TSMC's 3nm transistor density will increase by 15%, and it will manufacture Apple's A16, with mass production expected in the second half of 2021

Author | Bao Yonggang

Two years ago, TSMC mass-produced the 7nm process, and this year it will mass-produce the 5nm process, which has allowed TSMC to maintain its leading position in the foundry field. Now the 3nm process is also proceeding as planned. According to TSMC's plan, the 3nm risk trial production is expected to be carried out this year, and mass production is scheduled to start in the second half of 2021.

TSMC also revealed more details about its 3nm process, which has a 15% increase in transistor density, a 10-15% increase in performance, and a 20-25% increase in energy efficiency compared to this year's 5nm process.

Previous reports said that TSMC will abandon the FinFET transistor process at the 3nm node and turn to GAA surround gate transistors. However, according to a recent report by Taiwan Economic Daily, TSMC has made a major breakthrough in 2nm research and development and has found a path to enter the all-around gate field effect transistor GAA. This means that TSMC will continue to use FinFET technology at the 3nm node.

Leifeng.com previously reported that the GAA concept was proposed about 10 years earlier than FinEFT, but GAA is equivalent to an improved version of FinEFT. As for why it did not turn to GAA at 3nm?

TSMC once stated that the 3nm process will continue to use FinEFT technology, mainly considering that customers can also use the designs introduced in the 5nm process in the 3nm process without having to face the problem of redesigning the product. TSMC can maintain its own cost competitiveness and obtain more customer orders.

It is reported that TSMC will manufacture the A16 chip based on 3nm process for Apple as scheduled, and it is expected to be launched in 2022.

However, TSMC's shift to GAA was later than that of its competitor Samsung, which chose to switch from FinFET to GAA when it encountered obstacles at the 3nm process node.

At present, what is more worthy of attention is the 5nm process that has begun mass production. The A14 processor that Apple will release this year in the iPhone 12 series will undoubtedly use TSMC's 5nm process. Earlier, it was reported that in addition to Apple, Huawei also placed orders for TSMC's 5nm production capacity, which is HiSilicon's new generation flagship Kirin 9 series processors. However, due to the ban, TSMC has clearly stated that it will stop supplying Huawei from September 14.

Some people believe that although Apple cannot manufacture 5nm chips for Huawei, its self-developed Arm architecture Mac processor will utilize 5nm production capacity. Leifeng.com believes that the shipment volume of Arm processors for Apple computers is a gradual increase, and it is difficult to have a large demand at the beginning. After all, it will take two years for Apple Mac computers to fully switch from Intel processors to self-developed Arm processors. It is difficult to judge whether TSMC's 5nm production capacity can be fully utilized.

Another thing that is not clear is Qualcomm's processor. It is reported that TSMC's first 5nm chip for Qualcomm will be the Snapdragon 875 SoC, which has begun mass production. The SoC's architecture is said to have made a breakthrough in the core combination of 1 + 3 + 4, of which the single core will be Arm's Supercore Cortex X1, which is 30% more powerful than the A77.

However, the MyFixGuide report gives a completely different view. The report points out that Qualcomm's next-generation flagship SoC, the Snapdragon 875G, which will be released in the first quarter of next year, is based on a 5nm process, and now it appears that Samsung is manufacturing it, not TSMC. The report also predicts that the Snapdragon X60 modem, which may be integrated with the Snapdragon 875G, will also be manufactured using Samsung's same 5nm process.

Leifeng.com has previously reported that the Snapdragon X60 is the latest generation of 5G modems released by Qualcomm in February this year. It is the world's first processor announced to use the 5nm process. Qualcomm did not disclose the foundry that cooperated with the 5nm chip, but only said that it would find a suitable foundry partner to do it according to the plan.

Behind the competition in advanced processes is the competition among major chip companies.

Reference Links:

• https://www.gizchina.com/2020/07/16/tsmc-revealed-some-details-of-its-3nm-process/

• https://www.phonearena.com/news/Qualcomm-Snapdragon-875G-will-be-made-by-Samsung_id125990