Samsung to Detail Second-Gen 3nm Node, but Admits It is Behind TSMC
upstart writes:
Samsung to unveil first details about SF3 process technology with MBCFETs:
Although Samsung Foundry started to produce chips using its SF3E (aka 3nm gate-all-around early) manufacturing technology last June, the company only uses this tech for select chips, and it's not expected to be used widely. Meanwhile, the company is working on its second-gen 3nm-class node called SF3 (3GAP) and will disclose more information about it at the upcoming 2023 Symposium on VLSI Technology and Circuits in Kyoto, Japan.
Samsung's Sf3 (3nm-class) fabrication technology (set to be introduced at the T1-2 session) will use the company's second-gen Multi-Bridge-Channel field-effect transistors (MBCFET). This new fabrication technology builds upon the first-gen GAA device (SF3E) that's already in mass production, incorporating further optimization.
Samsung claims that compared to SF4 (4LPP, 4nm-class, low power plus), SF3 offers a 22% higher performance at the same power and transistor count, a 34% power reduction at the same clocks and complexity, and a 0.79x logic area reduction. However, Samsung doesn't compare its SF3 to SF3E, and there is no word about the SRAM and analog circuit scaling.
One of the main benefits of GAA transistors over FinFET devices is the reduced leakage current since their gate is surrounded by the channel on all four sides. Additionally, the channel thickness can be adjusted to enhance performance or reduce power consumption.
Samsung now says that the SF3 platform offers greater design flexibility enabled by various nanosheet (NS) widths of the MBCFET device within the same cell type. It is unclear whether it means that the original SF3E lacks one of the key capabilities of GAA transistors, but Samsung's phrasing at least implies it.
An image that Samsung demonstrates in its paper depicts damage on top of the nanosheet during the metal gate process, so we may speculate that one of the aspects that the company will cover are production challenges it encountered with its GAA-based SF3E production node.
Interestingly, recently the company admitted that its fabrication processes are behind those of TSMC, and it will take at least five years to catch up.
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