Engineer Blog丨Breaking barriers and making a leap forward——Micron launches 176-layer NAND

In my 30 years of developing and marketing data technologies, I have been fortunate to witness and participate in many amazing technological developments that have improved the daily lives of so many people. But I have never been so excited about the birth of a new achievement: 176-layer NAND.

This is a remarkable human achievement and marks a new technological milestone in the evolution of NAND. To understand the significance of 176-layer NAND, let's go back a few decades.

Some of the technologies we take for granted in our daily lives, such as cell phones, GPS, and the Internet, have taken years to develop and are built on top of layer upon layer of underlying technologies. For example, a cell phone requires CDMA (code division multiple access, a now common technology), low-noise amplifiers, digital signal processors, powerful microprocessors, long-lasting rechargeable batteries, memory (such as NAND storage), and many other technologies.

I've heard naysayers during the development of these foundational technologies. They always say "this idea will never work in real life", which puts some people off. However, in three to five years, when these technologies appear on the open market and in devices that you and I use every day, I will just smile.

But I must admit that I had my doubts at times. When 3D NAND was still a new concept, before 2014, the main memory designs were placed directly on the silicon wafer, and the capacity was increased laterally by expanding the area. 3D NAND, on the other hand, expanded the capacity by stacking. I initially thought that this idea was unlikely to become a reality. But like many technologies that are questioned, it worked!

The launch of 3D NAND is a big deal, bringing lower costs and great value. Micron's 176-layer NAND is a major milestone. The density achieved by this technology is nearly 10 times that of earlier 3D NAND. 10 times the density means that smartphones can do more, store more content, and be affordable to more people, while improving their daily life experience. I also look forward to our technology being widely used in various electronic devices (including the basic building blocks of cloud storage).

I am very proud to have contributed to this great achievement. In addition to being denser than previous devices, this new 176-layer device also achieves the industry's highest data transfer rate through innovative circuit design. While creating this ultra-high density storage, Micron engineers made important architectural changes to NAND, laying the foundation for innovation in downstream devices for years to come.

This is what really excites me. This advancement is more than just an engineering leap—it’s about the freedom to do more, learn more, and expand your horizons. Micron’s 176-layer NAND has opened the door to data, and not only will more people be able to access it faster and at a lower cost, but the devices they use to access it will also be better, smaller, faster, and cheaper.

I am filled with gratitude and awe as I think of those who did not waver in the face of the impossible. Once again, they have made the impossible possible for all of us! I can’t wait to see how creative designers, makers, and enablers will use this extraordinary new device to add more sparkle to everyone’s lives.

View previous articles Or Click [Read original article] to learn more about Micron's 3D NAND products:

• New record! Micron begins mass production of 176-layer 3D NAND

• Aiming at LPDDR5 and 3D NAND, how will Micron lead the 5G storage market?