Beyond lithography: Chinese chip toolmaker achieves wafer polishing breakthrough

Chinese chip-tool developers continue to make technical progress, with the latest breakthrough in wafer polishing – a critical manufacturing step that flattens and smooths silicon discs – even as the industry remains heavily dependent on foreign suppliers for more complex manufacturing procedures. Hwatsing Technology, China’s leading producer of chemical mechanical polishing equipment, announced a new metrology system for six-inch wafers on Thursday. The ultra-precise measurement is designed to...