Thin film deposition is one of the three core steps of semiconductor technology. As one of the core equipment of wafer manufacturing, film deposition equipment accounts for about 25% of the equipment investment in wafer manufacturing, second only to lithography. According to the statistics of semi and maximize market research, the global semiconductor equipment market reached US $71.2 billion in 2020, of which the market scale of thin film deposition equipment was about US $17.2 billion. At present, CVD equipment accounts for the highest proportion among film deposition equipment, accounting for 64% in 2020; Sputtering PVD equipment accounts for 21% of the overall market. PECVD is the equipment type with the highest proportion in the film equipment, accounting for 34% of the overall film deposition equipment market.
Demand for domestic thin film deposition equipment driven by multiple factors:
\u3000\u3000a). China’s production line construction has greatly boosted the demand for domestic equipment. Under the background of trade friction, the demand for localization of semiconductor equipment has increased. Chinese wafer factories such as Changjiang storage, Shanghai Jita, Semiconductor Manufacturing International Corporation(688981) , Huahong, Hangzhou Silan Microelectronics Co.Ltd(600460) , Hefei Jinghe and so on have actively introduced domestic equipment in the process of new capacity construction, greatly stimulating the demand for semiconductor equipment in China.
\u3000\u3000b). The progress of chip technology and the complexity of structure drive the demand for high-performance film equipment. Take the evolution of CVD equipment as an example. In the past, it was mainly APCVD and LPCVD equipment. At present, the mainstream PECVD equipment forms high-density and high-performance films at relatively low reaction temperature, does not damage the existing films and the formed underlying circuits, and realizes faster film deposition speed. The application of HDPCVD, fcvd and ALD is expected to increase in the future.
\u3000\u3000c). The upgrading of the process drives the increase in the consumption of film deposition equipment. Taking Semiconductor Manufacturing International Corporation(688981) as an example, the average consumption of CVD and PVD equipment for a 10000 piece 180nm8 inch wafer production line is about 9.9 and 4.8, while the consumption of CVD and PVD equipment for a 10000 piece 90nm12 inch wafer production line can reach 42 and 24 respectively.
D). The increase in the number of stacking layers of 3dnand drives the demand for film deposition equipment. In the manufacturing process of memory field, the main method to increase the degree of integration is to increase the number of three-dimensional stacking layers. The number of stacking layers develops from 32 / 64 layers to 128 / 196 layers. Each layer needs to go through the film deposition process steps, giving rise to more equipment requirements. In the future, the breakthrough and capacity construction of 196 layers of 3dnand storage in the Yangtze River are expected to drive the demand for more domestic film deposition equipment.
The localization rate of film deposition equipment is estimated to be only 5.5% (according to the number and caliber of equipment). In recent years, the localization rate of China’s semiconductor equipment has increased rapidly, but on the whole, the manufacturing of China’s semiconductor industry still needs the support of a large number of imported equipment, and the localization is still at a low level. We have made statistics on the bidding of thin film deposition equipment for some major wafer manufacturing lines in China from January 1, 2020 to February 13, 2022. A total of 1060 thin film deposition equipment (PVD and CVD equipment only) were bidding by 6 manufacturers, and 58 Chinese manufacturers won the bid, of which 40 were won by tuojing Technology (mainly PECVD equipment), accounting for 3.8% of the Chinese market; Naura Technology Group Co.Ltd(002371) won the bid for 18 sets (mainly PVD equipment), accounting for 1.7% of China’s market. At present, only 5.5% of the films are deposited in China.
Investment proposal and investment object
We are optimistic about the semiconductor equipment industry and the field of thin film deposition equipment. We suggest to pay attention to:
1) tuojing Technology: lead the localization of PECVD and have the supply capacity of sacvd and ALD;
2) Naura Technology Group Co.Ltd(002371) : lead the localization of PVD and have the supply capacity of APCVD, LPCVD, PECVD and ALD;
3) Advanced Micro-Fabrication Equipment Inc.China(688012) : it holds 11% equity of tuojing and has formed a team to develop LPCVD and EPI equipment, accounting for most of China’s share in the MOCVD field of LED and mini led.
Risk tips
Technological innovation and localization are not as expected; Increased competition; Statistical error
