This New Photolithography Machine Can Give A Fillip To Russia's Arms Manufacturing Efforts, Here's All About It

In a major development supporting Russia's weapons production efforts for the Ukraine war, a photolithography machine capable of making chips of 350nm size has been developed in Russia.

The machine is undergoing trials and testing in Zelenograd, close to Moscow.

According to experts, this machine is almost three decades behind the world. For comparison, Intel's Pentium processors, Pentium MMX, and Pentium Pro were made using 350nm technology in 1995 and 1997.

In fact, two contract manufacturers in Russia already manufacture chips of sizes between 90nm to 250nm. It is unclear whether this photolithography machine will be commercially used to make chips or if it is just a technology demonstrator, with learnings from it to be used to develop and manufacture new machines that can be used to manufacture chips below 350nm.

When the war began in 2022, Western powers led by the US imposed sanctions on Russia, making it harder for the Russians to source advanced, cutting-edge chips to make guidance systems for missiles and bombs. There were rumours that Russia might be scavenging chips from dishwashers and washing machines to use them in missiles and bombs.

However, from 2023 onwards, the Russian economy has been, to the surprise of western powers, extremely resilient against sanctions.

They have since 2022 reached pre-war production levels and are easily able to source chips from neutral countries, using third-party intermediaries.

Various consumer electronics and computer chips are also being sourced by Russia, keeping the production line running. If the new photolithography machine goes into production, it will surely help Russia in increasing its weapons production.