RBCT Chapter 180 The Tide
Chapter 180 The Tide
Wednesday, December 6th.
Shenzhen, Nanshan District, Vilan Microsystems Headquarters.
Three documents were spread out on Lin Wei's office desk, each of which had been sent overnight after yesterday's technical sharing session.
The first document came from Suzhou Nanomicro Sensing, alliance number 007. The title is "Letter of Intent on Deepening Cooperation in 300mm Wafer-Level Packaging".
The second document comes from Wuxi Huaxin Microelectronics, alliance number 015. Its title is "Memorandum of Understanding (Draft) on Packaging Capacity Sharing".
The third application came from Dongguan Jingce Semiconductor, alliance number 021. The title was more direct: "Application for Monthly MEMS Packaging Capacity of 200 Million Units".
Lin Wei arranged the three documents in chronological order. The earliest one was sent at 11:47 pm last night, and the latest one was sent at 2:13 am this morning.
She picked up her phone and went to the alliance's work group.
Unread messages: 147.
Instead of reading each message individually, she scrolled directly to the earliest unread section. At 9:06 PM on December 5th, Zhang Kai, CTO of Suzhou Nanomicro Sensing, was the first to send a message:
"Mr. Lin, our team attended the entire sharing session today. We need time to digest the data on 300mm, but one thing is immediately clear—we are willing to open up our packaging production line's spare capacity for unified allocation by the alliance."
At 9:11 AM, Chen Li, Vice President of Wuxi Huaxin Microelectronics, chimed in: "We are too. Our monthly production capacity can be allocated to 1.5 million units; we can discuss the specific schedule."
At 9:23 AM, Liu Yi, General Manager of Dongguan Jingce Semiconductor, announced: "2 million units, ready to begin at any time."
This was followed by a series of "+1" and "We can also evaluate."
Lin Wei put down her phone and picked up the calculator on the table.
The three companies together provide a packaging capacity of 550 million units per month.
MicroPort Sensors' December supply reduction: from 400 million units to 300 million units, a decrease of 100 million units.
Net effect: Not only did it completely offset the reduced supply of minimally invasive sensors, but it also created an additional production capacity of 450 million units.
She wrote a line of numbers in her notebook and then drew a horizontal line through it.
"One etching attempt," she said softly, "results in more than just data."
The landline on the table rang. She glanced at the caller ID—switchboard connection, outside line.
"Mr. Lin, Mr. Zhao from Hangzhou MicroNano Technology called to inquire about the process of joining the alliance."
"Turn around."
This is the third call this morning inquiring about joining the alliance. Adding to the three calls last night, six new companies have proactively contacted Vilan Microsystems in less than twelve hours.
After finishing the call, Lin Wei added another line to her notebook:
Alliance members: 23 → 29 (6 more to be signed).
She opened another notebook, which contained a draft of a tiered cooperation plan that she had compiled late last night.
Tier 1: Core Members (8 companies). Requirements: Annual procurement volume exceeding 5 million units, or provision of key production capacity/equipment. Benefits: Priority access to technology roadmap updates, participation in all stages of the annual technology sharing conference, and the highest supply priority.
Tier 2: Standard Members (14 companies). Conditions: Signing a standard cooperation agreement. Benefits: Obtaining standard authorization for published technologies, participating in public technical training, and arranging supply.
Tier 3: Observation Members (7 companies). Requirements: Newly joined companies, six-month observation period. Benefits: Limited data sharing, no participation in core technology sharing sessions, lowest priority in supplying products.
She added a parenthesis next to "core members" in red pen: (Su Chen needs to confirm the boundaries of technology sharing).
At the same time, Su Chen was in the laboratory.
On the computer screen in front of him was an open folder containing all the raw data from the December 3rd etching test. It included 47 files: a 3D topographic map of the white light interferometer, parameter logs of the DRIE device, and iteration records of the third-order correction model.
He was doing the final step of the data backup—packing and encrypting all the files and uploading them to the internal server designated by Lin Wei.
The encryption password is a 16-character random string that only three people know: Su Chen, Lin Wei, and Zhou Zhiyuan.
The upload progress bar reached 100%. Su Chen clicked "confirm," then opened QQ and sent a message to Zhou Zhiyuan:
"The data package has been uploaded. The server address and password will be sent via encrypted email. How far along are you in your thesis outline?"
Three minutes later, Zhou Zhiyuan replied:
"The outline is complete, six parts. Please check if the structure is suitable; I'll start writing the first part today."
Su Chen opened the attachment.
Thesis Structure Outline:
I. Introduction and Research Background
II. Theoretical Basis of the Equivalent Thermoelastic Approximation Method
III. Mathematical Derivation of the Third-Order Extension
IV. 250mm Experimental Verification
V. 300mm Experimental Verification
VI. Discussion and Outlook
After reading it, Su Chen replied, "The structure is fine. I'll write Part Six."
Then he posted another message: "Be careful not to cite too much Bosch literature in Part Four."
Zhou Zhiyuan: "?"
Su Chen: "The more of their literature we cite, the easier it is for them to reverse-engineer our technical path. For the 250mm section, just cite the necessary data; for the 300mm section, only cite our own data."
Zhou Zhiyuan was silent for about two minutes, then replied with a single word: "Understood."
Ten seconds later, he added, "When did you become so calculating?"
Su Chen did not reply to the message. He closed QQ and opened another file—the reserved plan for the second silicon wafer for trial etching.
The first of three 300mm silicon wafers was successfully etched, with results far exceeding expectations. The second and third wafers have not yet been used.
As originally planned, the second tablet was a backup, and the third tablet was a control group. Now that the first tablet was successfully used, the second and third tablets are temporarily unnecessary.
But Su Chen did not put them back in the warehouse.
He wrote a note on the document: "Second piece reserved: 400mm parameter extrapolation verification."
December 6th, 3 PM.
Stuttgart, Germany, Bosch MEMS Research and Development Center.
There were three people sitting in Muller's office.
Müller himself sat behind his desk, a printout of an email Stein had sent him the day before laid out in front of him. The email was short, but Müller had already read it three times.
Stein sat in the chair on the left, holding a marker, with a whiteboard next to him covered with technology roadmaps.
Sitting on the sofa to the right were two people—Professor Albrecht and Professor Günther from the Technical University of Munich. They arrived in Stuttgart yesterday afternoon and had originally planned to visit Bosch's MEMS production line today, but Muller changed his itinerary at the last minute.
"So your conclusion is," Muller put down the printer, looking at Stein, "that the gap isn't half a generation, it's at least a generation."
"Yes." Stein stood up, walked to the whiteboard, and pointed to the rightmost branch line. "This is Su Chen's technical route. The published papers only cover the first third of this line—the basic theory and experimental data of the 250mm process."
He drew a red question mark in the middle.
"This is his core strength: a third-order nonlinear modified model. None of the publicly available literature provides a complete mathematical derivation, only the results. I spent two weeks trying to deduce the process from the results, but without success."
Professor Albrecht adjusted his glasses: "You mean he deliberately concealed the derivation process?"
"It wasn't intentional concealment," Stein shook his head, "it's just that the derivation path of this model is unlike any method we're familiar with. I even suspect he used a mathematical tool we've never seen before."
Professor Günther's expression turned serious: "Are you sure?"
"Confirmed." Stein turned to Muller. "Mr. Muller, my suggestion of 'differentiated development' in the email wasn't just polite talk. If we follow Su Chen's path, it will take us eighteen months to two years—that's assuming we can completely recreate his third-order model. Su Chen, on the other hand, went from 250mm to 300mm in less than three months."
The office was silent for a few seconds.
Muller slowly began, "How's the progress at the Suzhou base?"
"Production was originally scheduled to begin at the end of the second quarter of next year," Stein replied, "but—"
"Move it forward to the end of the first quarter," Muller interrupted him.
Stein looked at Müller without saying a word.
Muller continued, "I spoke with headquarters this morning. The pace of change in the Asia-Pacific MEMS market has exceeded everyone's expectations. If Su Chen's 300mm figure is true—"
"It's true," Stein said calmly. "The 'Latest Results Presentation' session was added to the technical sharing meeting on December 5th. Twenty-three companies signed confidentiality agreements. There was no need to do this if the data wasn't genuine."
Muller nodded: "That's why the Suzhou base has to be built ahead of schedule. Not to catch up with Su Chen's technology, but to maintain our presence in the Asia-Pacific market."
He looked at Albrecht and Günther: "Professors, your tasks remain the same—but the direction needs adjustment. Don't try to replicate Su Chen's path; find our own differentiated route. Materials, packaging, applications—any dimension is fine."
Albrecht nodded: "Understood. But I need to see Su Chen's 300mm data."
"I can't see it," Mueller said. "It's a confidentiality agreement."
Albrecht paused for a moment, then said, "Then I need all the analytical data compiled by Stein."
"Okay." Muller looked at Stein.
Stein nodded and drew another arrow next to the red question mark on the whiteboard, pointing to the blank area on the right. He wrote two words in the blank space:
400mm.
"If his third-order model is correct," Stein said, "300mm is not the end. 400mm might yield even higher accuracy. This isn't about engineering optimization; it's about the logic of physics—the larger the size, the more accurate the model."
Muller stared at the "400mm" on the whiteboard for a long time, then said, "So our time window is shorter than we thought."
"Yes."
December 6th, 8 PM.
Su Chen's dormitory.
He had just finished showering, his hair still wet, and sat at his desk. On the computer screen was the first draft of the paper sent by Zhou Zhiyuan.
He started reading from the beginning.
The first paragraph is fine; it's a standard academic introduction that explains the research background and current bottlenecks of MEMS-DRIE technology.
The second paragraph cited four references. Su Chen frowned slightly, picked up his phone, and sent a message to Zhou Zhiyuan:
The second paragraph and the third quote should be deleted.
Zhou Zhiyuan: "Which one?"
Su Chen: "Bosch's 2019 paper on thermal stress compensation."
Zhou Zhiyuan: "Why? That paper has the highest citation rate in this field."
Su Chen: "Precisely because it has the highest citation rate, Bosch will focus on who cited it and in what context. If our introduction focuses too much on thermal stress compensation, it's tantamount to telling Bosch that our third-order model is related to thermal stress."
Zhou Zhiyuan remained silent for a minute.
"I'll change it."
Su Chen continued reading. When he reached the third paragraph, he paused and made a note on the screen:
"Don't use the word 'breakthrough' here. Use 'expansion.' We're not challenging existing theories; we're expanding their scope. Keep your tone even; don't give the reviewers any sense of aggression."
He spent two hours reading the first draft and made a total of seventeen annotations.
After making the changes, he glanced at the time: 10:13.
He opened his email and prepared to shut down his computer.
There is a new email in my inbox.
From: Akira Ishikawa.
Sender's address:
Su Chen's finger stopped on the mouse.
He recognized the name. Akira Ishikawa, University of Tokyo, a leading authority in the field of MEMS vibration gyroscopes. Among all the literature Su Chen had read, Ishikawa's papers appeared in the top five most frequently.
He opened the email.
The email body has only four lines:
Mr. Su Chen:
I have read all of your published papers.
I hope to communicate with you at your convenience.
Akira Ishikawa"
There were no pleasantries, no titles, and no organizational headings. The email address used was that of the University of Tokyo, not any corporate email address.
Su Chen stared at the email for thirty seconds.
Then he took a screenshot and sent it to Lin Wei.
"Mr. Lin, please take a look at this person."
Lin Wei replied quickly, clearly she hadn't gone to sleep yet.
"Akira Ishikawa. Professor, Faculty of Engineering, University of Tokyo. Ranked among the top three globally in the field of MEMS vibration gyroscopes. He was an external technical consultant for Bosch before 2018; his consultant contract was not renewed after 2018 for unknown reasons."
Su Chen: "He's using a university email address."
Lin Wei: "I noticed. It's not a Bosch email address, nor any corporate email address. This indicates that the email was sent on his own initiative and has nothing to do with Bosch."
Su Chen: "Are we going back or not?"
Lin Wei didn't reply immediately. About three minutes later, she sent a message:
What do you think?
Su Chen: "Return."
Lin Wei: "What should I say?"
Su Chen thought for a moment, then typed:
"Professor Akira Ishikawa, thank you for your letter. I would be happy to communicate with you after our paper is published. Su Chen."
Lin Wei: "Yes. I remained neither arrogant nor humble, and I didn't leak any information. No substantive content was revealed before the paper was published."
Su Chen clicked send.
He closed his email and glanced out the window. It was a December night in Shenzhen, the temperature was seventeen degrees Celsius, and the streetlights cast dappled shadows through the leaves.
He didn't think too much about it. Who Ishikawa Akira was, and why he was contacting him at this time, were things he could think about later.
Right now, there's only one most important thing—the thesis.
He turned off his computer and went to bed.