TSMC's 3nm process will start risk production in 2021 for Apple's A16 chip

       On July 19, foreign media PhoneArena reported that the world's largest contract foundry manufacturer is TSMC, which produces chips for companies that have independent designs but no production equipment. The equipment used to make chips is very complex and very expensive. For example, TSMC plans to spend $15 billion on capital expenditures this year, and TSMC's major customers include Apple, Qualcomm and Huawei.

　　This year, TSMC will deliver its most advanced chipsets to Apple and Huawei, the A14 Bionic and HiSilicon Kirin 1020, respectively. Both will be manufactured using TSMC's 5nm process, which means the number of transistors inside the chip will increase by about 77%. This makes these chips more powerful and more energy-efficient than 7nm chips.

　　TSMC will not be able to ship to Huawei starting in late September due to new US export regulations. The US is preventing any foundry using US technology from shipping semiconductors to Huawei without a license. TSMC said a few days ago that it will not ship chips to Huawei after September 14. TSMC CEO Mark Liu has not yet commented on whether he will try to obtain a license from the US.

　　TSMC's 5nm process will be used to manufacture the A14 Bionic chip, which will power the iPhone 12 series.

　　Generally, the more transistors inside a chip, the more powerful and energy-efficient it is. About every other year, transistor density will nearly double, allowing companies to design more powerful components. For example, the Apple A14 Bionic will have 15 billion transistors inside, while the A13 Bionic has 8.5 billion transistors inside and the A12 Bionic has 6.9 billion transistors. If all goes according to plan, the Apple iPhone 12 series will be the first smartphones to use 5nm chips.

　　TSMC will also manufacture the first 5nm Snapdragon chip, the Snapdragon 875 mobile platform. The chipset will power most Android flagships in the first half of 2021 and will include ARM's new super core Cortex X1. The latter offers a 30% improvement in chip performance over the ARM Cortex-A77 core. However, a recent report suggests that TSMC's main competitor Samsung will use its 5nm EUV process to produce the Snapdragon 875G.

　　TSMC has said it will build a factory in the United States that will begin production in 2023. However, once it goes into production, it will reportedly produce 5nm chips, which will be a generation behind the 3nm chips that will roll off TSMC's Asian factory assembly lines.

　　Now TSMC is looking forward to the 3nm chip model. TSMC foundry plans to start risk production on the 3nm process node next year. IT Home learned that these are chips produced by foundries and manufacturers are willing to buy them without going through standard testing procedures. TSMC said that its 3nm chips will have a 10% to 15% performance improvement and a 20% to 25% improvement in energy efficiency. Today's report mentioned that Apple's A16 chip (to be shipped in 2022) will be manufactured using a 3nm process for use on Apple's iPhone 13 series phones.

　　Initially, TSMC planned to use GAA gate-around transistors to replace FinFET transistors in the 3nm process. However, according to the Economic Daily, TSMC has made a major breakthrough in 2nm research and development and has found a way to enter GAA. Ultimately, TSMC's 3nm chips will also use FinFET transistors.