[News] China’s Beijing E-town Files $13.9M Suit Against Applied Materials Over Alleged Plasma Tech Theft

With chipmaking tools at the center of the U.S.-China tech war, Chinese equipment maker Beijing E-town Semiconductor has sued U.S. giant Applied Materials for allegedly stealing trade secrets, seeking 99.99 million yuan ($13.9 million) in damages for violating China’s Anti-Unfair Competition Law, according to Shanghai Stock Exchange filings cited by Nikkei and Reuters.

The reports indicate that Beijing E-town, parent of Mattson Technology, claims Applied Materials named two of its former employees as primary inventors on a China patent. Nikkei notes the dispute centers on Mattson’s core plasma generation and processing technologies.

As Nikkei explains, Beijing E-town claims these undisclosed products were sold in China and is demanding that Applied Materials stop using its trade secrets and “destroy all infringing products.” The company is seeking 99.99 million yuan in damages, reflecting actual losses plus triple punitive damages under Chinese law, EETimes China reports.

Meanwhile, the company’s management says the lawsuit aims to protect intellectual property and maintain fair competition, with minimal impact on daily operations pending court judgment, as per EETimes China. However, the filing did not specify which machines are involved, Nikkei suggests.

According to Commercial Times, Beijing E-town states that utilizing high-concentration, stable, and uniform plasma for wafer surface treatment is one of the company’s key technologies. This technology is widely applied in the company’s dry resist removal (ashing), dry etching, surface treatment and modification semiconductor processing equipment, the report adds.

Notably, semiconductor equipment remains central to the U.S.-China tech war, with Washington restricting exports and blacklisting Chinese tool makers including Beijing E-town, as Nikkei highlights.

Beijing E-town acquired U.S.-based Mattson Technology for $300 million in 2016, gaining access to critical plasma etching and thermal processing technologies, according to Nikkei.

Amid a heated U.S.-China trade war, China accounted for 25% of Applied Materials’ Q2 sales—down from 43% a year earlier and 31% last quarter, the company’s data shows.

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(Photo credit: Applied Materials)