Micron unveils multiple innovations at Computex, covering NAND and DRAM

SAN DIEGO, June 2, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- Micron Technology Inc. (NASDAQ: MU), a leading provider of memory and storage solutions, today announced several product innovations, including memory and storage innovations based on its industry-leading 176-layer NAND and 1α (1-alpha) DRAM processes, and the industry's first Universal Flash Storage (UFS) 3.1 solution for automotive applications. These latest products were announced by Sanjay Mehrotra, Micron's president and CEO, during his keynote address at COMPUTEX 2021 in Taipei, and reflect Micron's vision to accelerate data-driven insights through memory and storage innovations to power innovations in the data center and the intelligent edge. In his speech, Mr. Mehrotra also shared in-depth insights into the vision for computing innovation and the core role of memory and storage in helping companies realize the full potential of the data economy.

Micron announced the mass production of its first PCIe® 4.0 solid-state drives (SSDs) based on the world's first 176-layer NAND, and will ship the world's first LPDDR4x DRAM based on the 1α node this month. LPDDR4x is the latest JEDEC standard for the fourth generation of low-power DRAM, which is ideal for mobile computing devices due to its enhanced input/output (I/O) voltage performance and significantly reduced power consumption. Micron's new product launch further consolidates its leading position in both DRAM and NAND technology, which it achieved at the beginning of this year.

“With the increasing popularity of artificial intelligence and 5G technologies, data will unleash tremendous potential in the post-epidemic era. This also creates opportunities to accelerate innovation to meet customer needs,” said Sanjay Mehrotra, Micron President and CEO. “Today we are launching a number of new memory and storage solutions that can help accelerate innovation in areas such as large data center servers, faster client devices, and smart car edges.”

Micron PCIe 4.0 SSD product line addresses more complex client application needs

Micron's latest SSDs, Micron 3400 and Micron 2450, feature flexible design, high performance, and low power consumption, and can support all-weather use from professional workstations to ultra-thin notebook applications. The Micron 3400 SSD provides 2x read throughput and 85% higher maximum write throughput [compared to Micron's previous generation Micron 2300 SSD], meeting the needs of demanding applications such as real-time 3D rendering, computer-aided design (CAD), gaming, and animation. The Micron 2450 SSD maximizes the performance of PCIe 4.0, providing users with a high-responsiveness experience, and is available in three form factors, with the smallest being the 22x30mm M.2 specification, giving customers great flexibility in product design.

“AMD was first in the industry to adopt PCIe 4.0 in desktop processors and silicon support,” said Chris Kilburn, corporate vice president and general manager of the client business unit at AMD. “As the ecosystem of platforms supported by AMD continues to grow, we are excited to see partners like Micron expanding their PCIe 4.0 SSD product lines. By working with Micron, a leader in memory and storage, we continue to drive new levels of PC performance and efficiency.”

Thanks to their advanced energy efficiency, the Micron 3400 and Micron 2450 have been included in the Intel® Modern Standby Partner Portal Platform device list and have met the SSD testing requirements of Intel Project Athena® Open Lab. These two Micron SSDs have also passed AMD's PCIe Power Speed ​​Policy and Microsoft Windows Modern Standby validation.

Micron Ships World's First 1α-Node-Based LPDDR4x and DDR4 Products in Bulk

Following the launch of 1α-node DRAM products in January 2021, Micron will quickly mass-ship LPDDR4x products based on this leading technology this month. Micron has also completed the verification of 1α-node DDR4 products on data center platforms such as the third-generation AMD EPYC. These products are mass-produced at Micron's advanced DRAM wafer fabs in Taiwan, including the recently expanded Taichung A3 plant. 

Micron's rapid delivery of 1α-node-based memory products has driven technological innovation in many applications, such as data-intensive workloads on server platforms and ultra-thin notebooks for consumers. The 1α node improves memory energy efficiency and extends battery life, making laptops more suitable for mobile office needs and coping with application scenarios of working and learning from home. As remote work and online education become more popular, Micron works closely with leading global system suppliers to meet the growing market demand for personal computers. Micron has conducted in-depth cooperation with Acer, a leading original equipment manufacturer (OEM) in Taiwan, to integrate 1α-node-based LPDDR4x and DDR4 products into Acer systems.

"Acer is committed to breaking down barriers between people and technology," said Acer Chairman and CEO Stephen Chen. "We are working closely with Micron to introduce the most advanced 1α DRAM process node in Acer systems to deliver high-performance, energy-efficient PCs that keep people around the world connected."

Compared with the previous generation of LPDDR4x products based on the 1z node, the 1α node process brings a 40% increase in memory density and a 20% increase in energy efficiency for mobile applications. It is suitable for mobile applications that require long battery life, especially application scenarios such as taking photos and videos that require a large amount of memory.

Micron delivers durable storage products for data-intensive automotive systems

Micron announced the sampling of 128GB and 256GB capacity, 96-layer NAND technology-based automotive UFS 3.1 managed NAND products, bringing innovation to intelligent edge applications. As in-vehicle infotainment systems continue to evolve, integrating high-definition displays and artificial intelligence-based human-computer interaction functions in cars, Micron's UFS 3.1 product line provides the high throughput and low latency performance required for such applications. 

Micron UFS 3.1 has twice the data read performance of UFS 2.1 and can boot quickly, reducing latency for data-intensive in-vehicle infotainment and advanced driver assistance systems (ADAS). UFS 3.1 has a 50% improvement in sequential write performance to meet the growing demand for real-time local storage of sensor and camera data in Level 3+ ADAS systems and black box applications. [Comparison data with the previous generation UFS 2.1]

Yole Développement (Yole), a market research and strategy consulting company, predicts that the automotive NAND market will grow to $3.6 billion by 2025, nearly four times the $900 million in 2020. [Source: NAND Market Monitor Q1 2021 - Yole Développement] As cars become increasingly software-dependent, the data centers on the vehicle require high-performance storage that can process large amounts of information in near real time. ADAS-equipped cars currently run more than 100 million lines of code that must be stored and read quickly to enable faster user experiences and faster decision making at the edge.

“Modern vehicles rely on high-performance central processing units to drive data-intensive artificial intelligence, computer vision and multi-sensor processing capabilities, which requires advanced storage and memory solutions,” said Vasanth Waran, senior director of product management at Qualcomm. “Micron’s UFS 3.1 product line is designed to meet the stringent reliability and performance requirements of the automotive environment, helping automakers build more personalized, adaptive and context-aware digital cockpits. Qualcomm looks forward to continuing to work with Micron to optimize its leading storage and memory solutions for our automotive platforms.”

Micron accelerates DDR5 market adoption through technology enablement program

Micron has also made significant progress in its DDR5 Technology Enablement Program (TEP), which was launched in 2020 to accelerate the market's adoption of DDR5 and prepare the ecosystem for widespread use of DDR5-enabled platforms next year. Currently, the program has attracted more than 250 design and technology leaders from more than 100 industry leaders, including system and chip service providers, channel partners, cloud service providers, and OEMs.