TSMC dedicates over 300 boffins to its 3nm process R&D

[HEXUS]

And when they've finished they will start work on TSMC's 1nm process, says report.

Read more.

[DanceswithUnix]

1nm?? We really are looking at just marketing labels at this point aren't we.

[shaithis]

3000pm process!

it has to be time to start busting out the picometers soon

[DanceswithUnix]

Ah, but it gives you an 800pm Experience

[ClowHD]

Now it may sound like a lot 300 boffins but Intel has that number dedicated to make sure the office chairs do not squeak.

[scaryjim]

I had no idea hobbits knew so much about lithography....

[CAT-THE-FIFTH]

I had no idea hobbits knew so much about lithography....

Small transistors need small people,innit??

[Peter Parker]

At 14nm, I think the minimum pitch distance between FinFET fins is a actually ~42nm. The fin itself is much narrower though. Spacing in a silicon crystal is about 240pm, so perhaps 175 atoms between them? Rough guesses.

Scaling isn't linear, but let's guess at "3nm" there's ... 50 atoms? Possibly not silicon. Hard to imagine just 50 atoms staying in place reliably for each of billions of transistors, so yield will be a mess.

And at 1nm ... what would that even be? A 6 carbon atom benzene molecule is about 0.24nm across, so you more like molecular transistors. Can't wait to see how they work out how to position a billion molecules precisely !

[Percy1983]

I remember my first PC with a 350mhxz Pentium 2 wasn't that 0.25 µm, how time flies.

[DanceswithUnix]

I remember my first PC with a 350mhxz Pentium 2 wasn't that 0.25 µm, how time flies.

My first home computer was a 1.79MHz Z80 with an entire 16K of ram. That seems to be on a 5um or 4um process depending on which website you look at.

[Sunderas]

The smaller the print the more efficient it tends to be.

[MercutioUK]

"Many boffins died to bring us this information." - TSMC some time in 2018/19 announcing 1nm lithography.

[Xlucine]

My first home computer was a 1.79MHz Z80 with an entire 16K of ram. That seems to be on a 5um or 4um process depending on which website you look at.

That might as well be hand-carved!

[DanceswithUnix]

That might as well be hand-carved!

Have a laugh at this: http://www.wagnercg.com/Portals/0/Fu...istorCount.pdf

[peterb]

My first home computer was a 1.79MHz Z80 with an entire 16K of ram. That seems to be on a 5um or 4um process depending on which website you look at.

Mine too, details in my system! (but I had more RAM, but then 48K was more than enough!)