56: Chapter 56 The Emergence of Photolithography Machines and Chips

The car came to a steady stop outside the research lab building at the Tianxing Technology Industrial Base.

Chen Mo pushed open the car door, with Old Xu following closely behind. As soon as they entered the lobby, the head of the research lab hurried over:

"Boss Chen, what a rare guest! What brings you here so suddenly?"

"Nothing much, just came to work on something."

Chen Mo waved his hand with a smile. The research lab head was a top domestic expert Chen Mo had personally recruited.

Chen Mo took the lead, heading towards the core R&D area.

"Gather the core teams for the lithography machine and chip R&D. Also, prepare paper, pens, and material requisition forms. Once I list what I need, have someone procure it immediately. The state will provide full cooperation."

Chen Mo said as he walked.

The head didn't ask any questions and immediately went to make the arrangements. He was well aware of Chen Mo's R&D capabilities and genius.

In no time, all the core engineers from the lab had gathered in the precision instrument room. They watched as Chen Mo stood beside the 20nm lithography machine, his fingers lightly tapping the chassis, his gaze focused.

"Boss Chen, are you planning to upgrade the 20nm lithography machine?"

An engineer asked quietly.

"Not an upgrade. We're going straight for a 14nm EUV lithography machine, and we'll bring out the 14nm chip along with it."

Chen Mo didn't even look up, his tone casual, yet it made every engineer in the room widen their eyes in an instant.

After all, the foreign companies had just announced 14nm technology. Domestically, they hadn't even touched the threshold of EUV, and now Boss Chen wanted to achieve it in one step?

But no one would question Chen Mo. After all, both the 20nm lithography machine and chip had been developed by him.

Chen Mo picked up a pen and paper and began listing items. His Grandmaster Level Manufacturing Skill and Grandmaster Level Materials Skill operated at full speed in his mind. The two skills complemented each other perfectly. Wherever a part was missing or a special material was needed, he wrote it down without the slightest hesitation:

"High-purity germanium-silicon raw material, special quartz lenses, vacuum sealing components... Procure according to this list at the fastest speed. If anything is missing, go directly to the state."

The people beside him immediately took the list to coordinate the procurement. Meanwhile, Chen Mo led the team deep into the research lab. Once they entered, they stayed for over two months.

During these two-plus months, Chen Mo leveraged the advantages of his two Grandmaster-level skills to the extreme.

During the FinFET process design and optimization phase, a stage that would take others weeks or even months, Chen Mo, relying on his Grandmaster Level Manufacturing Skill and referencing the 20nm lithography machine he had previously led the development of, deduced the technical blueprint for the 14nm FinFET three-dimensional structure and its defects, directly finalizing the optimization plan:

"Increase the fin height by half a nanometer, shorten the gate length to 20 nanometers, and reduce the spacing by another three nanometers. Arranging the transistors this way can reduce power consumption by 30% and improve performance by at least 20%."

The engineers adjusted according to his plan. After the simulation tests came out, everyone was stunned!

The data was perfect, more efficient than the 14nm FinFET process announced abroad. This wasn't research; it was like having a god's-eye view!

Next came the special material synthesis stage, where the Grandmaster-level skills once again proved their power.

Chen Mo personally guided the team in synthesizing a high-mobility germanium-silicon channel material, directly replacing the traditional silicon-based material. The transistor switching speed instantly increased.

He then personally prepared the raw materials to create an ultra-thin high-k metal gate dielectric layer. The leakage problem that had plagued the industry's traditional processes for years was solved just like that, with seemingly effortless ease.

The entire material synthesis phase took a full month, even finishing a few days ahead of the original plan.

Finally, during the tape-out and mass production verification stage, the 14nm EUV lithography machine developed by Chen Mo started up and directly entered stable tape-out mode. There was no repeated trial and error typical of traditional manufacturers, no struggle with low yields. The first tape-out yield soared to over 90%.

The team spent a month with Chen Mo on debugging, breaking through all technical barriers for mass production. Both the 14nm lithography machine and the matching 14nm chip were successfully developed. Moreover, every performance parameter surpassed the versions announced by ASML and Intel!

And during these over two months, the online sentiment had completely shifted.

Back when ASML and Intel announced their 14nm technology, the taunts from the dragon haters hadn't stopped. They had clamored for over half a month. Patriotic netizens argued with reason, but couldn't withstand the other side constantly bringing up the "technology gap."

In the end, even many neutral netizens felt that it would take at least another decade or more for domestic semiconductors to catch up with foreign ones.

The dragon haters felt they had won a great victory, strutting around various forums and comment sections.

"So? It's been over two months, and not even a peep about 14nm. What did I say? They can't catch up at all!"

"Still talking about independent R&D? Better import the technology sooner rather than later. Stop wasting money on this nonsense!"

"ASML's 14nm EUV is already being debugged. We're still treating our 20nm like a treasure. The gap will only get bigger!"

"Those who said domestic chips could rise up, come out and take a walk! Does your face hurt?"

"Intel has already started mass-producing 14nm chips. We can't even draw a design diagram properly. That's reality!"

If anyone occasionally mentioned Tianxing Technology or Chen Mo, they would be ridiculed by the dragon haters:

"Chen Mo? The guy who just made a 20nm chip? Does he even know 14nm technology? What a joke!"

"Tianxing Technology is only good for playing around on the internet. For high-precision stuff like semiconductors, they're only fit to eat dust!"

The patriotic netizens were furious but had no concrete evidence to counter with. They could only swallow their anger in silence, hoping for some good news domestically. But as days passed, there wasn't a single ripple of activity.

In the end, the online discussions about 14nm had almost completely died down. The dragon haters lost their enthusiasm for mockery, simply assuming domestic semiconductors would never catch up with foreign ones in this lifetime.

Right at that moment, Tianxing Technology's official account suddenly released a blockbuster announcement, accompanied by complete technical documentation, product videos, and footage from the mass production workshop:

[Tianxing Technology successfully independently develops 14nm EUV lithography machine and 14nm FinFET process chip. Stable tape-out achieved with 92% yield. Mass production imminent. All performance parameters surpass international products of the same level!]

The announcement instantly exploded across the entire internet. The topic that had completely cooled off shot back to the top of the trending charts, nearly crashing the servers from the traffic!

The first to erupt were the patriotic netizens. Comment sections, forums, and social media feeds were flooded with celebratory cheers, every word brimming with vindication:

"Holy crap! Tianxing Technology is awesome! Boss Chen is awesome!"

"Two-plus months! Others just talked big, but we actually made it, and it's even more advanced than theirs!"

"Who says domestic chips are no good now? Step forward and take a look! Tianxing Technology just smashed your face in!"

"To those who said Chen Mo couldn't make a 14nm chip before, does your face hurt now? Game streaming is just his side gig; semiconductors are his real talent!"

"92% yield! Stable tape-out! What kind of godly operation is this? Even fiercer than ASML and Intel!"

"Full state support + Chen Mo's skills, this combo is simply unbeatable! Who said we can't catch up with foreign tech? This is called overtaking on the curve!"

"Tianxing Technology's move has brought great honor to Dragon Country's semiconductor industry! Let's see who dares to mock us now!"

"Where are those dragon haters? Come out! Weren't you good at talking? Why are you mute now?"

"Those who mocked independent R&D before, look now. Not only can we do it, we can do it better! This is Dragon Country's strength!"

"Boss Chen is forever the GOAT! From the internet to semiconductors, there's nothing he can't handle!"

"Finally, this day has come. The rise of domestic chips isn't just a slogan; it's actually been achieved!"

At first, the dragon haters tried to stubbornly refute, making last-ditch struggles in various comment sections:

"Fake, right? How could Tianxing Technology possibly make a 14nm EUV? Must be riding the hype!"

"Photoshopped documents, edited videos, just fooling you brainless little patriots!"

"92% yield? Bragging without even drafting a script. Even foreign companies can't achieve that high!"

"Probably just bought foreign technology and slapped their own label on it. What's there to brag about?"

"Exactly, what's the use of a video? Have the guts to mass-produce it!"

But when Tianxing Technology released more detailed technical breakdowns, high-definition videos of the lithography machine working, the complete chip tape-out process, real-time footage from the mass production workshop, and even published some measured data of core parameters;

every item could withstand scrutiny, every detail exuded solid technical prowess, the dragon haters' refutations grew quieter and quieter.

Professional engineers and semiconductor industry practitioners analyzed Tianxing Technology's materials overnight, and the conclusions were unanimous:

"The technology is real, and it's more advanced than ASML's 14nm EUV and Intel's 14nm chips. Especially the germanium-silicon channel material and the high-k metal gate dielectric layer—these two technologies directly solve industry pain points!"

"The 92% yield is real. All technical conditions for mass production are fully met. Tianxing Technology has truly produced something substantial this time!"

Once these professional analyses came out, the dragon haters fell completely silent. Several of the most vocal ones directly deleted their previous mocking comments, closed their comment sections, and some even deactivated their accounts entirely, afraid of being dug up and ridiculed by netizens.

The once noisy comment sections were now filled only with netizens' cheers and praise for Tianxing Technology and Chen Mo. All the previous mockery had become a joke.