Boosting China’s chip industry

In almost all electronic devices, there will be chips supporting their functions. Chips, also known as integrated circuits (IC), are the hearts and brains of electronic products.
几乎所有的电子设备都需要芯片来支撑其功能。芯片，又被称为集成电路，是电子产品的“心脏”和“大脑”。

In April, Tsinghua University officially inaugurated its School for Integrated Circuits, aiming to cultivate talents for the country’s IC industry and make indigenous Chinese chips.
今年四月，清华大学集成电路学院正式成立，旨在培养我国集成电路人才，打造中国本土芯片。

The new school will be the first in China to offer a specialized major in the subject. It will focus on developing top-level research talent. According to Chi Baoyong, a professor at the new school, the school will pursue breakthroughs in areas such as electronic design automation and semiconductor equipment. The school will invite experts from the business community to give lectures.
这将成为中国在这一学科首个专门开设的学院，致力于高层次人才培养。清华大学集成电路学院教授池保勇表示，学院将在电子设计自动化和半导体装备等方面寻求突破。学院将邀请商界专家参与授课。

Integrated circuits are key to the development of the information technology industry. However, due to the comparatively low technical level in IC development, for a long time, China has had to rely on other countries that are more advanced in these areas. This has made the sector a target for bullying for the West. For example, the US banned the use of chips made with American technology in Huawei products. Although China’s IC industry has been on track for high-speed growth in recent years, skillful personnel are badly needed. According to a white paper on China’s IC industry talents released in September 2020, only 511,900 people were working in the sector while in 2022, at least 720,000 such staff will be needed.
集成电路是信息技术产业发展的核心。然而，由于中国集成电路产业发展的技术水平相对较低，长期以来，中国不得不依靠其他在这些领域发展更为先进的国家。这就使得集成电路产业成为西方打压的对象。比如，美国禁止华为使用任何美国技术制造的芯片。虽然中国集成电路产业近年来已经进入快速发展期，但仍急需技术人才。据2020年9月发布的中国集成电路产业人才白皮书数据显示，该行业现有人才仅51.19万人，到2022年，人才需求至少达72万。

So the move of building Tsinghua’s new school comes at a good time, noted Caixin Global. A director with the China Semiconductor Industry Association surnamed Ren told the Global Times that more schools like Tsinghua University’s new school are likely to be established as China goes full speed ahead in its industrial upgrade. “The situation is promising,” he said.
因此，清华大学成立集成电路学院正当时，财新国际评论道。中国半导体行业协会任理事长在接受《环球时报》采访时表示，随着中国全力推进产业升级，中国将开设更多集成电路学院，“形势一片大好，”他表示。

In order to provide strong talent support to the country’s IC industry, integrated circuit science and engineering was upgraded to a first-class discipline in January 2021. And in the 14th Five-Year Plan, China lists semiconductors, used for IC, as one of the seven key technologies it will focus on.
为了给中国集成电路产业提供强大的人才支持，2021年1月，“集成电路科学与工程”被提升为一级学科。在“十四五”规划中，中国将半导体（用于集成电路）列为未来瞄准的七大科技前沿领域。

Zhang Yong, a hardware engineer from an IC company in Beijing, also said now might be a golden age for the IC industry in China and the young generation will get more opportunities to play to their talents.
北京一家集成电路公司的硬件工程师张勇（音译）也表示，现在可能是中国集成电路产业的黄金时代，年轻一代将获得更多施展才华的机会。

“For students, IC can be an interesting area to explore in the future,” Zhang said. He explained that making a chip is like building a house. “Starting from zero, engineers can complete a work totally by their own design. Since IC is still an emerging area, the work can be challenging and innovative, giving the designers a full sense of accomplishment.”
“对学生来说，未来，集成电路可能是一个很有意思的研究领域，”张勇表示。他解释道，芯片制造的过程就如同盖房子。“从零开始，工程师可以完全通过自己的设计完成一项工作。由于集成电路仍是一个新兴领域，工作可能会有挑战，要创新，这给工程师满满的成就感。”

以上文章内容选自《21世纪学生英文报高中版》，详情请见《21世纪学生英文报高中版》高一832期