Samsung starts mass production of chips using advanced 3nm process node

Samsung mentioned on Thursday that it has began mass manufacturing of chips utilizing its 3-nanometer (nm) course of node, its most superior expertise but for contract chip manufacturing.

The South Korean tech big mentioned its 3nm course of, in comparison with its 5nm course of, decreased energy utilization by 45% and improved efficiency by 23% with floor space decreased by 16%.

Samsung’s 3nm course of node makes use of its gate-all-around (GAA) transistor structure, referred to as Multi-Bridge-Channel FET (MBCFET) by the corporate, which packs wider channels in gates for electrical energy to move threw whereas decreasing the voltage stage in comparison with the earlier FinFET transistor structure.

The channels are utterly surrounded by the gates, because the identify GAA implies, and using all 4 sides of the channels permits extra drive present to cross via the gates in comparison with FinFET, which solely makes use of three sides.

The South Korean tech big additionally touted that its 3nm course of node supplied a versatile design that allowed it to regulate the channel width to finest meet prospects’ wants. A follow-up second-generation 3nm course of node was additionally within the works with improved energy utilization, efficiency and floor space, Samsung mentioned.

Chips at the moment being made via its first 3nm course of node had been for a high-performance, low-power computing utility, Samsung mentioned, whereas it plans to increase making use of the node to cellular processors. The South Korean tech big did not point out which buyer it was at the moment mass-producing the 3nm chips for.

Samsung is the world’s largest reminiscence chip maker and the second-largest contract chipmaker, or foundry. It’s competing with the world’s largest foundry Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Firm (TSMC), which is gearing as much as begin mass manufacturing utilizing its personal 3nm course of node, to commercialize extra superior course of nodes first.

The important thing to the pair’s newest 3nm competitors will probably be profitable extra orders over one other from giant prospects corresponding to Qualcomm for cellular processors headed for subsequent yr’s flagship smartphones.

Final month, Samsung introduced that it plans to spend $355 billion over the subsequent 5 years on what it calls strategic companies, which embody semiconductors. Final yr, the corporate introduced that it’ll spend $17 billion to construct a brand new chip plant in Taylor, Texas.