such as TSMC and Samsung for the production of chips with a process of 5 nanometers and below.

Of course, ASML is not from the Windmill Country. Its lithography machine technology can be said to come from the entire Western interest groups.

For example, the top optical components provided by Zeiss in the Germanic country, the high-quality photoresist and single-crystal silicon rounds provided by the Sakura Country, and the light source comes from Cymer in the United States, etc.

In other words, ASML has learned the martial arts secrets of Jin Yong's novels, combined the strengths of hundreds of schools, and used them for its own use, and then used its own software for advanced integration, truly achieving "one hero and three helpers", which is the cleverness of ASML.

In contrast, Nikon and Canon in the Sakura Country are much more conservative, pay more attention to the spirit of Bushido, and like to fight alone, which is also an important reason why the Sakura Country cannot surpass ASML.

In the field of lithography machines or semiconductors, it has always been an important means for those Western interest groups to suppress them.

For example, cutting-edge chips, low-nanometer lithography machines, etc., they have suffered many losses in this field.

Whether it is Huawei, Xiaomi, SMIC, BOE and other Internet/communication companies or semiconductor equipment manufacturers, they have all suffered many setbacks due to unfair treatment and malicious suppression.

If the development of carbon-based chips still cannot avoid lithography machines, the influence and value of carbon-based chips will be limited to a certain extent.

Opposite, Zhao Guanggui shook his head and said: "Experimental preparation and industrial production are two completely different concepts."

"The fact that the laboratory does not use photolithography machines does not mean that the production of carbon-based chips bypasses photolithography machines. Chips made in laboratory environments can be etched with the help of instruments, without the help of photolithography machines." "But this is only a theoretical research method, and it cannot be mass-produced."

"According to the current chip manufacturing model, all large-scale mass-produced chips are etched onto silicon wafers by photolithography, and the materials themselves are different."

"The model and process are actually the same, and circuit etching is required. And large-scale mass production of circuit etching cannot bypass photolithography machines."

"So at present, SMIC still uses a method similar to silicon-based chips to process carbon-based chips."

After a pause, his eyes fell on the carbon-based chip in his hand, and he continued.

"Of course, we are also organizing human and material resources to develop the technology you expect to bypass the lithography machine and carve carbon-based chip transistors through other methods."

"For example, arc discharge, laser ablation, chemical vapor deposition and other methods are used to prepare carbon-based chips."

"But at present, these technologies are far less mature than traditional lithography technology, and the process of the prepared chips is larger."

"For example, we have tried to use arc discharge and laser ablation to prepare carbon-based chips before. The chip process that can be achieved by both is at the micron level, and the other has reached the nanometer level, but it is also more than 500 nanometers."

"To bypass the key technology of lithography machine to process and carve carbon-based chips, it is almost impossible at present. It is very difficult."

After a brief explanation, Zhao Guanggui's eyes fell on the chip in his hand.

In fact, there are more than just the people who want to bypass the lithography machine to prepare carbon-based chips.

Not to mention others, Huawei HiSilicon, SMIC, and even MediaTek, TSMC, Intel and other semiconductor wafer foundries all want to find a way to bypass the lithography machine to process chips.

During this period, when he was in charge of cooperating with Huawei HiSilicon, SMIC and other teams to produce and research carbon-based chips, he also consulted those professional chip developers about this issue.

This road is not so easy to take.

Humans have been developing semiconductors for decades before finally deciding on the path of silicon-based chips.

The reason is that silicon is cost-effective, chemically stable, has excellent semiconductor properties, and has mature processing technology.

In particular, the excellent semiconductor properties are a very critical point.

Silicon is a natural semiconductor material. It has high resistance in its pure form. After adding a small amount of impurities (doping), its conductivity can be controlled, thereby effectively switching between conduction and insulation, which is an indispensable property in chip manufacturing.

Compared with silicon, other materials have their own defects in this regard.

For example, the germanium-based chips used by humans at the earliest.

Germanium was the earliest material used for transistors, but due to its low content in the earth's crust, it has a high cost and is not as stable as silicon, so it has gradually been replaced by silicon.

And now they are developing carbon-based chips.

Although carbon-based materials have some advantages, such as higher operating speed and lower power consumption, their thermal conductivity is low, processing is difficult and costly, and these problems have greatly limited the widespread application of carbon-based chips.

In particular, doping circuit control and large-scale arrangement of carbon nanotubes or graphene sheets are huge challenges in the production process of carbon-based chips.

In contrast, the advantages of silicon materials are much greater.

Although high-purity single-crystal silicon, photoresist, etc. are all problems, its biggest problem is still the lithography machine.

Only the top lithography machine can produce silicon-based chips with lower nanometers.

It is no exaggeration to say that among all the chip preparation technologies that humans have studied so far, silicon-based chips are the simplest.

Even the simplest one took almost the entire Western interest group + decades to gradually perfect bit by bit.

It is not easy to overtake on the curve and bypass the photolithography machine to directly engrave and process the chip.

It can be said that almost all the roads you can think of have been thought of and tried by the R\u0026D personnel in the chip field.

Although the photolithography machine is still a problem in front of carbon-based chips, Zhao Guanggui is not too worried.

He smiled and continued, "Although the problem of lithography machines is huge, we don't need to worry too much at present."

"There are still manufacturers in China that research lithography machines, such as the Magic City Microelectronics Company in Magic City. They already have a mature lithography machine preparation system. And they have developed four series of domestic lithography machines of 90 nanometers, 110 nanometers, 280 nanometers and 55 nanometers."

"And the 28-nanometer lithography machine currently being promoted is about to mature."

"As for carbon-based chips, the superiority of carbon-based transistors in physical properties is enough to make up for our shortcomings in process technology to a certain extent."

"In theory, as long as we can increase the number of carbon-based transistors per square millimeter to 30 million, the performance it bursts out will be enough to rival the mid-to-high-end chips on the market now."

"This is also our next focus of research. Towards. "

Xu Chuan nodded and asked: "How long will it take us to achieve this goal?"

Hearing this question, Zhao Guanggui thought carefully for a while and answered in a relatively conservative manner: "According to the current situation, we should be able to make carbon-based chips with commercial value within a year at most."

"Of course, the commercial value I am talking about refers to at least the level of being comparable to the mid-to-high-end silicon-based chips currently on the market."

"Hmm"

After thinking for a while, Zhao Guanggui added: "If we compare it with Intel's Core series, we will be able to produce carbon-based chips with performance reaching the 10th generation of Core in a year. "

"Although this is still a little behind the latest 14th generation of Core chips, with the development speed of carbon-based chips, I believe it will only take two or three years at most for us to catch up or even surpass the other party! "