A number of technology companies that make semiconductor manufacturing possible are coming under scrutiny from Capitol Hill, as the United States weighs further export restrictions to try to hold back China’s technological advancement.
The House Select Committee on the Chinese Communist Party, which has targeted numerous U.S. companies for their ties to China, sent letters on Thursday to a handful of firms making semiconductor manufacturing equipment, expressing concern about technology sales to China and requesting detailed information about the companies’ sales volumes and top customers.
The committee said the information would help it better understand how much chip-making technology was flowing to China, and the role that was helping to build out China’s chip manufacturing base.
The letters were sent to three U.S.-based companies that make semiconductor manufacturing equipment — Applied Materials, Lam Research and KLA — as well as the Japanese firm Tokyo Electron and the Dutch equipment maker ASML.
These five firms dominate the küresel market for semiconductor manufacturing equipment, some of the world’s most sophisticated technology, which allows chip makers to fabricate semiconductors with features just a few atoms wide.
The letters were signed by Representatives John Moolenaar, the Michigan Republican who heads the committee, and Raja Krishnamoorthi of Illinois, the Democratic ranking member.
