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155 Suhong East Road, Suzhou Industrial Park, Jiangsu Province, China 
WHAT ARE YOU LOOKING FOR?
In the realm of nanometer-level flattening, a small particle of aluminum oxide is becoming one of the key abrasives for China’s semiconductor industry. In the critical phase of chip manufacturing — chemical mechanical polishing (CMP) — aluminum oxide plays an irreplaceable role. This seemingly ordinary material is essential for achieving global wafer flatness, working through a combination of chemical etching and mechanical grinding to reduce surface roughness to below 1 nanometer, thus laying a solid foundation for subsequent lithography processes.
As China's semiconductor industry rapidly develops, aluminum oxide abrasives and CMP technology are evolving together, becoming a significant force supporting domestic chip manufacturing capabilities.
Technological Essence: The Core Role of Aluminum Oxide in CMP Processes
Aluminum oxide (Al2O3), as a vital abrasive in CMP slurries, occupies a key position in semiconductor precision polishing due to its high strength, hardness, wear resistance, and high-temperature tolerance.
Especially in the polishing of third-generation semiconductor materials like silicon carbide (SiC), aluminum oxide abrasives showcase their unique value. By utilizing nano-sized aluminum oxide abrasives along with effective additives, it is possible to achieve both high material removal rates and low defect rates in SiC substrate polishing.
In the CMP process, the particle size, shape, and distribution of aluminum oxide abrasives directly influence the polishing outcome. For hard materials like SiC, selecting abrasives with even higher hardness is crucial, while also achieving atomic-level (1 angstrom = 0.1 nanometer) flatness, which poses significant challenges for aluminum oxide abrasives.
Industry Rise: The Localization Process of China’s CMP Equipment
In recent years, China’s semiconductor CMP equipment industry has experienced explosive growth, with the market size increasing from 4.5 billion yuan in 2022 to 15 billion yuan in 2024, reflecting a compound annual growth rate of 82.6%.
This remarkable growth is driven by dual forces: government policy support and a strategy for domestic substitution.
Domestic companies, exemplified by Hwatsing have successfully broken through international technological barriers through continuous innovation, leading the way in the mass commercialization of 12-inch CMP equipment. By 2024, domestic CMP equipment accounted for 30% of the global market share, with local procurement exceeding 50%.
On the technological front, domestic firms have achieved stable mass production of equipment for 28-nanometer and above mature processes, with collaborative debugging for 14-nanometer equipment exceeding expectations. The Universal-H300 model from Hwatsing has entered the 14-nanometer production line at SMIC and begun verification for 5-nanometer processes, signaling that China’s CMP equipment technology is nearing international standards.
Market Landscape: From International Monopoly to Domestic Breakthroughs
As a leading enterprise in the industry, Hwatsing holds over 50% of the domestic 12-inch CMP equipment market, providing stable supplies to top foundries such as SMIC and Yangtze Memory Technologies.
Simultaneously, Acm Researchhas reduced consumable costs by 50% through stress-free polishing technology, focusing on the advanced packaging market; Yuhuan CNC is specializing in polishing equipment for SiC/GaN and other third-generation semiconductors, creating a differentiated competitive landscape.
The localization rate has surged from 3% in 2017 to 50% in 2024, showcasing the leap in China’s CMP industry.
Industry Chain Synergy: The Co-development of Aluminum Oxide Abrasives and CMP Equipment
At the upstream of the CMP industry chain, the localization process of aluminum oxide abrasives is also noteworthy.
High-purity aluminum oxide accounts for approximately 50% of the total demand for CMP polishing powders, but its manufacturing technology has long been dominated by foreign entities.
Currently, domestic companies are striving to overcome the bottleneck of high-purity aluminum oxide powder technology used in CMP polishing, aiming to break this constraint on the development of China’s semiconductor industry.
The CMP materials market holds immense potential, as polishing liquids account for 49% of global CMP material costs, while polishing pads constitute 33%, together making up 82%.
As a significant component, aluminum oxide polishing solution are continuously expanding their market share in response.
