TSMC's first batch of 5nm samples shipped! Decoding two major customers

According to China Times, Bitmain and Canaan, two manufacturers specializing in the development of application-specific integrated circuits (ASICs) for mining cryptocurrencies, will become among TSMC’s first customers to use the latest 5nm technology.

The report pointed out that Bitmain has received the first batch of 5nm ASIC samples for Bitcoin mining produced by TSMC this month. Later in the first quarter of next year, Canaan Creative will also receive its first 5nm ASIC samples.

Compared with the current 7nm standard, TSMC's 5nm is still in a transitional stage, but its performance has been significantly improved. TSMC uses extreme ultraviolet lithography (EUV) technology to increase component density by 1.84 times, which not only reduces power consumption but also reduces chip area.

But so far, the 5nm products shipped are only early test samples. Therefore, it may take another six months or even twelve months before the above ASIC is officially mass-produced.

In addition, according to previous reports, TSMC's 5nm products are expected to start mass production in the first half of 2020, and Apple's new generation iPhone processor A14 will adopt TSMC's first batch of 5nm process. In other words, Apple A14 will get TSMC's 5nm products earlier than Bitmain and Canaan Creative's chips.