Samsung Foundry has made some adjustments to its plans regarding its three nm-class course of applied sciences that use gate-all-around (GAA) transistors, or what Samsung calls its multi-bridge channel field-effect transistors (MBCFETs). Based on new data direct from Samsung, it could seem that its first model of 3nm, 3GAE (3nm gate-all-around early), is coming to excessive quantity manufacturing a 12 months later than anticipated, but additionally it appears to have eliminated this know-how from its public roadmap, suggesting it might be for inner use solely.
Meanwhile, 3GAE’s successor 3GAP (3nm gate-all-around plus) node continues to be within the roadmap, it’s on monitor for quantity manufacturing in 2023.
3GAE on Track for 2022, Maybe Just Not for Everyone
At its current Foundry Forum 2021 in China, Samsung Foundry offered its up to date public know-how roadmap which was then republished by bloggers at Baidu and Weibo.
On its FinFET applied sciences, each 5LPP and 4LPP nodes are new to the roadmap, and set for high-volume manufacturing (HVM) in 2021 and 2022, respectively.
For GAA know-how, 3GAE is absent from the roadmap, however 3GAP is there. We reached out to Samsung and a consultant confirmed that the 3GAE know-how continues to be on monitor for ramp in 2022. From the slide, we will see that MBCFET-based 3GAP will enter its HVM part someday in 2023.
“As for the 3GAE process, we’ve been in discussion with customers and expect to mass-produce 3GAE in 2022,” the spokesperson stated.
The absence of 3GAE course of from the general public roadmap could also be defined by the truth that it would solely be obtainable to Samsung’s personal LSI division, identical to another (E)arly nodes. That being stated, earlier era (E)arly nodes are nonetheless talked about within the slides that the corporate demonstrated.
Samsung initially introduced its MBCFET-based 3GAE and 3GAP nodes in May 2019. Back then, the corporate promised a 35% efficiency enhance, a 50% energy consumption discount, and a 45% space discount for 3GAE in comparison with 7LPP. Furthermore, the corporate introduced the supply of v0.1 of its 3nm PDK and on the time stated that quantity manufacturing utilizing 3GAE was set to start out in late 2021. With that transferring to 2022 primarily based on the newest data, one would possibly interpret this as both a delay or miscalculation primarily based on enabling GAA designs at scale.
However on the plus facet, Samsung taped out the primary three nm check chip a number of weeks in the past. It additionally introduced the supply of Synopsys EDA instruments appropriate with the brand new fabrication applied sciences. The use of fabrication processes that rely on brand-new transistors is at all times a problem – along with new digital design automation (EDA) instruments, chip builders want all-new IP. We sit up for listening to extra disclosures on that entrance.
A New 4LPP Node on FinFETs
While it seems to be like basic prospects are usually not going to make use of Samsung’s three nm nodes till 2023, the newly introduced 4LPP is ready to fulfill the necessities of the corporate’s purchasers in 2022. Since 4LPP depends on acquainted FinFETs, it is going to be a lot simpler for Samsung’s prospects to make use of this node when in comparison with any 3nm GAA nodes early of their lifecycle.
It is noteworthy that Samsung now considers its 5 nm and four nm-class applied sciences as totally different node branches on its slides. Previously, the foundry thought of its 4LPE as an evolution of its 7LPP course of. Perhaps it is because four nm is ready to supply very tangible PPAc (energy, efficiency, space, price) benefits over 5 nm, or as a result of there are substantial inner adjustments (e.g., new supplies, considerably increased utilization of maximum ultraviolet lithography, and so forth.).
For instance, one in every of Samsung’s slides particularly mentions density and efficiency enhancements for 5LPE and 5LPP, however solely mentions energy and efficiency enhancements…
