US lawmakers seek to block China’s DUV lithography access

A group of bipartisan lawmakers in the United States has introduced legislation to tighten restrictions on advanced semiconductor manufacturing equipment, seeking to block Chinese chipmakers from accessing deep-ultraviolet (DUV) immersion lithography systems, as well as related parts and maintenance services.

The Multilateral Alignment of Technology Controls on Hardware (MATCH) Act is designed to coordinate export controls with US allies and partners, targeting a group of Chinese semiconductor firms and aiming to prevent the transfer of critical chipmaking tools supplied by companies such as ASML in the Netherlands. 

According to the proposed legislation, key provisions include:

• A blanket ban on the sale and servicing of critical chipmaking tools in countries of concern, unless the facilities are controlled by the US or its allies.
• Tougher restrictions on China’s major chipmakers, including ChangXin Memory Technologies (CXMT), Hua Hong, Huawei Technologies, Semiconductor Manufacturing International Corp (SMIC), and Yangtze Memory Technologies Corp (YMTC). The rules would limit exports, servicing, and technical support to these firms and their affiliates.
• A diplomatic track to align export controls with allies, with a 150-day deadline to reach an agreement. The Aat also allows for national security waivers if more time is required.
• Steps to ensure a level playing field, by extending controls to foreign-made equipment that uses US technology if allied countries fail to match US restrictions within a defined period.

The proposed legislation marks a significant escalation by explicitly targeting “all DUV immersion lithography systems, through-silicon via (TSV) deposition and etch tools, cryogenic etch equipment, and cobalt deposition equipment.”

While TSV and cryogenic etching allow engineers to drill deep vertical pathways through the silicon wafer to stack layers, cobalt deposition provides the high-performance metal wiring that connects those layers into a single, powerful processor.

The act would also prevent allied firms, mainly in the Netherlands and Japan, from providing engineering services to maintain or upgrade existing machines already operating in China. 

This matters because Chinese chipmakers still rely on older tools such as ASML’s NXT:1980i, which can be shipped and serviced. Semiconductor Manufacturing International Corp (SMIC) has used such equipment, alongside multiple-patterning techniques, to produce 7-nanometer chips for Huawei Technologies despite US sanctions.

The impact extends beyond technology into commercial and geopolitical areas, according to some observers.

If SMIC’s 7nm output is constrained, Huawei’s ability to supply domestic AI chips may weaken as Beijing urges firms to prioritize its products over US alternatives such as Nvidia’s H200. The measures also add uncertainty ahead of a planned meeting between US President Donald Trump and Chinese President Xi Jinping on May 14-15, potentially complicating wider trade and strategic talks.

Chinese media and commentators said the MATCH Act, if passed, would deal a significant blow to China’s semiconductor ambitions, while also underscoring the urgency of building domestic alternatives.

“Overseas supply channels for key semiconductor equipment will be further cut off, and even maintenance and servicing could be restricted,” says a Henan-based columnist writing under the pen name “Wu Mou.” “The biggest impact will be on Chinese chipmakers that depend on imported equipment to keep their production lines running.”

“The MATCH Act is clearly aimed at keeping China’s chip industry limited to older manufacturing processes of 14 nanometers (nm) and above,” he says. “Processes at 14nm and below still depend on imported lithography systems, and cutting off suppliers such as ASML and Tokyo Electron will inevitably disrupt China’s semiconductor manufacturing plans.”

He says tighter curbs would force Chinese firms to pay higher prices for foreign chips, potentially slowing domestic industrial development and leading to job losses in less competitive segments.

He adds that the potential expansion of US chip export controls reinforces a long-held view in China’s technology community, often associated with Chinese Academy of Engineering academician Ni Guangnan, that core technologies cannot be bought overseas and must be developed domestically.

Technological decoupling

In June 2023, ASML said it would require export licenses from the Dutch government for shipments of its most advanced DUV immersion systems, including the NXT:2000i and newer models. By January 1, 2024, the Dutch authorities had already revoked licenses for the NXT:2050i and NXT:2100i systems.

The Dutch company did not clarify the status of the NXT:2000i. If that system were also restricted, the most advanced DUV immersion tools available to China would be the older NXT:1980 series, which can produce 14-16nm chips in a single exposure and achieve 7-10nm through multiple-patterning techniques.

US lawmakers are pushing the MATCH Act to strengthen national security by closing gaps in export controls on semiconductor manufacturing equipment. The bill would require approval from both chambers of Congress and the president’s signature to become law. 

US Senator Jim Risch said the MATCH Act would prevent adversaries from undermining the US semiconductor industry and threatening national security, while Senator Andrew Kim said that beyond restricting advanced chips, Washington must also ensure China cannot develop the capability to produce such technologies itself.

“The MATCH Act shows the US is moving from a ‘neck-choking’ approach on a few advanced technologies to what amounts to a full body lock on China’s semiconductor industry,” says Zhang Guobin, chief executive of Eetrend.com. “If implemented, it would go beyond tougher export controls and shift from case-by-case restrictions to broader, system-wide controls.”

“The US is no longer satisfied with staying two or three generations ahead of China in the chip sector,” he says. “It is trying to use technological decoupling to keep China limited to mature nodes, such as 28nm and above, and block its path toward advanced processes and AI chips. This reflects Washington’s growing anxiety about China’s ability to catch up.”

Zhang says the new curbs would severely hit China’s semiconductor sector in the near term by cutting off maintenance support, noting that chipmaking equipment depends on continuous servicing from original suppliers and would otherwise enter a “chronic death.” He adds that restrictions on mature-node tools would curb expansion in automotive and industrial chips, limiting output, but China’s semiconductor sector will still become more independent over time. 

Some Chinese commentators say that the negative impact of the MATCH Act on China would be short-lived, as domestic firms have already developed DUV immersion tools capable of 28nm production and are expected to make further breakthroughs. They say Shanghai Micro Electronics Equipment (SMEE)’s SSA800 costs only one-seventh of ASML’s equivalent products. 

However, a Chinese writer under the pen name “Sumang Shanran” says there is still a long way to go before China can match systems like ASML’s NXT:1980, which was first launched in 2015.

He points out that:

• The SSA800 series uses a 193nm Argon Fluoride (ArF) light source but relies on multiple exposures, called self-aligned quadruple patterning (SAQP), to produce 28nm chips, making production more complex and costly.
• Key components still depend on imports, including Zeiss lenses and Cymer’s ArF light sources. While Beijing U-Precision’s dual-stage platform has improved positioning accuracy to about 1.5nm, it still lags ASML’s roughly 0.5nm in stability.
• Materials and upstream tools also remain a bottleneck. Domestic ArF photoresist from Jiangsu Nata Opto-Electronic Material Co Ltd has yields of around 60%, compared with about 95% for Japan’s Shin-Etsu Chemical Co Ltd.
• Shenzhen Qingyi Photomask Ltd can mass-produce 65nm photomasks but still relies on imports from Shin-Etsu for more advanced masks.

He says China may have to wait until around 2030 to launch a DUV lithography capable of producing 14nm chips.

Some Chinese media reports say SMEE has sold about 10 units of its SSA800 system, although others suggest the machine is still in the testing stage. On SMEE’s official website, the most advanced commercially listed lithography tool is the SSA600 series, which supports 90nm, 110nm and 280nm processes.

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Follow Jeff Pao on Twitter at @jeffpao3