China Achieves Major Breakthrough in Semiconductor Manufacturing Technology: SMIC Chongqing Begins Mass Production of 14nm Mid-Process Silicon Wafers

On July 28, the mass-production ceremony for 14-nanometer bump processing at SMIC ChangElectronics Semiconductor Co., Ltd. was held in Jiangyin. This marks a significant milestone: China’s mid-end semiconductor manufacturing process has now advanced to the internationally most advanced mass-production technology chain. SMIC ChangElectronics Semiconductor is the country’s first 12-inch mid-end silicon wafer manufacturing project, jointly invested in and built by SMIC, ChangElec Technology, the National Integrated Circuit Industry Investment Fund, and U.S.-based Qualcomm.

With the advancement of the mobile smart era, integrated circuit chips are facing ever-increasing demands for performance, power consumption, and area. Traditional chip architectures are becoming increasingly inadequate, making mid-end processes an indispensable and critical link in the semiconductor manufacturing value chain. The mass production of this SMIC-ChangElectronics semiconductor project not only marks a major breakthrough in China’s semiconductor manufacturing technology but also signifies that China has, for the first time, successfully established a complete industrial chain for the fabrication and manufacturing of mobile smart communication chips. This achievement lays a solid foundation for China’s integrated circuits to compete on the global stage with the world’s leading players.

14/28 Nano bump processing enters mass production one after another.

“SMIC ChangElectro Semiconductor was jointly established in 2014 through the joint investment of SMIC, China’s largest and most technologically advanced front-end chip manufacturer, and ChangElectro Technology, the country’s largest back-end packaging company. From its inception, the company’s goal has been to integrate the nation’s highest-quality industrial resources and build an advanced integrated circuit chip manufacturing industrial chain, thereby improving the industry ecosystem and elevating the overall industry level,” pointed out Cui Dong, CEO and Executive Director of SMIC ChangElectro Semiconductor Co., Ltd., in an interview with a reporter from China Electronics News.

After less than two years of construction, the project has achieved remarkable results. According to available data, SMIC ChangElectronics’ 12-inch 28-nanometer bump-processing technology had already passed customer product validation by the end of 2015. Starting in January 2016, the company began accepting customer orders. After six months of ramping up for mass production, it has now reached large-scale production, with a yield rate that has attained an advanced level within the industry. The company also provides silicon wafer testing services; overall, its silicon wafer shipments have exceeded 20,000 wafers per month since May.

Even more noteworthy is that, at this mass-production ceremony, SMIC ChangElectronics Semiconductor officially announced the start of mass production of 14-nanometer bump processing. Chen Ruowen, Senior Vice President of Global Operations at Qualcomm, presented the award to mark this milestone. As a result, SMIC ChangElectronics Semiconductor has become the first—and currently the only—domestic company capable of providing mid-end silicon wafer manufacturing services for 14-nanometer bump processing. Bump processing is one of the fundamental processes in mid-end silicon wafer manufacturing. This technology is widely used in mobile smart chips that emphasize high performance, low power consumption, and small size, and represents an important direction for the development of semiconductor manufacturing technology.

Organically integrate the chip manufacturing industrial chain.

The launch of SMIC ChangElectronics Semiconductor this time is not merely a simple ceremony marking the start of mass production; rather, it carries profound industrial significance. According to Cui Dong, throughout the decades-long development of the integrated circuit industry, computing terminals—including personal computers, servers, data centers, and storage devices—have consistently been the primary application market for IC chips and have also served as the main driving force behind continuous advancements in chip technology. However, over the past decade or so, with the advent of the mobile internet era, mobile terminals such as smartphones and tablets have experienced rapid growth and have now overtaken the computer industry, becoming the leading application market for IC chips. Moreover, the future Internet of Things, big data, and cloud computing represent extensions of the mobile smart era. The development of these terminal industries has given rise to entirely new demands for integrated circuit products: namely, while maintaining high processing capabilities, these chips must also be able to store larger amounts of data, achieve faster data transmission rates, and at the same time remain compact in size and consume low power. To meet these demands, traditional chip architectures have increasingly proven inadequate. In response to market needs, the semiconductor manufacturing industry has gradually adopted a solution that integrates bare dies from different process generations into a single silicon-level system, thereby balancing performance, power consumption, and transmission speed. This approach has led to the emergence of mid-end processes such as bump processing, redistribution layer (RDL) patterning, and through-silicon vias (TSVs). Chips processed through these mid-end processes and subsequently packaged exhibit characteristics of being "small, light, and thin," aligning perfectly with the consumer electronics industry's ongoing trend toward smarter and smaller devices.

“The 12-inch mid-end silicon wafer processing and associated wafer testing capabilities of SMIC-ChangElectronics Semiconductor Company have been developed and built precisely driven by this major industry trend,” Cui Dong told reporters. “As the project enters mass production, it will have a significant impact on the development of China’s integrated circuit industry.”

“From the company’s perspective, in less than two years, we’ve built up from scratch—starting from nothing—and not only quickly established processing capabilities but also met the high-quality standards set by world-class customers in terms of yield and key performance indicators. This means that SMIC Changdian Semiconductor has already gained recognition from world-class clients, enabling us to achieve a high level of development and successfully enter the international supply chain for高端 products,” said Cui Dong.

From an industry perspective, the previous business model in the chip manufacturing sector saw the front-end and back-end chip-processing operations operating relatively independently along the supply chain, each acting largely on its own. As the market has evolved and technology has advanced, this original industry model has become increasingly incompatible with contemporary demands. After achieving large-scale production, SMIC ChangElectro Semiconductor—a company engaged in mid-end silicon wafer processing—can play a unique role in the industry by connecting upstream and downstream partners such as SMIC and ChangElectro Technology. In fact, the very establishment of SMIC ChangElectro Semiconductor represents a bold exploration by these companies to break away from their previous industry models and re-integrate the chip-manufacturing value chain in a more organic way. Moreover, earlier industry-linked events—such as SMIC’s financial support for ChangElectro’s acquisition of StarCore Golden Peak, and SMIC’s subsequent announcement of an additional investment in ChangElectro Technology to become its largest shareholder—can be seen as a reinforcement of this strategic approach.

A diversified market strategy will be adopted.

Looking ahead, how will SMIC ChangElectronics Semiconductor achieve sustained development and operations? In response, Cui Dong stated that from an operational model perspective, SMIC ChangElectronics Semiconductor will adopt a pure foundry model, focusing on the development and manufacturing of mid-stage semiconductor processes. However, in terms of market strategy, it will pursue a diversified approach by diversifying both its silicon wafer sources and its customer base.

On the one hand, SMIC Changdian Semiconductor will take over SMIC International’s silicon wafer processing business and supply the processed wafers directly to Changdian Technology, thereby providing a one-stop service that fully meets customer needs. On the other hand, SMIC Changdian Semiconductor will also open its doors to accept silicon wafer processing services from other front-end manufacturers; the processed wafers will then be supplied to other reputable back-end packaging and testing companies. For example, SMIC Changdian Semiconductor’s 14-nanometer bump-processing products are sourced from other leading chip fabrication facilities.

“In this way, SMIC Changdian Semiconductor can not only provide customers with the most convenient supply-chain solutions but also enable them to flexibly select and organize their supply chains according to their varying business needs. The company provides wafer fabrication services for world-class chip design firms as well as mid-stage wafer manufacturing and testing services for leading domestic chip design companies, thereby meeting the diverse needs of its customers. From the very beginning, the company’s mission has been to integrate China’s highest-quality industrial resources and build an advanced integrated circuit chip manufacturing supply chain, thereby improving the industry ecosystem and elevating the overall industry standard,” said Cui Dong.

Currently, China is seeing a concentration of semiconductor manufacturing resources. Cities such as Beijing, Shanghai, and Nanjing are emerging as front-end integrated circuit manufacturing hubs. Meanwhile, in Jiangyin, following Changdian Technology’s acquisition of StarCore Golden Peak, and with the large-scale production capacity now established by SMIC-Changdian Semiconductor, coupled with the launch of Phase II of its project, a comprehensive base integrating both mid- and back-end manufacturing is taking shape.

“In the future, SMIC Changdian Semiconductor can fully leverage its strategic location in the heart of the Yangtze River Delta region to establish synergies with both upstream and downstream companies, thereby building a streamlined and highly efficient advanced integrated circuit chip manufacturing industrial chain characterized by a ‘two-point, one-line’ model, and providing international and domestic customers with the most effective ‘one-stop service’,” said Cui Dong.