China has made progress in the automotive industry. But what about the experimental instrument industry, which is a hundred times more challenging than the automotive industry? Where has China reached in its development?
The localization substitution of scientific research instruments is by no means less difficult than chip manufacturing.
Authoritative data shows that China exports nearly 6 million cars globally each year, truly becoming the leader in the automotive industry.
However, as the world's second-largest scientific instrument market, China has to face the dilemma that the localization rate of high-end instruments is less than 20%. In contrast, in 2023 alone, China's import volume of scientific instruments reached as high as $16.98 billion, while the export volume was only $4.27 billion. In 2024, China still imported precision instruments worth $12 billion from the United States.
It seems that the gap between the automotive and scientific research instrument sectors is so huge.
Behind this, it has actually been a long and difficult journey for domestic scientific research instruments. Recently, on June 28th, Suzhou Bozhong Instrument Technology Co., Ltd., a subsidiary of Bozhong Precision Co., Ltd., held a press conference for China's first commercial 200kV field emission transmission electron microscope (TEM).
Everyone knows that scientific research cannot do without experimental instruments. What most people don't know is how significant this press conference is for the breakthrough and progress of domestic scientific research instruments.
"After five years of technological breakthroughs and repeated refinements, from the whole machine product to every key component, Bozhong Instrument has firmly grasped the core technologies of the entire chain in its own hands," said the general manager of Bozhong Precision Co., Ltd.
These words hide the long - standing helplessness of many researchers. In the laboratory, when a multi - million - dollar imported mass spectrometer suddenly malfunctioned, doctoral student Li Ming stared at the stagnant data curve on the screen and smiled bitterly. "The American engineer said it would take three weeks to come for repairs. I can't afford to wait for my experiment."
To put it bluntly, the scientific research instruments in our laboratories rely on foreign equipment. The question is, why has this become an obstacle that localization must overcome? How long will it take for China to win the battle in scientific research experimental instruments?
Why are there also "chokepoint" problems in scientific research experiments?
The "gossips" in the scientific world have finally reached the laboratory. Often, a seemingly insignificant experimental process involves a technological game related to the national fortune.
As the saying goes, laymen watch the excitement, while experts see the essence. In the eyes of laymen, the numerous bottles, jars and supporting devices in the laboratory are both ordinary and mysterious. They are ordinary because compared with industrial precision molds, the instruments in the laboratory seem simple. And they are mysterious because the public doesn't know that scientific research instruments, especially high - end experimental equipment, hide numerous little - known scientific problems.
Let's still take Bozhong as an example. As China's first commercial 200kV field emission transmission electron microscope, it is generally used for scientific research, observation and analysis. However, this "scientific eye" that can observe atomic structures has had a long - term localization rate close to zero since it was included in the list of 35 "chokepoint" technologies in 2018, and the market is firmly monopolized by international giants such as Hitachi and Zeiss.
As a representative product of high - end scientific research instruments, it is understood that the BZ - F200 transmission electron microscope is mainly used in integrated circuits, material research and development, and frontier scientific fields. It is suitable for research such as lattice - scale structure analysis, micro - area structure characterization, nano - scale morphology analysis, interface characterization, and composition determination. It is an essential tool for a country's scientific research.
Do these many professional terms sound complicated? Indeed, if such complex and valuable equipment cannot be independently controlled, the independent innovation of research results seems a bit unconvincing.
So, how difficult is it to develop high - end transmission electron microscopes?
Previously, the high - end transmission electron microscope industry was long monopolized by foreign instrument companies, and the core components were subject to foreign technological blockades. In particular, the independent production of core components such as thermal field electron guns, ultra - high - stability power supplies, thermal field electron sources, precision - machined lens barrels, and nano - scale goniometers are things that domestic manufacturers have hardly ever done before, and even if they do, they have to pass long - term verification in the laboratory.
Breaking down each of the above technology, production, and industrial chain links is like a long - march. In the view of the person in charge of Bozhong, "The path of entrepreneurship in the field of transmission electron microscopes is extremely tortuous. There was a lack of talent, technology, supply chains, customers, and funds. The team was once confused under so many difficulties. It was the firm belief in solving the country's 'chokepoint' technologies that brought the team to where it is today."
Up to this point, it is not difficult to understand that it is so difficult to develop a mirror device that helps scientists conduct research and observation.
However, the dilemma of transmission electron microscopes is just a small microcosm of the "chokepoint" situation of China's scientific research experimental instruments over the decades. Looking at the bigger picture, in any high - end laboratory, what meets the eye is the invisible technological monopoly of the West.
For example, the core electromagnetic force sensor of the electronic balance used for scientific research measurement and analysis has long relied on the patents of Mettler - Toledo in Switzerland. Another example is that the processing accuracy of the quadrupole mass analyzer in mass spectrometers needs to reach the micron level, and China has long lacked a foundation in this field. The high - pressure pump system of high - performance liquid chromatography is controlled by Agilent and Shimadzu, accounting for 90% of the market share...
These are just specific products of experimental equipment. In the field of consumables required for equipment R & D and production, the road to localization is still long. For example, the cost of one gram of chromatography packing is comparable to that of gold, and the localization rate of biological scientific research reagents is only 10%. American companies such as Thermo Fisher and Bio - Rad occupy 90% of the market. Sometimes, for the seemingly ordinary disposable plastic petri dishes in the laboratory, the import dependence on medical - grade polymer materials is as high as 85%...
It is impossible to list all the examples. The common problem they reflect is that scientific research experimental instruments involve fields such as cutting - edge precision machinery, electronic technology, and computer science. Looking back, in high - end fields such as mass spectrometry and chromatography, the share of domestic equipment only barely exceeded the 17% mark in 2024.
Xinhua News Agency once had a report about the direct experience of a medical research doctor. "In the laboratory, except for the refrigerator, which is domestic, most of the other equipment is imported. For example, commonly used mass spectrometers and nuclear magnetic resonance spectrometers are almost all American and German brands."
Some researchers even joke that although our country ranks first in the world in paper output, the 'eyes' and 'rulers' used to discover the truth are all borrowed." Against this background, China needs a group of enterprises that can challenge difficulties and forge ahead.
The Pioneers Breaking Through the Barriers
Fortunately, as Lu Xun said, "Since ancient times, we have had people who work diligently, people who strive heroically, people who plead for the people, and people who sacrifice themselves for the law - these are the backbone of China."
In the field of scientific research experimental instruments, there are no insurmountable obstacles. Some domestic enterprises have tried to solve the "chokepoint" problems, and there are already a number of representative products.
Hanbang Technology, which went public on the capital market in May this year, is one of them. When this chromatography enterprise was listed on the Science and Technology Innovation Board, it held a 39.2% share of the domestic production - grade liquid chromatography market. Its dynamic axial compression chromatography columns have been installed in the production lines of pharmaceutical companies such as Hengrui Medicine and Chia Tai Tianqing, and are even exported to Germany and India.
Don't think that Hanbang's breakthrough was easy. It at least started with a desperate effort over the past two decades.
When founder Zhang Xiaodong developed the first domestic dynamic axial compression chromatography column in 2005, most foreign enterprise engineers commented that "Chinese people can copy the shell, but they will never be able to make the core packing." Now, Hanbang's microsphere matrix bonding technology has obtained 53 patents, and the delivery cycle of consumables is 80% shorter than that of international giants.
How did Hanbang achieve this? To make a long story short, there is no shortcut in scientific research. One has to sit patiently and conduct research for decades. Once there is a technological breakthrough, there is hope, and that's where the confidence comes from. Fortunately, there are many enterprises similar to Hanbang.
For example, in the fields of mass spectrometers and chromatographs, Puyu Technology, a subsidiary of Focused Photonics, successfully launched the triple quadrupole ICP - MS/MS. As of 2024, among the 1241 quadrupole mass spectrometers owned by national universities, which were both an "exhibition hall for imported equipment" and a "testing ground for domestic equipment", this instrument performed excellently in semiconductor ultra - trace impurity analysis, breaking the long - term monopoly of foreign manufacturers.
The outside world doesn't know that this company jointly developed this measuring instrument with universities, and its prototype machine also lay dormant in the laboratory for ten years until the enterprise injected engineering capabilities to achieve industrialization.
At the same time, Hexin Instruments is also actively researching high - end triple quadrupole mass spectrometers and is expected to break through the key technologies within 5 years. Against the background that the United States occupies 60% of the market share, Chinese enterprises have at least taken the first step.
Another example is in the fields of spectrometers and electron microscopes. Domestic manufacturers are also starting to make great efforts. Among them, the X - ray fluorescence spectrometer of Skyray Instrument has been successfully listed as a national new product, and the market share of the direct - reading spectrometer of NCS Testing Technology Co., Ltd. in the domestic market has gradually exceeded 30%.
Although the import rate of equipment such as cryo - transmission electron microscopes and scanning electron microscopes is as high as over 90%, and FEI (now part of Thermo Fisher Scientific) and Thermo Fisher Scientific in the United States have been in a monopoly position. However, products such as the electron paramagnetic resonance spectrometer and electron microscopes of USTC Quantum have successfully entered high - end institutions such as the Chinese Academy of Sciences and Tsinghua University.
Regarding electronic balance products, "In the past, customers would immediately ask if there were similar international brand products. Now, they will seriously compare our technical parameters," said the relevant sales person in charge of Tianmei Scientific Instruments, showing the acceptance report from BYD. "They used our balance moisture meters and other products on the battery detection line, replacing imported products and saving 60% of the cost."
Many phenomena point to a conclusion that the market and users are increasingly accepting domestic products.
The Long - March of Chinese Scientific Research Instruments
Why are more and more domestic scientific research instruments standing out?
Further in - depth study of the above enterprise cases shows that "the progress of domestic segmented industrial fields, the long - term independent R & D and investment of enterprises, and the joint efforts of the industrial circle, partners, and universities" constitute the foundation for the localization substitution and breakthrough of Chinese scientific research experimental instrument products.
Demand also affects business drive, which is an eternal principle of the market economy. In the "Commerce Control List" announced by the United States before, 42% of the clauses involved scientific instruments. The localization rate of China's high - end precision instruments is less than 1.5%. On the contrary, the substitution space is huge.
At the policy level, the state has issued the "Guiding Opinions on Promoting the High - Quality Development of the Instrument Industry", proposing that the subsidy for the first - set of equipment covers key equipment such as scanning electron microscopes and transmission electron microscopes, with the procurement subsidy reaching up to one - third of the equipment price. The equipment renewal plan promotes an average annual budget of 60 million yuan for national key laboratories, with a market scale of over 1.8 billion yuan.
It is not difficult to understand that the academic and scientific research circles have long "blindly believed" in Western high - end brands and achievements. When Chinese enterprises start to catch up, market penetration is a natural thing.
"Almost no one will reject domestic brands with good performance, price, and precision," said a scientific research assistant. It shows that good wine needs no bush. Good products will always find buyers. If an enterprise has a solid foundation, domestic scientific research instrument products will not worry about sales.
However, achievements do not mean a smooth journey. Looking back at the reality, the breakthrough of domestic scientific research instrument products is just the first step of a long - march.
Currently, at the national level, it is pointed out that problems such as "serious idle waste, insufficient professional service capabilities, and low levels of open sharing" still exist in the field of scientific research instrument sharing. Those who conduct research on instruments, produce instruments, and use instruments often cannot be well - coordinated. In other words, the transformation of scientific research results and the integration of industry, academia, and research are not sufficient.
There is also room for improvement in terms of quality. For example, the stability gap of the radio - frequency power supply of the triple quadrupole mass spectrometer results in the detection sensitivity being one order of magnitude lower than that of imported equipment. The pump pressure fluctuation range of the ultra - high - performance liquid chromatography is still 2.3 times that of Agilent products. A laboratory director frankly said, "Domestic equipment can be used, but the data drift after 200 hours of continuous operation still makes me reluctant to risk my research results."
After all, for an ordinary experimental instrument, from the prototype to the commercial device, it often requires thousands of hours of continuity and stability testing. For example, although the domestic transmission electron microscope has been launched, it still needs to pass a long - term reliability verification to enter the top - level laboratories of Fudan University and Shanghai Jiao Tong University.
So, if we set a schedule for the battle of experimental instruments, how long will it take for domestic substitute brands to go from "usable" to "good - to - use"?
It is worth noting that Huachuang Securities predicted in its research report in April 2025 that the inflection point of the surge in domestic orders will appear in the next one or two years. The basis is the superposition of three major benefits. For example, tariff pressure forces accelerated substitution (import costs have increased by more than 40%), policies mandate that public institutions have a 50% domestic procurement ratio, and the R & D expense ratio of enterprises in the industry has exceeded the critical point of 10%. In addition, the customer experience will also force the entire industrial chain to improve quality.
Some local cities, including Shanghai, are also making plans. It is planned to build a scientific instrument industrial cluster around 2027, and the localization rate will be increased to 35%. From an industry perspective, some institutions predict that by 2030, the overall market scale can exceed 2 trillion yuan, and the localization rate of high - end products will exceed 35%.
Conclusion
Finally, we try to draw a conclusion on the achievement of full independent control of most domestic scientific research experimental instruments. One is the control of technology. Currently, representative enterprises have achieved certain results, but the maturity of the industrial chain still needs to be strengthened. On the other hand, products and the market are two different things, and there is still a long way to