TechInsights Finds SMIC 7nm (N+2) in Huawei Mate 60 Pro

TechInsights, the authoritative information platform of the semiconductor industry, analyzed the new Huawei Mate 60 Pro smartphone in the last 24 hours. The Mate 60 Pro was expected to include a 5G application processor and SoC (system-on-chip) from HiSilicon, the Kirin 9000s.

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The team found evidence of SMIC 7nm (N+2) which represents a made-in-China design and manufacturing milestone for the most advanced Chinese foundry TechInsights has documented. Some of the highlights include:

• The Kirin 9000s die measured 107 mm², which is 2% larger than the Kirin 9000 (105 mm²). From various identifying features on the die, the team concluded the processor is manufactured by SMIC.
• Initial lab results indicated that this die is more advanced than SMIC’s 14nm process node but presents larger critical dimensions (CDs) than what TechInsights has observed for 5nm process.
• Additional measurements of critical dimensions (CDs) on the die, including logic gate pitch, fin pitch and lower back-end-of-line (BEOL) metallization pitches, the analyst team concluded the die has 7nm features.

“Discovering a Kirin chip using SMIC’s 7nm (N+2) foundry process in the new Huawei Mate 60 Pro smartphone demonstrates the technical progress China’s semiconductor industry has been able to make without EUV lithography tools,” said Dan Hutcheson, Vice Chair of TechInsights. “The difficulty of this achievement also shows the resilience of the country’s chip technological ability. At the same time, it is a great geopolitical challenge to the countries who have sought to restrict its access to critical manufacturing technologies. The result may likely be even greater restrictions than what exist today.”

“This also reinforces TechInsights commitment to speed and quality of analyzing critical industry advancements,” said Gavin Carter, CEO, TechInsights. “The TechInsights team moved at a lightning pace to ensure we can bring this insight to the market using our Ottawa, Canada based industry-leading laboratory and highly technical engineering team this type of deep dive analysis.”

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