Looking at ZTE's Future in the History of the Development of Japanese Chips: The Country of Asian Chip Pioneers

Japanese chip development distance

The rise of the early 1970s

In the early 1970s, Japan's semiconductor industry as a whole was more than 10 years behind the United States. In the mid-1970s, Japanese local semiconductor companies were severely affected by two things. One thing is that Japan was forced to open its domestic computer and semiconductor markets in 1975 and 1976 under pressure from the United States; The other thing is that IBM developed a new high-performance computer called FutureSystem (F/S) that uses a one-megabyte dynamic random memory that is far beyond the level of Japanese technology. From 1976 to 1979, under the guidance of the government, Japan began to implement the landmark, VLSI Joint Portfolio Technology Innovation Project (VLSI). The project is led by the Japanese Ministry of Industry and Commerce, with Hitachi, Mitsubishi, Fujitsu, Toshiba, and Japan Electric as the backbone. It has joined the Electric Technology Laboratory (EIL) of the Japanese Ministry of Industry and Technology, and the Institute of Electronic Technology of the Japan Institute of Industrial Technology. Institute and Computer Research Institute, A total of 72 billion yen was invested to make breakthroughs in the core common technologies of the semiconductor industry.

The VLSI project is an important practice for the integration of Japan's "official production" and will compete with each other's calculations.

The research talents of the machine companies and the Institute of Electronic Technology Comprehensive Research under the Ministry of General Production and Production have organized research work together, not only focusing on the advantages of talents but also promoting mutual exchanges and mutual inspiration between computer companies that are usually technically non-open to each other. It has promoted the improvement of semiconductor and integrated circuit technology in the country provided a platform for the further development of Japanese semiconductor companies and made Japan's technology level in the field of Microelectronics parallel to that of the United States. In the four years of implementation of the project, a total of more than 1,000 patients were obtained, which greatly improved the VLSI production technology of member companies. Japanese companies used this to seize the lead in the VLSI chip market. At the same time, the government has also provided strong policy support. The Japanese government promulgated the "Temporary Measures for the Revitalization of the Electronic Industry" in 1957 to support Japanese companies to actively study advanced US technology and develop their own semiconductor industry. In 1971 and 1978, the "Provisional Measures for the Revitalization of Specific Electronic Industry and Specific Machinery Industry" and the "Provisional Measures for the Revitalization of Specific Machinery Information Industry" were promulgated, further consolidating the development of the Japanese information industry with semiconductors as its core.

The glory of the mid-1980s

The rise of the Japanese semiconductor industry is based on memory, mainly DRAM(Dynamic Random Access Memory). In 1963, Japan Electric Corporation(NEC) obtained the authority of PlanarTechnology from Fairchild Corporation in the United States. The Japanese government asked NEC to share the technology it will acquire with other domestic manufacturers. With the introduction of this technology, Japanese NEC, Mitsubishi, and Kyoto Electric began to enter the semiconductor industry. The development of the Japanese semiconductor industry began. By the 1980s, DRAM demand had soared thanks to the rapid development of the Japanese automotive industry and the global large computer market. At the time, Japan had already achieved technological leadership in DRAM. At this time, Japanese companies, with their large-scale production technology, achieved advantages in cost and reliability and quickly penetrated the US market through a low-cost promotion competition strategy. It quickly replaced the United States as the main supplier of DRAM worldwide. With the development of Japanese semiconductors, the world market quickly shuffled. By 1989, the market share of Japanese chips in the world reached 53 %, the United States was only 37 %, Europe accounted for 12 %, South Korea 1 %, and other regions 1 %. In the 1980s, the Japanese semiconductor industry occupied an absolutely dominant position in the international market. As of 1990, Japanese semiconductor companies accounted for six of the top ten in the world, 12 of the top 20, and Japanese semiconductors reached their peak.

The decline of the mid-to-late 1990s

In the 1990s, there was a technological revolution in the United States centered on Downing, and new information and communication devices represented by PCs developed rapidly. However, Japan is not sufficiently prepared in this area. At the same time, Japan's technical advantages in DRAM have gradually lost, and cost advantages have also been replaced by South Korea, Taiwan, and other places. PC replaced the mainframe as the dominant product in the computer market and became the main application downstream of DRAM. Unlike the high requirements of the mainframe for DRAM quality and reliability(25 years of reliability assurance), PC's main appeal to DRAM is converted to low prices. The technical threshold of DRAM is not high. South Korea, Taiwan, and other places have mastered core technologies through technology introduction, and through labor cost advantages, they quickly replaced Japan as a major supplier. In 1998, South Korea replaced Japan and became the largest producer of DRAM. The global DRAM industry center was transferred from Japan to South Korea.

Afterward, South Korea continued to maintain the status of a major producer of DRAM, while developing SOCs for digital television, mobile phones, etc.. By increasing investment, Taiwan has built world-class Silicon Foundry companies, TSMC and uec, and developed a new semiconductor manufacturing model. At the same time, it has actively developed and developed, and it can already go hand in hand with Japan in some cutting-edge technologies. At this stage, the variety of Japanese semiconductor products is relatively single and the product added value is low; At the same time, it did not keep up with the world technology trend. The Japanese semiconductor industry was hit hard at this stage. As of 2000, Japan's DRAM share has dropped to less than 10 %.

Transformation and development in the 21st century

All other Japanese semiconductor manufacturers outside Elpida have withdrawn from the general DRAM field and concentrated resources into areas such as system integration chips with high added value. In 2000, NEC Hitachi's DRAM department merged to establish Elpida. Toshiba sold its factory in the United States in 2002. In 2003, Elpida merged Mitsubishi Electric's memory department. However, Elpida declared bankruptcy in 2012 and was acquired by Micron in 2013, marking Japan's complete elimination in the DRAM competition. The country has reopened three larger "maternity school" projects-MIRAI, ASUKA and HALCA. The three projects were all started in 2001. The world-class ultra-clean room(SCR) of the Institute of Industrial Technology and Technology was used as the R&D room. The "ASUKA" project was jointly funded by NEC, Hitachi, Toshiba, and other 13 semiconductor manufacturers. 70 billion yen, the time is 2001-2005, It mainly develops semiconductor manufacturing with an electrical circuit width of 65 nanometers.

The "MIRAI" project took place from 2001 to 2007. It was invested by the Ministry of Economy and Production of Japan for 30 billion yen. It was jointly studied by research institutes of 25 companies and research laboratories of 20 universities. In addition to the research on practical manufacturing technology, the "HALCA" project was conducted. Further research is needed on high-speed, energy-efficient technologies. These three projects are coordinated and complementary from principle, basic technology, and practical technology to mass production technology. In addition, the Japanese government has also implemented the SOC Basic Technology Development Project(ASPLA) to further develop the results of previous project research.

As the world's largest producer of semiconductor materials, Japan's domestic consumption of semiconductor materials accounted for 22 % in 2014, and Japan is also the world's leading exporter of semiconductor materials. Most semiconductor materials are exported to other countries in the Asia-Pacific region. At present, although the semiconductor industry has begun its third transfer, it has gradually shifted to areas with more productive advantages, mainly in China.

Although the Japanese have committed inexcusable crimes against our country in history, Japan's scientific and technological development, especially the development of microchips, is something we should learn from and learn from in the face of the development and development of new technologies. It is our current technology companies should work together to build.

The Enlightenment of Japanese Chip Development to China

First, develop overseas research and development

During the 1980s, Japanese semiconductor manufacturers established R&D bases abroad and established a good trust relationship with large users in the United States through joint development. However, in the late 1990s, with the decline in the industry landscape, Japanese semiconductor companies began to integrate and revoke foreign R&D bases. On the one hand, the technology level began to be overtaken by the emerging market, and on the other hand, the trust relationship with major US customers was also damaged. It has further reduced the international market share of Japanese semiconductor companies. Japanese semiconductor materials companies have maintained this fine tradition of overseas R&D and cooperative R&D, maintained technological leadership and this trust relationship, so Japanese semiconductor materials companies still occupy a larger share of the international market so far.

Second, adapt to market trends and make timely transformation and development

The IDM model used by Japanese semiconductor companies in the past, but after entering the 1990s, the Fabless + Sound model was more suitable for the development of the world semiconductor industry, and Japan did not make a timely transition from the traditional IDM model to lightning. The Japanese response to the entire technology industry is still very fast. When the industry needs to be transformed, it will decisively transform. Such a business model that conforms to the trend of the times will not be eliminated or eliminated. Is an invisible motivator for the entire industry.

Third, the government should increase support and pay more attention to the training of talents

China's semiconductor materials industry can catch up with the introduction of foreign advanced technology in the early stages of development, but from the perspective of long-term development, it still needs to learn the principle of independent research and development and independent production of Japanese semiconductor companies. With the government as the leading force, enterprises and research institutions jointly study, attack large-scale basic research projects, develop key technologies, expand the proportion of semiconductor material products with independent intellectual property rights, and provide a platform for the development of enterprises in the industry. After each enterprise cooperates in the development of key technologies, each enterprise will commercialize its own.

After years of investment, research and development, technology and the accumulation of talented people, Japan has a strong voice in the upper reaches of the industry, and there are no shortcuts to being strong. Our country must also absorb advanced experience and ideas, and do a solid job in every link. Only then can we truly get the level of equipment and materials up and get rid of the control of the major countries and truly achieve China's manufacturing, made in China!

The page contains the contents of the machine translation.