That article is over 6 months old: I had a feeling I'd heard this news before!
Anyway, here's a summary of my understanding of that article - please correct me if I've got anything wrong:
- There is evidence that Chinese semiconductor foundry SMIC may have developed a 5nm manufacturing process, based on a new Huawei laptop listed with a 5nm Kirin 9006C processor. This would be a major breakthrough for SMIC.
- Previously, SMIC had achieved mass production of Huawei's 7nm Kirin 9000S chip. But 5nm was thought impossible for SMIC due to U.S. sanctions restricting access to advanced manufacturing equipment.
- The Kirin 9006C chip's specifications like core count and clock speeds are similar to the 5nm Kirin 9000 chip made by TSMC before Huawei was blacklisted. This raises questions if Huawei is using old TSMC stock or if SMIC made the 9006C.
- Industry experts believe SMIC is close to a 5nm process using deep ultraviolet (DUV) lithography and multi-patterning techniques, despite lacking cutting-edge extreme ultraviolet (EUV) tools.
- However, neither Huawei nor SMIC is likely to officially confirm SMIC's 5nm capabilities openly, given tensions with the U.S. government and desire to avoid further export controls.
In summary, while not definitively proven, there are increasing signs that SMIC may have overcome U.S. sanctions to develop 5nm chipmaking against expectations.
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