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Thomas McCormick
It is indeed great to see Spansion in the NAND business. SLC memory at less ...
dylan.mcgrath
I posed this question to Spansion and heard back that the 8 Gb solutions are ...
Spansion sampling single-level cell NAND for embedded apps
Dylan McGrath
5/24/2012 12:32 AM EDT
SAN FRANCISCO—Flash memory vendor Spansion Inc. said Wednesday (May 23) it began sampling the first single-level cell (SLC) NAND flash memory devices to emerge from a deal with South Korea's SK Hynix Inc. announced last month.
The devices, made by Hynix and tested and packaged by Spansion, are implemented in 4X-nm floating-gate technology and are aimed at data storage in automotive, consumer and networking applications, Spansion (Sunnyvale, Calif.) said.
Spansion SLC NAND will be offered in densities from 1 Gb to 8 Gb in 3.0V and 1.8V families that feature high performance, extended temperature range, long-term product support and stringent reliability demands, such as 1-bit error correction code, according to Spansion.
Spansion also unveiled its SLC NAND product roadmap through 2017. The company plans to continue producing the 4X-nm SLC devices through 2017. It plans to start sampling 3X-nm SLC NAND devices late this year and 2X-nm devices in 2014. All will be produced through 2017, according to the company's roadmap.
Touhid Raza, director of marketing for NAND at Spansion said that, unlike commodity NAND, which producers can stop building as soon as the next generation is available, NAND devices targeting the embedded market require a longer lifespan. Embedded products often have a product design cycle time of 18 months or more, and customers need assurances that vendors will still be producing the product in volume, he said.
Unlike commodity NAND, which is often multi-level cell (MLC) NAND and thus less reliable, the embedded market require SLC NAND, which boasts better performance and durability, Raza said.
According to Raza, Spansion's NAND products will compliment the firm's flagship NOR flash products for the embedded market. "We are taking that relationship with embedded customers and developing a product that meets their needs," Raza said. "Our ability to supply both types of devices gives customers the ability to come to one place for different types of flash memory devices."
Michael Yang, senior principal analyst for memory and storage at market research firm IHS iSuppli, was quoted in a statement issued by Spansion saying the introduction of the company's SLC NAND products is a positive development for the embedded market. "SLC NAND has solid growth potential in embedded, led by the automotive and consumer segments," Yang said. "This is especially true for embedded applications requiring product longevity as we head down the path toward smarter connected homes and automobiles."
In announcing the deal with SK Hynix (formerly Hynix Semiconductor Inc.) last month, Spansion said it also would continue developing its charge-trapping NAND technology. Last year, the company entered a deal with Japan's Elpida Memory Inc. whereby Elpida would build SLC NAND based on Spansion's MirrorBit charge-trapping technology. Elpida, of course, has since filed for bankruptcy.
Spansion said it is sampling 3-volt 1 Gb, 2 Gb and 4 Gb monolithic SLC NAND devices now. The company plans to begin sampling 1.8 volt 1 Gb, 2 Gb and 4 Gb chips at the end of 2012, with 8 Gb solutions expected to sample in the second half of this year. Spansion said its SLC NAND devices can withstand an industrial temperature range of -40C to +85C and offer 100,000 cycle endurance. The devices are available in industry-standard 48-pin TSOP package via Spansion's universal footprint, the company said.
The devices, made by Hynix and tested and packaged by Spansion, are implemented in 4X-nm floating-gate technology and are aimed at data storage in automotive, consumer and networking applications, Spansion (Sunnyvale, Calif.) said.
Spansion SLC NAND will be offered in densities from 1 Gb to 8 Gb in 3.0V and 1.8V families that feature high performance, extended temperature range, long-term product support and stringent reliability demands, such as 1-bit error correction code, according to Spansion.
Spansion also unveiled its SLC NAND product roadmap through 2017. The company plans to continue producing the 4X-nm SLC devices through 2017. It plans to start sampling 3X-nm SLC NAND devices late this year and 2X-nm devices in 2014. All will be produced through 2017, according to the company's roadmap.
Touhid Raza, director of marketing for NAND at Spansion said that, unlike commodity NAND, which producers can stop building as soon as the next generation is available, NAND devices targeting the embedded market require a longer lifespan. Embedded products often have a product design cycle time of 18 months or more, and customers need assurances that vendors will still be producing the product in volume, he said.
Unlike commodity NAND, which is often multi-level cell (MLC) NAND and thus less reliable, the embedded market require SLC NAND, which boasts better performance and durability, Raza said.
According to Raza, Spansion's NAND products will compliment the firm's flagship NOR flash products for the embedded market. "We are taking that relationship with embedded customers and developing a product that meets their needs," Raza said. "Our ability to supply both types of devices gives customers the ability to come to one place for different types of flash memory devices."
Michael Yang, senior principal analyst for memory and storage at market research firm IHS iSuppli, was quoted in a statement issued by Spansion saying the introduction of the company's SLC NAND products is a positive development for the embedded market. "SLC NAND has solid growth potential in embedded, led by the automotive and consumer segments," Yang said. "This is especially true for embedded applications requiring product longevity as we head down the path toward smarter connected homes and automobiles."
In announcing the deal with SK Hynix (formerly Hynix Semiconductor Inc.) last month, Spansion said it also would continue developing its charge-trapping NAND technology. Last year, the company entered a deal with Japan's Elpida Memory Inc. whereby Elpida would build SLC NAND based on Spansion's MirrorBit charge-trapping technology. Elpida, of course, has since filed for bankruptcy.
Spansion said it is sampling 3-volt 1 Gb, 2 Gb and 4 Gb monolithic SLC NAND devices now. The company plans to begin sampling 1.8 volt 1 Gb, 2 Gb and 4 Gb chips at the end of 2012, with 8 Gb solutions expected to sample in the second half of this year. Spansion said its SLC NAND devices can withstand an industrial temperature range of -40C to +85C and offer 100,000 cycle endurance. The devices are available in industry-standard 48-pin TSOP package via Spansion's universal footprint, the company said.
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EFosters
5/24/2012 11:57 AM EDT
It is great to have Spansion in the NAND business. We are currently using a Samsung device with two 4Gb dies in a TSOP package (with one CE), but are very concerned about obsolescence. We've run into issues in the past too with EOLs on 512 Mb and 1 Gb NAND. Does anyone know if the 8 Gb device is monolithic or dual die?
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dylan.mcgrath
5/24/2012 2:05 PM EDT
I posed this question to Spansion and heard back that the 8 Gb solutions are dual die.
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Thomas McCormick
5/24/2012 7:13 PM EDT
It is indeed great to see Spansion in the NAND business. SLC memory at less aggressive lithographies to focus on the reliability and lifetime demands of embedded applications is a welcome addition to the marketplace.
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