Semiconductors
TSMC has been offering its System-on-Wafer integration technology, InFO-SoW, since 2020. For now, only Cerebras and Tesla have developed wafer scale processor designs using it, as while they have fantastic performance and power efficiency, wafer-scale processors are extremely complex to develop and produce. But TSMC believes that not only will wafer-scale designs ramp up in usage, but that megatrends like AI and HPC will call for even more complex solutions: vertically stacked system-on-wafer designs. Tesla Dojo's wafer-scale processors — the first solutions based based on TSMC's InFO-SoW technology that are in mass production — have a number of benefits over typical system-in-packages (SiPs), including low-latency high-bandwidth core-to-core communications, very high performance and bandwidth density, relatively low power delivery network impendance, high performance efficiency, and redunancy. But...
GlobalFoundries and TSMC Sign Broad Cross-Licensing Agreement, Dismiss Lawsuits
GlobalFoundries and TSMC have announced this afternoon that they have signed a broad cross-licensing agreement, ending all of their ongoing legal disputes. Under the terms of the deal, the...
27 by Anton Shilov on 10/28/2019Intel Files Antitrust Suit Against SoftBank-Controlled Firm Over Patent Aggregation
Intel this week filed an lawsuit against Fortress Investment Group, a patent assertion entity controlled by SoftBank. Responding to a series of patent infringement lawsuits that Fortress has brought...
21 by Anton Shilov on 10/23/2019TSMC: 5nm on Track for Q2 2020 HVM, Will Ramp Faster Than 7nm
TSMC’s 5 nm (N5) manufacturing technology is projected to provide significant benefits when it comes to performance, power, and area scaling, which is why the contract maker of semiconductors...
27 by Anton Shilov on 10/23/2019New Tools Simplify Development of 2.5D Multi-Die 7nm Designs at Samsung Foundry
Advanced packaging technologies simplify production and increase performance of highly-complex multi-die SoCs as the semiconductor industry is looking at chiplet approach as an alternative to large dies that take...
5 by Anton Shilov on 10/22/2019TSMC Radically Boosts CapEx to Expand Production Capacities, To Reach $14B For 2019
Forecasting strong demand for its 5 nm and 7 nm class process technologies in the coming years, TSMC has announced that it's increasing its capital expenditure for 2019 by...
18 by Anton Shilov on 10/18/2019EUV Demand is Up: EUV Device Manufacturer ASML Beats Sales Estimates
Between the smartphone revolution, cloud computing, and the Internet of Things, the demand for cutting-edge chips has never been higher. And if you have any doubts about that, then...
46 by Anton Shilov on 10/16/2019Samsung & TSMC Develop 8nm & 7nm Automotive-Grade Nodes
As vehicles are getting ‘smarter’ and gaining autopilot capabilities, it is easy to predict that the demand for higher-performing and more complex automotive SoCs will be growing rapidly in...
29 by Anton Shilov on 10/14/2019New Tools & IP Accelerate Development of 5nm Arm ‘Hercules’ SoCs
Arm, Synopsys, and Samsung Foundry have developed a set of optimized tools and IP that will enable chip designers to build next-generation SoCs based on Arm’s Hercules processor cores...
9 by Anton Shilov on 10/10/2019TSMC: N7+ EUV Process Technology in High Volume, 6nm (N6) Coming Soon
TSMC announced on Monday that its customers have started shipping products based on chips made by TSMC using its N7+ (2nd Generation 7 nm with EUV) process technology that...
27 by Anton Shilov on 10/8/2019GlobalFoundries Mulls IPO Plans for 2022
After a decade of being a privately-held contract maker of semiconductors, GlobalFoundries has revealed that it's mulling going public in 2022. The move will help GF’s current owners to...
9 by Anton Shilov on 10/2/2019TSMC Counter-sues GlobalFoundries: Accuses US Fab of Infringing Patents Across Numerous Process Nodes
In a not-unexpected move, TSMC late on Monday filed a lawsuit against GlobalFoundries, its pure-play foundry rival, accusing the manufacturer of patent infringment. In the suit, a response to...
24 by Anton Shilov on 10/1/2019Arm & TSMC Showcase 7nm Chiplet, Eight A72 at 4GHz on CoWoS Interposer
Arm and TSMC this week unveiled their jointly developed proof-of-concept chip that combines two quad-core Cortex-72-based 7 nm chiplets on TSMC’s Chip-on-Wafer-on-Substrate (CoWoS) interposer. The two chips are connected...
26 by Anton Shilov on 9/27/2019GlobalFoundries Unveils 12LP+ Technology: Massive Performance & Power Improvements
GlobalFoundries has introduced its 12LP+ fabrication process that relies on the groundwork set by its 14LPP and 12LP technologies and provides significant improvements when it comes to performance, power...
41 by Anton Shilov on 9/25/2019TSMC Responds to Lawsuit by GlobalFoundries: Allegations Are Baseless
TSMC has responded to GlobalFoundries accusations of patents infringements. The world’s largest foundry said that it would defend itself in courts and that it considered allegations as baseless. The...
62 by Anton Shilov on 8/27/2019GlobalFoundries Sues TSMC Over Patent Infringement; Apple, Qualcomm, Others Named Defendants
GlobalFoundries has filed a lawsuit against TSMC and its clients in the USA and Germany alleging the world’s largest contract maker of semiconductors of infringing 16 of its patents...
97 by Anton Shilov on 8/26/2019SMIC: 14nm FinFET in Risk Production; China's First FinFET Line To Contribute Revenue by Late 2019
SMIC, the largest contract maker of semiconductors in China, announced this month that it would start commercial production of chips using its 14 nm FinFET manufacturing technology by the...
53 by Anton Shilov on 8/16/2019GlobalFoundries Sells Off Photomask Assets to Toppan
Following its decision to focus on specialized process technologies last August, GlobalFoundries has been consolidating its assets as well as selling off businesses and facilities that are not essential...
20 by Anton Shilov on 8/15/2019Samsung’s Aggressive EUV Plans: 6nm Production in H2, 5nm & 4nm On Track
Samsung Foundry formally started to produce chips using its 7LPP (7 nm low power plus) fabrication process last October and has not slowdown development of its manufacturing technologies since...
42 by Anton Shilov on 7/31/2019TSMC Announces Performance-Enhanced 7nm & 5nm Process Technologies
TSMC has quietly introduced a performance-enhanced version of its 7 nm DUV (N7) and 5 nm EUV (N5) manufacturing process. The company’s N7P and N5P technologies are designed for...
36 by Anton Shilov on 7/30/2019LG Display & SK Hynix Looking to Diversify Industrial Suppliers as Row with Japan Intensifies
South Korean electronics companies reaffirmed this week that production of computer memory and displays could be disrupted because of ongoing trade dispute between the country and Japan. Both SK...
8 by Anton Shilov on 7/26/2019