TSMC will launch mass production of 2-nanometer chips by 2025

Taipei, Jun 17 (CNA) Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co. (TSMC), the world’s largest contract chipmaker, will begin volume production of 2-nanometer chips by 2025 as it battles with its major competitors to be the first with advanced technology.

At its North American Technology Symposium on Thursday US time, TSMC highlighted the new technology and said chips made using the 2nm process will be 10-15% faster at the same power or will save 25-30% power at the same speed compared to its 3nm. treat.

The 2nm process chips will feature a new technology called “nanosheet transistor architecture” for better performance and power efficiency, TSMC said.

TSMC’s roadmap is similar to that of its main competitors – Samsung Electronics and Intel Corporation – which also plan to manufacture 2nm chips around 2025.

“We live in a rapidly changing supercharged digital world, where the demand for computing power and energy efficiency is growing faster than ever, creating unprecedented opportunities and challenges for the semiconductor industry,” said TSMC CEO CC Wei (魏哲家) at the event. .

The chipmaker, which launched the 5nm process in 2020, is expected to start commercial production of the 3nm process later this year in Tainan.

Regarding its 2nm processing factories, TSMC announced that it will build a wafer factory in Hsinchu, northern Taiwan, and later expand production to Taichung, central Taiwan.

At the symposium, which was an in-person event after being held online for the past two years, TSMC also revealed its latest expansion of an ultra-low power platform.

The company said it is currently developing N6e, a process technology that will provide the computing power and energy efficiency required by cutting-edge artificial intelligence (AI) and Internet of Things (IoT) devices.