经济新闻
芯片制造材料以降低中国对进口的依赖 2026-05-12
Shanghai Artificial Intelligence Laboratory and several research partners have achieved the stable production of krypton fluoride (KrF) photoresist resin, a key material used in chip manufacturing, in a breakthrough that could reduce China’s reliance on imported high-end photoresist.
A joint team formed by Shanghai AI Laboratory, Xiamen University, and Suzhou National Laboratory developed an AI-driven intelligent synthesis platform capable of producing high-purity, highly consistent, and highly efficient KrF photoresist resin, the Shanghai-based lab announced on May 11. The development could help ease supply constraints and lower material costs for China’s semiconductor industry.
Photoresist is used during the chip etching process to coat silicon wafers and block light, enabling the formation of designed circuit patterns. The high-end photoresist market has long been dominated by a handful of companies in Japan, Europe, and the United States, leaving China’s chip sector heavily dependent on imports, according to the statement.
The research team said the platform is based on Intern-S1, a scientific multimodal model developed by Shanghai AI Laboratory. The system can independently generate experimental plans, optimize parameters, and predict outcomes, significantly improving research and development efficiency.
Traditional resin material development relies heavily on manual trial-and-error screening by researchers, resulting in long development cycles and operational inconsistencies that make it difficult to meet the semiconductor industry’s strict batch stability requirements.
The platform also has physical execution capabilities that enable it to automatically control multiple reactors and workstations to complete experiments in a closed-loop process. This helps prevent contamination from oxygen, water vapor, and metal impurities caused by manual operations, thereby ensuring stable resin quality.
To accelerate commercialization, the research team has cooperated with domestic semiconductor materials developer Hengkun New Materials Technology on photoresist resin formulation preparation. Key product performance indicators have reached expected targets, and the material will next enter the customer verification stage, the AI lab added.
Source: Yicai Global
