TSMC: 65nm supply-constrained, 45nm eDRAM in 1Q08
Monday 21st May 2007, 11:01:00 AM, written by Arun
Digitimes is reporting that TSMC's 65nm process production is now running "beyond 100%", indicating that their current facilities are now supply-constrained due to possibly unexpected demand. In related news, a recent interview with Chuck Byers of TSMC reveals that they plan to release their 45nm eDRAM low-power process as early as the first quarter of 2008.
Capacity utilisation at TSMC is very strong in general according to the Macquarie Securities analyst whose information was relayed through the Chinese-language Commercial Times and DigiTimes. Their 8-inch fabs, which are used for older process nodes (130nm and higher) are also running at full capacity, which indicates strong demand in the semiconductor industry in general.
As for 65nm, demand seems to be even more exceptional, which implies that a multitude of companies such as Broadcom and Qualcomm are possibly beginning to ramp up their designs there. More importantly, however, AMD's RV610 and RV630 GPUs are ramping rapidly now and they boast much larger die sizes than your average handheld chip, in addition to being very OEM-oriented products with potentially tremendous volumes. It is very likely that this is a significant factor in TSMC's 65nm capacity utilisation.
Finally, and as noted in the first paragraph, TSMC seems to have become very aggressive in terms of eDRAM process nodes. In the past, these nodes lagged the others significantly, sometimes by as much as a complete cycle of Moore's Law. But now, their 45nm eDRAM low-power process will be ready even before their mixed-signal node or their general-purpose nodes. It is lagging the low-power 45nm process (which is slated for September) by just a few months. This most likely indicates significant customer interest in eDRAM.
The 65nm eDRAM process was developed along with NVIDIA, with them also being the first customer for the node with the GoForce 5300. It would thus sound rather logical for NVIDIA to once again be TSMC's first partner for the 45nm eDRAM node, although it is far from impossible that other System-on-Chip vendors are also very interested. And given how fast 45nm eDRAM is coming up, we also can't help but wonder if NVIDIA is promising TSMC to use the process on their PC GPUs and/or MCPs, rather than just on handheld chipsets. Either that, or other very large customers are planning to use the process.
Capacity utilisation at TSMC is very strong in general according to the Macquarie Securities analyst whose information was relayed through the Chinese-language Commercial Times and DigiTimes. Their 8-inch fabs, which are used for older process nodes (130nm and higher) are also running at full capacity, which indicates strong demand in the semiconductor industry in general.
As for 65nm, demand seems to be even more exceptional, which implies that a multitude of companies such as Broadcom and Qualcomm are possibly beginning to ramp up their designs there. More importantly, however, AMD's RV610 and RV630 GPUs are ramping rapidly now and they boast much larger die sizes than your average handheld chip, in addition to being very OEM-oriented products with potentially tremendous volumes. It is very likely that this is a significant factor in TSMC's 65nm capacity utilisation.
Finally, and as noted in the first paragraph, TSMC seems to have become very aggressive in terms of eDRAM process nodes. In the past, these nodes lagged the others significantly, sometimes by as much as a complete cycle of Moore's Law. But now, their 45nm eDRAM low-power process will be ready even before their mixed-signal node or their general-purpose nodes. It is lagging the low-power 45nm process (which is slated for September) by just a few months. This most likely indicates significant customer interest in eDRAM.
The 65nm eDRAM process was developed along with NVIDIA, with them also being the first customer for the node with the GoForce 5300. It would thus sound rather logical for NVIDIA to once again be TSMC's first partner for the 45nm eDRAM node, although it is far from impossible that other System-on-Chip vendors are also very interested. And given how fast 45nm eDRAM is coming up, we also can't help but wonder if NVIDIA is promising TSMC to use the process on their PC GPUs and/or MCPs, rather than just on handheld chipsets. Either that, or other very large customers are planning to use the process.
Tagging
graphics ± tsmc, foundry, 65nm, 45nm, eDRAM
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