Chapter 233: Ha Gong Da provides funding, supports Qinghua lithography machine!

Now, which domestic university doesn't know Qin Miao's great reputation? Especially prestigious universities, everyone is sighing: such outstanding talent, how come they haven't entered their own university? Even Qinghua Daxue hopes to recruit Qin Miao such students, to lift the whole university up!

Even on his way back, President Shen was still thinking, if Qin Miao were from Qinghua Daxue, would we still worry about selling this lithography machine? Unexpectedly, Qin Miao actually came in person!

Engineer stood beside Qin Miao, feeling a bit embarrassed.

What's going on?

Qin Miao said, he has never been to Qinghua Daxue, doesn't know the faculty and students here, afraid of being beaten up, so he asked him to come and give an introduction; looking at it now, this is completely unnecessary!

President, teachers…… upon hearing Qin Miao's voice, they knew he had arrived!

Qin Miao also felt somewhat moved, his reputation spread so quickly! However…… the timing is just right; those domestic short-sighted fools, foreign merchants given a single chance to go abroad, have bought them off? Occupying positions without merit, they all deserve to be shot!

「Come, Comrade Qin Miao, please come in; do you need me to introduce the product? 」

「All right. 」Qin Miao nodded.

「Currently, our most advanced product is the automatic alignment step-and-repeat projection lithography machine; as the process continuously improves and silicon wafer diameter expands, this type of lithography machine has become the inevitable choice……」

The lithography machine is actually similar to photography; initially, it was a direct contact method, using an ultraviolet light source to expose, which transfers the pattern on the mask onto the silicon wafer, equivalent to leaving an imprint of the circuit on it; subsequent steps still require etching and so on.

Direct contact causes contamination and wear of the silicon wafer, with low process precision; later an indirect type appeared, adding a layer of air gap between mask and silicon wafer to avoid the problems of contact lithography, but the mask and silicon wafer remain the same size.

As technology advances, the silicon wafer process becomes ever more advanced, the mask can no longer be made that fine; at this point, the lithography machine needs to add a lens, projecting a large-area mask pattern onto a tiny die, a micron-level process, which this technology is almost essential.

One mask can produce only one die, etching a small piece onto the silicon wafer; meanwhile the silicon wafer diameter keeps growing, manually operating the projector or moving the wafer to transfer to the next blank spot to etch circuits is already too complex, so automatic alignment, exposure, transfer, and exposure again are needed, with everything automated.

In later generations, regardless of how lithography machines develop, aside from the Extreme Ultraviolet Lithography Machine needed for the most advanced few-nanometer processes, the majority of other lithography machines still use this principle.

「The worktable travel is 160 mm × 160 mm, it can process dies from four to six inches, the maximum lithography die area is 10 mm × 10 mm, the actual effective resolution can reach 1.25 μm……」

「Sounds like our lithography machine's technology is quite advanced. 」

「That's natural. 」 Professor Xu said: 「Our lithography machine has already reached the same level as the West's, those domestic factories……」

「They're blind, they don't want it, we do! We'll order five units, price is up to you. 」

Filthy rich! Engineer beside him sighed, having money is really great!

Professor Xu and President Shen exchanged a glance, both seeing delight in each other's eyes.

「Comrade Qin Miao, thank you for your support, we won't make money from you, we'll sell at cost! 」

Qin Miao instinctively wanted to shake his head—what cost price, that won't do; we need to give you more money, which also facilitates your later R&D. In the die industry, Moore's Law is a terrifying curse: once you enter this field, you must constantly R&D, R&D, and R&D again, never stopping.

But the next moment, he changed his mind again.

「Alright, that's settled; at the same time, we'll also provide funds to support your continued R&D of more advanced lithography machines, and the lithography machines developed from that R&D, we at Ha Gong Da will continue to purchase; as for other enterprises…… since they're so slavishly fond of foreign things, just don't bother with their numbers. 」

Ha Gong Da provides funds, develops new lithography machines; the fruits of this R&D naturally belong to Ha Gong Da as well! This theory is easily accepted, and Ha Gong Da not only wants to possess advanced die design and production capabilities, but also monopolizes upstream lithography machines; from now on, no one can squeeze into this track.

「If they come to buy, let them go to Ha Gong Da to find us, you don't have to face them. Moreover, even if superior leaders want to display the outcomes of later lithography machines, they still need our approval! This new lithography machine project is not funded by superiors, so they have no right to demand disclosure of the technology—hah, these guys are stupid and love saving face……」

Professor Xu felt an indescribable sense of relief; indeed, those leaders are truly stupid and love saving face—before, we couldn't say it, but now young people won't give those old-timers face!

Qin Miao's sentiment was not earlier, but in March 1991, the Capital held the first National Industrial Enterprise Technological Progress Achievement Exhibition; at that time, Qinghua Daxue's researched lithography machine had already iterated to the third generation, and was again placed as the most important industrial achievement in the main hall of the exhibition center.

After the exhibition, engineers from American and island-nation lithography companies asked questions up and down, raising many issues about the technology used on the lithography machine; even after the exhibition ended, many people still went to Qinghua Daxue to ask.

Not long after, both the island-nation and the United States had produced imitations of this type of lithography machine; indeed, in the lithography field, the West had once copied ours! At that time, our technology had already reached world-leading status.

Then came low-price dumping; after several rounds of R&D, Qinghua Daxue's lithography machines still couldn't sell, so the project totally fell through; Professor Xu switched to researching optical discs, and the Eastern die industry also fell into the vicious cycle of introducing technology only to fall behind, then introducing again and falling behind again.

When mentioning Qinghua Daxue's lithography machine project, countless people sigh, yet no one steps up to take responsibility! Vanity, slavish fondness for foreign things, lack of IP concept…… domestic lithography machines were ruined by those ignorant fools.

Now, Qinghua Daxue's new lithography machine is supported by Ha Gong Da's R&D, without taking a penny from above; you also shouldn't dream of using Qinghua Daxue's advanced lithography machine to prop up your image, becoming a stepping stone to wag your tail and fawn over foreigners!

Domestic merchants who want to import foreign junk, let them import it; in the end, they'll all be defeated by Ha Gong Da Microelectronics Company! Now there are so many semiconductor companies domestically—how many will be remembered in later generations? Better to shut down early!

「Comrade Qin Miao, you're right; in that case, the lithography machines we develop next will be affiliated under the name of Ha Gong Da Microelectronics Company! Ownership belongs to Ha Gong Da! 」 President Shen waved his hand.

That would naturally be even better!

「Comrade Qin Miao, what are your thoughts on the technical route for the next-generation lithography machine? 」 Professor Xu cared more about technology; moreover, he had heard that Qin Miao's technical skill was superb—there's nothing he can't do!