SMIC first began quantity manufacturing of chips utilizing its 14 nm FinFET fabrication course of in This fall 2019. Since then, the corporate has been exhausting at work creating its subsequent technology main node, which it is calling N+1. The expertise has sure options which are corresponding to competing 7 nm course of applied sciences, however SMIC desires to make it clear that N+1 is just not a 7 nm expertise.
When in comparison with SMIC’s 14 nm course of expertise, N+1 lowers energy consumption by 57%, will increase efficiency by 20%, and reduces logic space by as much as 63%. While the method allows chip designers to make their SoCs smaller and extra energy environment friendly, its modest efficiency beneficial properties don’t enable N+1 to compete in opposition to rivals’ 7 nm expertise and derivatives. To that finish, SMIC positions its N+1 as a expertise for cheap chips.
A SMIC’s spokesperson stated the next:
“Our target for N+1 is low-cost applications, which can reduce costs by about 10 percent relative to 7nm. So this is a very special application.”
Notably, SMIC’s N+1 doesn’t use excessive ultraviolet lithography (EUVL), so the fab firm doesn’t want to obtain additional costly tools from ASML. Which is not to say that the corporate hasn’t thought-about EUV – the corporate did purchase an EUV step-and-scan system – however it has not been put in, reportedly due to restrictions imposed by the US. As a consequence, it will likely be SMIC’s N+2 that may use EUV.
The foundry from China plans to start out threat manufacturing utilizing its N+1 expertise in This fall 2020, so anticipate the method to enter excessive quantity manufacturing (HVM) typically in 2021 or 2022.
Sources: SMIC, EE Times China
