The 2024 Integrated Circuit Key Materials Industry Cooperation (Dezhou) Conference was successfully held.

To optimize the key segment of local integrated circuit materials, strengthen the region’s competitive edge in the integrated circuit industry, enhance the agglomeration effect along the upstream and downstream segments of the industrial chain, and build a distinctive industrial hub, the Integrated Circuit Materials Industry Technology Innovation Alliance, together with the Supporting Industries Branch of the China Semiconductor Industry Association, jointly organized by the CPC Dezhou Municipal Committee, the Dezhou Municipal People’s Government, the Shandong Provincial Department of Industry and Information Technology, the Party Working Committee and Management Committee of Tianqu New Area, the Dezhou Municipal Bureau of Industry and Information Technology, the Dezhou Next-Generation Information Technology Industrial Chain Office, Shandong Youyan Semiconductor Materials Co., Ltd., Shandong Youyan Ais Semiconductor Materials Co., Ltd., Youyan Yijin New Materials (Shandong) Co., Ltd., and the Dezhou Semiconductor Industry Association, convened the “2024 Integrated Circuit Key Materials Industry Cooperation (Dezhou) Conference” on October 15–16 in Dezhou, under the theme “New Core Materials, New Quality for the Future.”

This conference brings together entrepreneurs and expert scholars from upstream and downstream sectors—including integrated circuit manufacturing, packaging and testing, equipment, silicon materials, and target materials—to discuss the global trends facing the semiconductor industry, the new challenges confronting the silicon materials and target materials supply chain, and emerging demands driven by technological and market developments. The discussions will focus on how to strengthen the overall competitiveness of local materials companies, fully develop advantageous clusters of integrated circuit silicon materials and target materials, continuously deepen industrial openness and cooperation, and build a top-quality application ecosystem.

Academician Tu Hailing of the Chinese Academy of Engineering, Academician Peng Shou of the Chinese Academy of Engineering, Mr. Yuan Longhua, former Deputy Director-General of the Raw Materials Industry Department of the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology, Mr. An Wenjian, Deputy Secretary of the Party Group and Deputy Director of the Shandong Provincial Department of Industry and Information Technology, Mr. Wang Baoli, Second-Level Inspector of the Shandong Provincial Department of Science and Technology, Ms. Shi Ying, Secretary-General of the Integrated Circuit Materials Industry Technology Innovation Alliance and Secretary-General of the Semiconductor Supporting Industries Branch of the China Semiconductor Industry Association, Mr. Zhu Kaiguo, Deputy Secretary of the Municipal Party Committee and Mayor of Dezhou City, and Mr. Chen Haiming, Vice Mayor, attended the meeting.

Mr. Zhang Chong, Chief Expert at the China National Building Materials Glass New Materials Research Institute; Mr. Li Jianfeng, Executive Vice President of Beijing Yandong Microelectronics Co., Ltd.; Mr. Dong Yong, Director of the Advanced Computing and Intelligent Technologies Center at the Central Research Institute of Leading Technology Group; Mr. Tian Xin, General Manager of Jiangsu Xinhua Semiconductor Technology Co., Ltd.; Mr. Lü Baoguo, General Manager of Youyan Yijin New Materials Co., Ltd.; Professor Pi Xiaodong, Director of the Semiconductor Materials Research Institute at Zhejiang University; Mr. Li Yang, Technical Director of Shandong Youyan Ais Semiconductor Materials Co., Ltd.; Ms. Liu Weili, General Manager of Shanghai Xin’anna Electronic Technology Co., Ltd.; Mr. Dong Fa, General Manager of Haoshi New Materials Nantong Company; Mr. Su Mohan, Deputy General Manager of Ningbo Chuangrun New Materials Co., Ltd.; and Ms. Wang Juan, Senior Product Manager in the Mass Spectrometry R&D Department of Beijing Leibertek Instruments Co., Ltd., delivered presentations at the conference. More than 300 representatives from integrated circuit-related enterprises in Shandong Province, member companies of the Materials Alliance, and integrated circuit-related enterprises from the Economic Development Zone of Dezhou City attended the meeting.

In his speech, Mr. Zhu Kaiguo, Deputy Secretary of the Dezhou Municipal Party Committee and Mayor, welcomed the leaders and guests attending the event. He also stated that Dezhou will seize the development opportunity presented by the nation’s accelerated promotion of comprehensive and full-chain application of next-generation information technology, continuously improve communication and cooperation mechanisms, strengthen information exchange and resource integration, and jointly cultivate new fertile ground for the development of the integrated circuit industry.

In his address, Academician Tu Hailing of the Chinese Academy of Engineering stated: As an essential component of a modern industrial system, the new generation of information technology centered on integrated circuits is not only a strategic high ground for international competition in the digital economy era but also a vital engine for fostering new forms of productive forces. Key materials for integrated circuits, serving as the foundation and driving force behind the integrated circuit industry, are core elements that propel technological innovation and industrial upgrading in this sector and guide its future development. Given the current complex and ever-changing international landscape, ensuring independent supply of critical materials for integrated circuits is of paramount importance for promoting China’s high-quality development in this field.

In his speech, Secretary-General Shi Ying of the Integrated Circuit Materials Industry Technology Innovation Alliance stated: Over the past decade and more, the Alliance has brought together leading enterprises in China’s integrated circuit materials sector. The overall technological level of the integrated circuit materials industry has continued to improve, corporate business scales have kept expanding, and the degree of mass production and application of these materials has steadily deepened. Secretary-General Shi expressed heartfelt gratitude to the relevant government departments, institutions, and all sectors of society that have long shown concern for and provided support to technological innovation and industrial development in China’s integrated circuit materials sector!

In his speech, Mr. An Wenjian, Deputy Secretary of the Party Group and Deputy Director of the Shandong Provincial Department of Industry and Information Technology, stated: Shandong attaches great importance to the development of next-generation information technology industries such as integrated circuits. We will thoroughly implement the deployment requirements of the national Ministry of Industry and Information Technology and the provincial Party committee and provincial government, and accelerate the building of an integrated circuit industry ecosystem characterized by high-end products, advanced technical services, and concentrated industrial clusters.

In his speech, Mr. Wang Baoli, a second-level inspector at the Shandong Provincial Department of Science and Technology, stated: "Dezhou enjoys a superior geographic location, boasts a strong industrial foundation, and offers a world-class business environment. We sincerely invite experts and entrepreneurs to visit, provide guidance, and invest in our region."

Mr. Zhang Chong, Chief Expert at the China National Building Materials Glass New Materials Research Institute, delivered a report titled “Innovative Chain for High-Purity Quartz Ensuring the Development of the Integrated Circuit Industry Chain.” The report pointed out that high-purity quartz is an essential raw material supporting key sectors in China, including semiconductors, new energy, and fiber-optic communications, and it is irreplaceable. To strengthen the close collaboration between the quartz materials sector and the semiconductor sector, we must focus on four key aspects: persistent innovation, industrial system development, leading roles of key players, and integrated multi-chain approaches.

Li Jianfeng, Executive Vice President of Beijing Yandong Microelectronics Co., Ltd., delivered a speech titled “The Semiconductor Silicon Wafer Market Is Improving—Domestic Manufacturers Have Great Potential.” He noted that, according to SEMI’s forecast, global demand for 8-inch silicon wafers will reach 7 million units per month by 2025, while demand for 12-inch silicon wafers is expected to hit 9.2 million units per month. Global semiconductor silicon wafer manufacturers are actively expanding their production capacities. According to data from Knometa Research, 15 new 300mm wafer fabs will come online in 2024, 13 of which will be dedicated to the production of IC chips. By 2025, an additional 17 fabs are expected to begin operations, and by 2027, the number of operational 300mm wafer fabs will exceed 230. Although major international semiconductor silicon wafer companies have already launched their expansion plans, their projected capacity in the long term still won’t fully meet the growing demand for semiconductor silicon wafers from chip manufacturers worldwide. As a result, China’s domestic semiconductor silicon wafer industry is poised to enter a period of rapid development.

In his report titled “Vertical Integration: Building the Future Together—A New Landscape for the LiDAR Industry,” Director Dong Yong from the Advanced Computing and Intelligent Technologies Center of the Central Research Institute at Leading Technology Group stated: As the core sensor for intelligent driving, in-vehicle LiDAR is experiencing explosive growth. Through vertical integration, Leading Technology Group has achieved independent control over key technologies—from rare and scattered metals to high-end LiDAR systems—and has significantly enhanced both product performance and reliability. At the same time, we will conduct an in-depth analysis of the in-vehicle LiDAR market and provide a forward-looking perspective on its future development trends.

Mr. Tian Xin, General Manager of Jiangsu Xinhua Semiconductor Technology Co., Ltd., delivered a report titled “Research on High-Purity Semiconductor Silicon Materials: Ensuring Supply of Raw Materials to Support Advanced Manufacturing Processes.” In his presentation, he pointed out that electronic-grade polysilicon, as the foundational raw material for the integrated circuit industry, plays a crucial role in ensuring the secure development of China’s integrated circuit industry. With the rapid growth of China’s domestic electronic-grade polysilicon sector, various technological bottlenecks have been gradually overcome, and significant progress has been made in achieving domestic substitution. However, advancements in downstream chip manufacturing processes are now placing new demands on raw materials. Cutting-edge products such as ultra-high-purity polysilicon have become areas urgently requiring breakthroughs. Consequently, technological trends in the industry are shifting toward advanced approaches—including ultra-trace impurity detection, raw material purification, silicon surface treatment, and even control over crystal particle size. Faced with the pressing need for technological breakthroughs and the relatively weak industrial and theoretical research foundation, China’s electronic-grade polysilicon industry must seek more efficient industrial development models to lay a solid foundation for the rapid advancement of the entire industry chain.

In his report titled “Research and Industrialization of Ultra-High-Purity Metal Targets for Advanced Integrated Circuits,” Mr. Lü Baoguo, General Manager of Youyan Yijin New Materials Co., Ltd., pointed out that as advanced manufacturing processes continue to advance, the market demand for high-performance logic chips and high-bandwidth memory chips remains robust. Consequently, sputtering targets used in high-end chips are evolving toward higher purity and greater precision. The sputtering target industry is currently undergoing a period of rapid change and intense competition. He provided an overview of the integrated circuit manufacturing process flow, development trends, and application scenarios for key materials used in integrated circuits. In particular, he focused on the core technologies related to critical products such as copper and copper alloys, tantalum, cobalt, nickel-platinum, and tungsten targets—essential for advanced-process logic chips, memory chips, and three-dimensional integration. Additionally, he offered recommendations on the challenges and key areas requiring focused research and development in China’s ultra-high-purity sputtering target industry, covering aspects such as independent R&D, technology transfer, and large-scale production.

General Manager Lü Baoguo’s on-site report

In his report titled “Growth and Processing of Semiconductor Silicon Carbide Single Crystals,” Director Pi Xiaodong from the Institute of Semiconductor Materials at Zhejiang University stated: As a semiconductor material, silicon carbide boasts advantages such as a wide bandgap, high critical electric field strength, high electron saturation drift velocity, high thermal conductivity, and excellent chemical stability, giving it distinct advantages in applications involving high power, high temperatures, and intense radiation. After years of development, substrate wafers made from single-crystal silicon carbide have begun to be commercially available. Currently, robust demand from new-energy sectors—particularly electric vehicles—is driving the large-scale adoption of silicon carbide.

In his report titled “Research and Industrialization Progress in Silicon Single Crystals for 12-Inch Advanced Manufacturing Processes,” Li Yang, Technical Director of Shandong Youyan Ais Semiconductor Materials Co., Ltd., pointed out that today’s electronic devices are advancing at an unprecedented pace in fields such as computing, storage, sensing, and display, thereby meeting the demands of application scenarios including artificial intelligence, autonomous driving, and augmented reality. At the same time, power devices are also making progress toward higher voltage withstand capabilities and lower energy consumption, thus enhancing their capacity for energy storage and management. Consequently, the requirements for silicon substrates in today’s most advanced 12-inch integrated circuit manufacturing processes have become even more stringent, covering aspects such as defect levels, oxygen content and impurity distribution, processing accuracy, and surface cleanliness. In recent years, with the rapid development of China’s 12-inch integrated circuit industry, domestic substrate manufacturers have been continuously pushing the boundaries of technical specifications, showing a strong trend toward aligning with internationally leading standards.

Liu Weili, General Manager of Shanghai Xin’anna Electronic Technology Co., Ltd., delivered a presentation titled “Research on Ultra-Flat Silicon Wafer Polishing Liquids.” She pointed out that as integrated circuit technology continues to advance toward higher technology nodes, greater density, and three-dimensional integration, the requirements for wafer surface flatness and surface quality are becoming increasingly stringent. Chemical Mechanical Polishing (CMP) is a critical process for achieving ultra-flat, high-quality surfaces, and polishing liquids are the core materials that significantly influence CMP performance. Moreover, the abrasives, pH value, and polishing promoters contained in polishing liquids all have a noticeable impact on the polishing rate of silicon wafers. In her presentation, Liu analyzed the key factors affecting wafer flatness and surface defects, and explored the relationship between metallic residues on the wafer surface and the composition of polishing liquids.

In his presentation titled “Progress in the Localization of SiC Coating Products,” Dong Fa, General Manager of Haoshi New Materials Nantong Company, introduced that Haoshi New Materials is currently focusing on silicon carbide coating technology, achieving stable, large-scale supply of carbonized silicon coatings for graphite substrates used in 12-inch silicon wafers. These products are being applied in integrated circuit manufacturing and the broader semiconductor industry.

In his report, “Development and Prospects of Low-Oxygen, High-Purity Titanium,” Su Mohan, Deputy General Manager of Ningbo Chuangrun New Materials Co., Ltd., stated: Ultra-high-purity titanium is one of the key foundational materials required for integrated circuit manufacturing. Over the past decade, as semiconductor process technology has continued to advance, increasingly stringent demands have been placed on the purity and gas content levels of high-purity titanium. However, titanium’s extremely high chemical reactivity significantly increases the difficulty of producing low-oxygen, ultra-high-purity titanium. In response to these market demands and challenges, Chuangrun New Materials has not only continuously expanded its production capacity but has also undertaken extensive technological research and innovation efforts. The company has conducted in-depth studies on the mechanisms of impurity ingress and developed effective control methods, thereby ensuring continuous improvement in technical capabilities and stable product quality.

Ms. Wang Juan, Senior Product Manager of the Mass Spectrometry R&D Department at Beijing Labtech Instruments Co., Ltd., presented on “Progress in Inorganic Element Detection Using Domestically Produced Mass Spectrometers in the Semiconductor Industry”: Labtech boasts extensive innovative experience in the field of inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry technology. The company has independently developed mass spectrometry products such as single quadrupole and triple quadrupole instruments and has smoothly advanced toward obtaining SEMI S2 certification from the International Semiconductor Industry Association. Currently, Labtech has launched the Model 5000 Inductively Coupled Plasma Tandem Quadrupole Mass Spectrometer—a cutting-edge achievement that provides semiconductor industry users with more precise and efficient solutions.

The attendees engaged in active interaction and communication, and the conference concluded successfully in an atmosphere of collaborative development between government and enterprises and enthusiastic exchanges throughout the upstream and downstream segments of the industrial chain.