The Kirin 9000S was built on SMIC’s 14nm node and uses “special techniques” to get 7nm performance
So when it appeared that SMIC was able to produce the 7nm Kirin 9000S chip for the 5G Mate 60 Pro, there was talk about tightening the sanctions against Huawei and adding some restrictions for SMIC as well. But now one researcher says that the Kirin 9000S chip might have been built using SMIC’s 14nm process node and “special techniques” were used to allow the chip to perform at a level consistent with 7nm silicon.
The Huawei Mate 60 Pro is powered by a 5G Kirin 9000S chip made by SMIC
- Building the chip didn’t violate the U.S. sanctions since SMIC could make 14nm chips before the ban even started.
- The Huawei Mate 60 Pro might not be as fast as thought.
- SMIC remains far behind foundries like TSMC, Samsung Foundry, and Intel as the three battle for process leadership.
Regardless of what node was used on the Kirin 9000S, SMIC will find it hard to get under 7nm
For SMIC to get under 7nm to 5nm or lower, it would need an EUV machine that uses extreme ultraviolet waves to etch even thinner circuity patterns on silicon wafers. Only one company in the world makes the $200 million EUV machine, and that is Dutch firm AMSL which is following U.S. restrictions and refuses to ship the school bus-sized machine to China.
The U.S. export controls are designed to keep China at a 14nm process node and remain a decade behind cutting-edge foundries. But if the Kirin 9000S is a legit 7nm chip, then China is only four years behind according to one report. The problem is that no one can say for certain how SMIC built the Kirin 9000S and neither the foundry nor Huawei is talking.