IC development should start from the source

The overall size of silicon monocrystalline materials is still relatively small, and it is relatively backward compared with the international giants.

The state should pay attention to the IC material industry and support IC companies to become bigger and stronger.

IC companies include IC design companies, processing plants, and post-process companies (testing, packaging, and equipment). The key to designing a company lies in its talent. The key to processing plants and post-processes lies in equipment and management. However, raw materials are the foundation of the entire industry and are affected by the combined influence of talents, equipment, and management.

Solve the problem of insufficient supply of materials as soon as possible

Currently, 8-inch to 12-inch silicon wafers for IC are the mainstream in the international market. However, all large-diameter silicon wafers for ICs larger than 8 inches in China are almost entirely dependent on imports. Most of the domestic silicon single crystal production lines are under 8 inches in size, and it is difficult to match with the IC industry of 8 inches or more. In the traditional concept of the IC industry, the processing of silicon wafers was not part of the IC industry. This created a contradiction between the current production and demand for raw materials. Domestic 8-inch to 12-inch single-crystal silicon and silicon wafer production lines are few, and they simply cannot meet the strong development needs of the IC industry. The contradiction between the production and demand of raw materials is the contradiction that the whole industry must face. This is exactly the risk that leading companies must face in the future.

Leading companies, as representatives of China's IC industry, will have fierce competition with international IC giants, including the entire industry chain. The production of raw materials as the basis of the industry will become an important part of the competition. From the current situation, China's raw material production and manufacturing must accelerate the pace of development, as soon as possible to resolve the contradiction of insufficient supply of materials. The existence of this contradiction has a direct impact on the survival of the leading enterprises, and makes our enterprises have no ability to compete with international IC giants.

At present, as the supporting industry of integrated circuits, the overall size of silicon monocrystalline materials is still relatively small. Compared with the international giants, they have lagged behind in scale production capacity, technical equipment, management level, and financing capacity. In particular, due to the impact of the exchange rate this year, the appreciation of the renminbi, silicon wafer pressure is very large, and corporate profit margins are small. If this situation continues and a vicious circle is formed, the prospects of silicon monocrystalline material manufacturers are not optimistic.

Support IC material companies to become bigger and stronger

From the perspective of national policy, IC design and IC manufacturing companies are more concerned by the country, and as the source of IC, silicon monocrystalline material manufacturers are relatively isolated. First, the silicon single crystal production enterprises are small in scale, and they are not supported by the upstream and downstream industrial chains, and it is difficult to expand rapidly. Second, the raw material suppliers of silicon single crystals—the domestic polycrystalline silicon manufacturers mainly rely on solar-grade polysilicon; The requirements of electronic-grade polysilicon parameters, China's electronic-grade polysilicon is still mainly dependent on imports; Third, the silicon single crystal production companies need to improve the ability to recognize and control large-diameter silicon crystal defects, especially the smaller and smaller line widths. The original defects of crystals are also getting higher and higher; Fourth, there is a lack of adequate financial support. For the industrial upgrading of silicon single crystal materials, especially for silicon single crystal materials above 8 inches, from single crystal pulling to silicon wafer polishing, the entire industry chain needs to invest more capital, and companies are limited by their own scale, and it is difficult to raise enough. The funds. The state should pay attention to the IC material industry and support IC companies to become bigger and stronger.