There is no rest in the nanometer race and it is that TSMC has already given data regarding its next lithographic processes N7P, N5 and N5P.
Despite the 7nm just hitting the market, the large foundries are already developing or finalizing the next lithographs. Taiwanese TSMC has announced six new performance nodes and five new packaging techniques. A few nodes that will extend until 2023. The packaging techniques, on the other hand, will be used in SoC for mobiles, front-end receivers or 5G modems.
The Taiwanese foundry already showed some of these improvements at the VLSI symposium. There he showed the first eight-core A72 chips manufactured at a medium frequency of 4.0GHz at a voltage of 1.2V. Furthermore TSMC gave the first data regarding the introduction of tungsten disulfide as a channel material for 3nm and onwards.
TSMC talks about future plans for its lithographs
During this year's Semicon West, the foundry has said it has consolidated the process node and packaging plans. They have also highlighted the N7 + node, which will be the first EUV-based they make. After node N7 will arrive N5, although there are three intermediate nodes that take advantage of the IP and the N7 design.
Node N7 is replaced by N7P, an optimization of the first based on DUV. N7P makes use of the same design rules of the N7, being an IP compatible with N7 and uses FEOL and MOL enhancements. It manages to offer a performance improvement of 7% and improves energy efficiency by 10%.
Currently, TSMC has already started the risk production of 5nm, known as N5. This production began on April 4 and whose mass production would not be available until 2021. The company expects production to increase in 2020, as they have invested heavily in the development of N5. It is considered the first complete replacement of N7 with EUV.
The N5 chips will double the density (171,3 MTR / mm²) with respect to the N7. This allows them to improve performance by 15% and reduce consumption by up to 30% compared to N7. FEOL and MOL optimizations won't make it until the N5P. Likewise, N5P will improve performance by 7% and energy consumption by 15% compared to N5.
Source: wccftech
