Samsung mass produces 20nm-class 4Gb DRAM

Updated: 2012-05-18 14:40

(Xinhua)

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SEOUL - Samsung Electronics, the world's largest memory chip maker, said Thursday that it started last month mass producing the world's first 20 nanometer (nm) class, 4 gigabit (Gb) dynamic random access memory (DRAM) chips.

According to an e-mailed statement, Samsung has begun producing the industry's first 4Gb, low power double-data-rate 2 (LPDDR2) memory chips using 20nm-class technology. The mobile DRAM chips went into mass production last month.

Samsung began expanding the market for 4Gb DRAM last year with the first mass production of 30nm-class DRAM, and has begun mass producing 20nm-class 4Gb DRAM last month in a bid to capture most of the advanced memory market.

Samsung expected the newly introduced 20nm-class 4Gb LPDDR2 will rapidly replace 30nm-class 2Gb-based 1-Gigabyte (GB) LPDDR2 as the 4Gb components can deliver 2GB solutions. The 2GB solutions boast razor-thin thickness of 0.8 millimeters (mm), which stack four 4Gb LPDDR2 chips in a single LPDDR2 package.

According to market researcher iSuppli, shipments of 4Gb LPDDR2 was expected to increase steadily, taking around 13 percent of total DRAM shipments in 2012, 49 percent in 2013 and 63 percent in 2014. The 4Gb DRAM was forecast to become the mainstream chip in the DRAM market around the end of 2013.

"In the second half of this year, we expect to strong increase the portion of 20nm-class DRAM within our overall DRAM output to make the 4Gb DRAM line-up the mainstream product in DRAM production and therefore keeping the leadership position in the premium market and strengthening the competitive edge," said Hong Wanhoon, executive vice president of Samsung's memory sales & marketing.