BEIJING (Reuters) -Beijing E-Town Semiconductor Technologies, a semiconductor equipment firm backed by Beijing's government, on Wednesday said it has sued U.S. chip equipment supplier Applied Materials over alleged trade secrets infringement.

Applied Materials had illegally obtained and used Beijing E-Town's core technology secrets related to plasma sources and wafer surface treatment, the Beijing-based company said according to a filing on the Shanghai Stock Exchange.

The company alleged that Applied Materials had disclosed technical secrets by applying for a patent in China and claiming the patent's application rights.

Applied Materials did not immediately respond to a request for comment.