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KB3001
This is akin to gambling in a casino as far as I am concerned. It might pay off ...
Kresearch
Again, it is an EUV marketing chant. If with breakthrough, arrogant like ASML ...
Globalfoundries looks to leapfrog fab rivals
Dylan McGrath
9/20/2012 9:01 AM EDT
Process design kit available now
Although Globalfoundries competes head to head with TSMC, UMC and other dedicated foundries, Jelinek maintains that the company's primary competition is Intel. Globalfoundries is now No. 2 in foundry sales, but the company still trails TSMC by a wide margin. Globalfoundries is seeking to establish itself as the process technology leader among foundries largely because its largest customer, Advanced Micro Devices Inc., is Intel's chief competitor in the market for PC processors.
"They are not going to try to grow and become No. 1 foundry player in the world. They know they cannot get there," Jelinek said. "What they can do is become the technology leader in the space, and that's what they are trying."
According to G. Dan Hutcheson, chairman of market research and consulting firm VLSI Research Inc., no chip maker has ever moved to a new process technology node two years in a row. "if they can pull this off, it will be a tremendous achievement," Hutcheson said.
Subramani Kengeri, head of the advanced technology architecture for Globalfoundries' office of the CTO, said the similarities between the company's 20-nm low power process and the 14-nm XM process would enable customers to leverage much of the design work for the 20-nm process on the new process. About 7,000 design rules are the same between both processes, while about 60 new design rules will be added to account for the FinFET, Kengeri said.
The 14-nm XM process utilizes the same middle and back end of line processes as Globalfoundries' 20-nm low power process, which is set to go into production next year.
Technology development of the 14-nm XM process is already underway, with test silicon running through Globalfoundries' Fab 8 in upstate New York., the company said. Early process design kits are available now, with customer product tape-outs expected in 2013.
Related stories:
Although Globalfoundries competes head to head with TSMC, UMC and other dedicated foundries, Jelinek maintains that the company's primary competition is Intel. Globalfoundries is now No. 2 in foundry sales, but the company still trails TSMC by a wide margin. Globalfoundries is seeking to establish itself as the process technology leader among foundries largely because its largest customer, Advanced Micro Devices Inc., is Intel's chief competitor in the market for PC processors.
"They are not going to try to grow and become No. 1 foundry player in the world. They know they cannot get there," Jelinek said. "What they can do is become the technology leader in the space, and that's what they are trying."
According to G. Dan Hutcheson, chairman of market research and consulting firm VLSI Research Inc., no chip maker has ever moved to a new process technology node two years in a row. "if they can pull this off, it will be a tremendous achievement," Hutcheson said.
Subramani Kengeri, head of the advanced technology architecture for Globalfoundries' office of the CTO, said the similarities between the company's 20-nm low power process and the 14-nm XM process would enable customers to leverage much of the design work for the 20-nm process on the new process. About 7,000 design rules are the same between both processes, while about 60 new design rules will be added to account for the FinFET, Kengeri said.
The 14-nm XM process utilizes the same middle and back end of line processes as Globalfoundries' 20-nm low power process, which is set to go into production next year.
Technology development of the 14-nm XM process is already underway, with test silicon running through Globalfoundries' Fab 8 in upstate New York., the company said. Early process design kits are available now, with customer product tape-outs expected in 2013.
Related stories:
- ARM TechCon probes road to 14-nm ICs
- Intel's 22-nm process gives MOSFET switch a facelift
- TSMC to expand 2013 capex to $10 billion
- TSMC said to plan 450-mm production for 2018
- Samsung to take 3% stake in ASML
- ARM, GlobalFoundries agree FinFET path
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lee.t
9/20/2012 10:02 AM EDT
I am so confident that they will get it right the first time, and not have any yield issues, or nonsense with models, or anything else that could possibly go wrong.
;)
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askubel
9/20/2012 12:33 PM EDT
You're a little more optimistic than me. I think they're overconfident given that 14nm is the first node they'll use FinFETs at, along with the fact they haven't begun any kind of volume with 20nm (even 28nm is fresh out the door).
But we'll see. If Globalfoundries pulls this off they'll be in a strong position.
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Paul1960
9/20/2012 4:53 PM EDT
askubel, look up "irony" then read lee.t's comment again...
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askubel
9/20/2012 6:10 PM EDT
Note my careful use of comparatives in the first sentence :)
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Kresearch
9/20/2012 6:19 PM EDT
Hope it won't be marketing chant again. Go Globalfoundries.
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dylan.mcgrath
9/20/2012 6:38 PM EDT
I think you have to give GF credit for boldness. As the comments above allude to, they had their share of yield issues at 32-nm. The GF executives I spoke with said they wanted to wait until the process design kit was available to make the announcement. To G. Dan Hutcheson of VLSI Research, the fact that the process design kit is available is the key to the announcement.
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SKYHAWK
9/20/2012 8:42 PM EDT
this is to keep AMD from bolting to rival TSMC, so the CEO can keep his job awhile longer.
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m00nshine
9/20/2012 9:43 PM EDT
Reminds me of bold claim from TSMC about 450mm and ASML about EUV. Easy to make the bold claim, hard to actually do like that. I am a skeptic, but interested to watch this one.
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Kresearch
9/21/2012 12:18 AM EDT
EUV is dying. Triple patterning seems economically dead. 14nm will be very challenging without litho breakthrough. Bravo Foundry guys.
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motti2
9/21/2012 9:05 AM EDT
EUV little comprehended has found a breakthrough high average energy source ( ~100x greater than laser plasma EUV sources ) and you might end up eating your words in 2-3 years when the source integration is completed. There was an announcement by a U?Washington plasma physics prof about a Zpinch EUV plasma source ( discharge is magnetically confined by a current sheath ) that makes a simple longer pulse source of extraordinary net average power increase for EUV illumination.
I have little understanding of the technical issues relating to the source integration into the ASML EUV stepper, but the source itself is apparently a possibly compelling breakthrough.
Within weeks of disclosure of the source breakthrough by its professor inventor I think I remember that ASML issued an announcement that timeline for EUV "deployment" has been pulled in .... ( implying they will be using the source, but not mentioned at all )
I think there is a change that production viability prospects for EUV might have improved significantly, but this is as yet just decent speculation, based on ?coincidences of a technical nature ( from a process engineer )
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peter.clarke
9/21/2012 11:02 AM EDT
I think you are refering to Zplasma Inc.
http://www.eetimes.com/electronics-news/4376726/Nuclear-fusion-research-forms-plasma-for-EUV
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resistion
9/21/2012 11:50 AM EDT
Maybe you better get some more details on this. You don't want longer pulse, you want larger duty cycle and shorter pulse duration. And it turns out the resist dose window will not even benefit from a power boost.
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Kresearch
9/21/2012 5:54 PM EDT
Again, it is an EUV marketing chant. If with breakthrough, arrogant like ASML won't invite Intel,TSMC, Samsung to invest her recently. Intel even urged ASML to expedite ArF immersion development in 450mm lithograpgy. I guess we would stick on 20nm for a long while and 28nm or 20nm node would be a historically sweet spots for foundries.
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rick.merritt
9/21/2012 1:39 AM EDT
Time will tell if this is a bold leap forward or a foolish jump off a cliff.
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Huey
9/21/2012 7:52 AM EDT
That's what I think.. with leaning ---..
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Archeologist
9/21/2012 4:32 AM EDT
They are just renaming their 20nm process as 14nm. The challenge still remains to get yield with FinFETS.
When they do get yield they can say they are competitive. Without yield, it may as well be a mee too PhD thesis.
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BillSalmond
9/21/2012 7:10 AM EDT
Is this a joint development with IBM? If so, will other "fab club" members deploy this process(e.g. Samsung). IMHO Global do not have the resources or talent to do this on their own.
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SiliconAsia
9/21/2012 12:16 PM EDT
Let them claim what they want. The time is ticking....
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Roba66
9/21/2012 1:01 PM EDT
The backers of Globalfoundries have deep pockets but I think competing with Intel is an unhealthy obsession for them. I like profitable foundries that keep the mature processes going so people can make lots of mixed-mode chips.
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KB3001
9/23/2012 8:30 AM EDT
This is akin to gambling in a casino as far as I am concerned. It might pay off but it's still foolish.
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