Samsung unveiled the 3GAE (3nm Gate-All-Around Early) and 3GAP (3nm Gate-All-Around Plus) nodes in May 2019, promising that chips produced through these new technologies could yield a substantial reduction in power consumption and enhancements in overall performance. A 35% performance jump was projected, in addition to a 50% reduction in power consumption when compared with the existing 7LPP nodes technique.
Together with a raft of other methods, these processes were outlined by the chipmaking arm of Samsung – Samsung Foundry in 2021. It was part of its technological roadmap, with high-volume production of chips through the process scheduled for commencement in 2021. However, several challenges have been encountered in the chipmaking market, with the coronavirus pandemic playing a major role in the shift in expectations and targets.
Samsung Foundry has now made changes to its 3nm process nodes, stating that the first 3GAE chips will be mass-produced within its facilities from next year. It seems, however, that the 3GAE chips have been removed from the company’s roadmap outlined during the Foundry 2021 event, held in China. This could mean that Samsung will be producing the product for internal use by Samsung smartphones only. The successor chips to the 3GAE are the 3GAP models, which could commence high-volume production in Samsung Foundry by 2023. The Samsung Roadmap also provides timelines for several other chip technologies like the 5LPP and 4LPP, which are slated for 2021 and 2022 high-volume production, respectively.
Samsung Foundry is the second-largest smartphone chip-maker after TSMC. It is an independent arm of Samsung and continues to provide critical supplies that have made Samsung sufficiently weather the global chip shortage without significantly affecting its overall outlook. It had been reported previously that Samsung was skipping the 4nm process, with a focus on the 3nm process. While the current chips adorning Samsung’s latest flagship offerings is built on the 5nm-process, the 3nm chips will be smaller, more powerful, and more efficient.
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