AsianFin  – China’s first domestically developed commercial electron-beam lithography (EBL) machine, named Xizhi, has entered application testing, marking a major milestone for the country’s quantum chip research.

The precision of Xizhi now rivals that of leading international EBL equipment, giving Chinese researchers a “homegrown carving tool” for quantum chip development.

The unveiling took place at Zhejiang University’s Yuhang Quantum Research Institute, where teams worked diligently around the cabinet-sized device during testing. Real-time parameters flashed continuously on the machine’s electronic display as engineers monitored its performance.

“This is not an ordinary machine,” said a team leader at the institute. “It is a ‘nano brush’ capable of carving an entire city map on a single human hair.”

Developed in-house by the institute with support from provincial key laboratories, the next-generation 100kV EBL system Xizhi has officially entered the market, providing domestic capabilities previously dependent on foreign technology.

The launch of Xizhi is expected to accelerate China’s progress in quantum computing and microchip manufacturing, reducing reliance on imported lithography tools for cutting-edge chip fabrication.