On March 24, 2025, the Moscow-based Zelenograd Nanotechnology Center reported that it had completed the development of the first Russian photolithographer with a resolution of 350 nanometers.
Moscow Mayor Sergei Sobyanin reported on his Telegram channel, “There are fewer than 10 countries in the world capable of creating this critical equipment for semiconductor manufacturing. Now, Russia is among them.”
The Mayor noted that the Russian system is significantly different from its foreign counterparts. For the first time, a solid-state laser—powerful, energy-efficient, with a longer lifespan and a narrower spectrum—has been used as the light source.
Microchip Fabrication
Microchip fabrication involves creating billions of tiny electronic components on a wafer through a layered process. Lithography is the step that transfers a circuit pattern from a mask (a template) onto the wafer, enabling subsequent etching and deposition steps to build the chip.
Role Of Photolithography Machines In Semiconductor Fabrication
Photolithography machines (often referred to as photolithographers) are an essential prerequisite for microchip fabrication and setting up a semiconductor fabrication plant (fab). They are a fundamental component of the process, without which modern chip production cannot occur.
Photolithography machines are pivotal in microchip manufacturing, serving as the core tools for patterning the intricate designs of integrated circuits onto silicon wafers during chip fabrication.
For microchip fabrication, photolithography machines are not just one of many tools—they are the linchpin of the entire manufacturing process, determining a fab’s viability and technological reach.
Types Of Photolithography Machines
There are two types of photolithography machines – DUV (Deep Ultraviolet) and EUV (Extreme Ultraviolet) lithography machines.
DUV and EUV machines differ in their light sources and wavelengths, which directly impact the size and complexity of the features they can create.
DUV machines use excimer lasers—Krypton Fluoride (KrF) at 248nm or Argon Fluoride (ArF) at 193nm—to emit deep ultraviolet light.
EUV machines use a laser-produced plasma (LPP) system, where a CO₂ laser blasts tin droplets to generate 13.5nm extreme ultraviolet light.
Solid State Lasers
The photolithographer developed by Russia uses a solid-state laser, unlike DUV and EUV machines that use gas lasers.
Solid-state lasers have higher optical-to-optical efficiency with diode pumping (up to 20-30%), while gas lasers like CO₂ are less efficient (~10-15%).
Iran “Counters” U.S. B-2 Deployment By Flaunting Missiles That It Claims Can Breach THAAD & Patriot
A solid-state laser uses a doped solid (crystal/glass) as its gain medium, differing from gas lasers (gaseous medium)
Think of the gain medium as the “fuel” or “engine” inside a laser that invigorates the energy from an outside source—like a flashlight bulb or electricity—and turns it into the powerful, focused beam we associate with lasers.
Photolithographic Machine Manufacturing Countries
As mentioned by the Moscow mayor, there are fewer than 10 countries in the world capable of creating a photolithographic machine. They include
-
Netherland
-
Japan
-
United States
-
China
-
Russia
-
Turkyie
The Netherlands is the global leader. Its company, ASML, mass-produces DUV and EUV lithography machines for the global market. While other nations listed above have the capability to manufacture DUV (28nm and above) machines, ASML has a monopoly over EUV (7nm and below) systems.
ASML’s technology integrates components from a global supply chain, but the final assembly and innovation occur domestically.
Japan’s Nikon and Canon can both manufacture DUV lithography machines. Nikon produces systems at 28nm and above, while Canon focuses on less advanced processes.
Japan once competed fiercely with ASML but has not entered the EUV market commercially, focusing instead on DUV and niche applications.
By the 1980s, United States manufacturers like GCA Corporation, which could produce photolithography machines, started to fade away. Today, no U.S. company mass-produces standalone photolithography systems for commercial fabs.
However, U.S. companies contribute critical subsystems (e.g., optics, lasers) to ASML’s machines via firms like Cymer (owned by ASML). The U.S. excels in design and components rather than full machine production.
China has made great strides in photolithography but, due to export and IP restrictions, remains behind ASML. It has yet to field an EUV machine. However, Shanghai Micro Electronics Equipment Group (SMEE) has produced impressive DUV systems, such as a 193nm ArF scanner reportedly capable of 7nm-8nm processes with multiple patterning (announced around 2021-2023).
Will Boeing’s F-47 ‘KILL’ European GCAP & FCAS Programs As U.S. Could Export 6th-Gen Jets To Allies?
ASML’s EUV Dominance in Perspective
ASML’s current monopoly on EUV machines stems from decades of R&D, collaboration with firms like Germany’s Zeiss (for optics) and U.S. companies (for lasers), and billions in investment. EUV systems use 13.5nm wavelengths, requiring extreme precision (e.g., mirrors flat to 0.1nm), making replication by other nations extraordinarily difficult.
Nations with Microchip Fabrication Capability
While just three nations—the Netherlands, Japan, and China—have proven capable of manufacturing photolithographic machines, the number of countries capable of manufacturing microchips is steadily rising.
Nations that have operational semiconductor fabs equipped with photolithography tools, such as deep ultraviolet (DUV) or extreme ultraviolet (EUV) lithography machines, include
-
Taiwan (TSMC – the global leader which plans to hit 2nm by 2026)
-
South Korea (Samsung and SK Hynix. Samsung uses EUV lithography for advanced – 3nm – nodes)
-
United States (Intel, GlobalFoundries, and Texas Instruments)
-
Japan (Toshiba, Renesas, TSMC, and Sony)
-
China (SMIC)
-
Germany (Infineon and GlobalFoundries)
-
Netherlands (NXP)
-
Malaysia (Infineon and Intel)
-
Israel (Intel and Tower Semiconductor)
-
Singapore (Globalfoundries)
-
Russia (Mikron)
Russia has a handful of companies that run fabs using imported DUV machines. Russia’s main player, Mikron (based in Zelenograd near Moscow), can mass-produce chips at 90nm. In 2020, Mikron qualified for a 65nm process, but its output capacity is uncertain.
Russia wants 28nm local chip manufacturing by 2027 and 14nm by 2030.
Indian Fab Capability
India has a strong presence in chip design, with major companies like Intel, AMD, and Qualcomm having significant R&D centers in the country. However, it is starting from scratch in terms of fabrication.
India is in the process of setting up fabrication facilities capable of producing chips with 28-, 40-, 55-, and 110-nanometer technology nodes using imported DUV photolithography machines.
In January 2025, Union Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw said on the sidelines of the World Economic Forum in Davos that the first ‘Made in India’ chip will be rolled out this year.
Conclusion
While Russia’s upcoming mass production of 350 nm microchips may have some limited applications despite their outdated technology, EU leaders can take comfort in knowing these chips won’t even help Russia upgrade its washing machines.
Russia’s ability to manufacture a DUV photolithography machine is merely a baby step—hardly medal-worthy. But baby steps can turn into strides and, later, even leaps.
The Zelenograd Nanotechnology Center is pressing forward under a second state contract to develop a 130 nm resolution photolithography machine, with completion expected by 2026.
- Vijainder K Thakur is a retired IAF Jaguar pilot, author, software architect, entrepreneur, and military analyst.
- VIEWS PERSONAL OF THE AUTHOR
- Follow the author @vkthakur
