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标题: Jiexi Additive Tackles Semiconductor Equipment Components with 3D Printing [打印本页]

作者: admin 时间: 2026-11-4 20:10
标题: Jiexi Additive Tackles Semiconductor Equipment Components with 3D Printing
Nanjixiong introduction: While much of the industry celebrates consumer printer shipments, a small group is focusing on lithography machines weighing tens of tonnes.

A lithography machine contains more than 100,000 components, generally high-mix, low-volume, and extremely expensive. High precision, rigidity, low disturbance, strict temperature and atmosphere control, and extreme cleanliness confront traditional manufacturing with cost, lead-time, and physical limits.

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Printing's semiconductor applications previously remained peripheral, such as plastic fixtures or metal housings. Ordinary service providers typically specialize in only one or two processes, lack core design skills and semiconductor-grade process integration, and respond slowly.

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Specialists are beginning to address this difficult area.

In October 2026, Nanjixiong learned about Shanghai Jiexi Additive, a printing application company dedicated to semiconductor components. CEO Dr. Zhao Renjie, who left Shanghai Micro Electronics Equipment, SMEE, to found the company, demonstrated core lithography applications and an 89% component weight reduction.

What has this company done correctly?

Reducing Lithography Component Weight by 89%

Moving components such as dual wafer stages and reticle stages require exceptional motion accuracy. More weight increases inertia, control difficulty, and energy demand, while very high stiffness must prevent minute deformation.

Conventional CNC cannot readily create complex internal trusses while preserving extreme external dimensional stability.

Jiexi combines CAE simulation, topology or generative optimization, and printing.

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Topology-optimized lightweight mirror, metal printed.

In examples seen by Nanjixiong, a linear-motor mount lost 89% of its weight through metal printing and lattice design. An infill air-guiding block for laser-annealing equipment achieved 95% weight reduction. A silicon-carbide topplate became lighter while increasing structural stiffness by 42%.

These results reflect design-driven capability. Jiexi provides a complete workflow covering materials analysis, optimization, CAE/CFD finite-element simulation, printing, casting, welding, precision CNC, heat treatment, and surface treatment, rather than simply printing supplied drawings. Semiconductor customers pay for this turnkey integration.

Micron-Scale Challenges: Etching Showerheads and Lithography Stage Cooling

Fluid and thermal design are another critical concern.

Etching showerheads contain numerous micron-scale gas-distribution holes requiring smooth walls, uniform flow, and very low resistance. Conventional drilling in cleanrooms has long cycles and high scrap rates. Complex stage manifolds require many water and gas paths. Printed smooth curved channels greatly reduce resistance compared with drilled L-shaped right-angle networks and optimize flow structures through integrated fabrication.

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Front-end lithography WS CFC assembly, metal printed.

Lithography temperature control is exceptionally demanding. Jiexi demonstrated printed silicon-carbide cooling disks and motor water jackets for magnetically levitated stages. Complex internal helical and conformal cooling paths are difficult to make conventionally; printing enables them to maintain thermal stability during prolonged operation.

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Front-end lithography WS water-cooling board component, metal printed.

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Stage silicon-carbide water-cooling disk, ceramic printed.

Fast Delivery and Lower Cost: Plastic Parts in Three Days, 500 kg Blanks in Ten

Semiconductor R&D cycles are long and time is costly. Conventional tooling and prototypes take weeks, and changes can waste tens of thousands of yuan in mold costs.

Jiexi advertises delivery in under three days for ordinary plastic parts, under 14 days for small and medium metal parts, and under 30 days for large metal parts.

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Front-end lithography RH frame, wire arc metal printed.

For a large, complex RH frame, machining from solid was expensive. Jiexi used printing combined with casting for rapid blank production. WAAM also enabled delivery of an approximately 500 kg metal blank in ten days before precision CNC, sharply reducing cost and lead time. Some quoted components achieved 75% cost reduction.

Nanjixiong's Commentary

Domestic substitution of core semiconductor components involves breakthroughs in underlying manufacturing processes as well as complete lithography machines.

Consumer printing's growth stories attract attention, but companies embedded deeply in demanding industrial sectors, such as Jiexi, are significant to national manufacturing capabilities.

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Front-end lithography EN, WS, and RH manifold blocks, branch pipes, and extraction funnels.

People who understand semiconductor processes are using printing to solve their industry's problems. Earlier barriers included insufficient design, post-processing, and understanding of strict operating conditions. Mastery of design, simulation, manufacturing, and application across the chain is the real competitive advantage.

Semiconductor supplier validation is lengthy and barriers are high; one or two companies cannot transform it overnight. Nevertheless, using printing to reshape lithography interiors opens a route into domestic substitution in an advanced-manufacturing market worth hundreds of billions of yuan.

AI-translated from an article by Xiaoruanxiong on Nanjixiong, originally published on 2026-11-02. Text and images retain the original source attribution.
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