On April 29, China sent into space the core module of its space station, kicking off a series of key launch missions that aim to complete the construction of the station by the end of next year. The integrated circuit (IC) on the Long March-5B Y2 rocket, which carried the module to space, was developed and manufactured by a company in Changzhou.

Located in Zhonglou District, Huacheng Changban Micro-Electronics was built on the Changzhou semi-conductor factory. For the past five years, the company has carried out cooperation with the China Academy of Launch Vehicle Technology to develop hybrid and application-specific ICs as domestic substitutes for imports.

In May last year, after the maiden launch of the Long March-5B carrier rocket, the company received a letter of thanks for its contribution to the rocket-use IC.

The requirement for the performance of such ICs is very high, which poses a challenge to the R&D work. The IC needs to operate normally whether under -40� or 85�? The IC manufactured by Huacheng Changban Micro-Electronics is small in size, but contains thousands of electronic components. Multiple IC sets manufactured by the company have served national key satellite programs, such as Fengyun meteorological satellites and Chang’e lunar exploration satellites.