ARN

Intel, Micron venture starts making 34nm flash chips

Intel and Micron's flash memory joint venture has started manufacturing chips using 34-nanometer technology.

A company owned jointly by Intel and memory maker Micron Technology started mass producing NAND flash memory chips using tiny 34-nanometer technology, the companies said Monday.

NAND flash memory is used to store songs, movies and more in iPods, iPhones and a range of other consumer electronics goods.

The Intel-Micron joint venture, IM Flash Technologies, expects 50 percent of the chips at its factory in Lehi, Utah to be made using 34nm technology by the end of this year.

The nanometer measurement describes the size of the smallest transistors and other parts that can be manufactured on a single chip. There are about three to six atoms in a nanometer, depending on the type of atom, and there are a billion nanometers in a meter.

Chip makers such as Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing (TSMC) and Intel currently mass produce chips using technology as tiny as 40nm to 45nm. Generally, the more transistors on a chip and the closer they are together, the faster the chip can perform tasks.

Aside from performance, companies are working to make chips smaller and less expensive because people want ever-smaller, cheaper devices.

IM Flash is manufacturing 32G byte NAND chips the size of a thumbnail with its 34nm technology, and expects the chips to be used in small solid-state drives (SSDs) or flash memory cards aimed at products including digital cameras, digital camcorders and personal music players.

The 32G byte chips are multi-level cell (MLC) chips, which means they can handle more rewrites than the single level cell (SLC) variety of NAND flash.

Samsung Electronics, the world's largest NAND flash memory chip maker, is currently upgrading its chip factories to use 42nm technology and plans to start 30nm production next year.

The company showed off a multi-level cell 64G byte NAND flash memory chip made using 30nm manufacturing technology last year.

Come socialise with us! Facebook | LinkedIn

More about: Billion, Consumer Electronics, Intel, Micron, MLC, Samsung, Samsung Electronics, Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing, TSMC

Comments

Post new comment

The content of this field is kept private and will not be shown publicly.
Users posting comments agree to the ARN comments policy.
Login or register to link comments to your user profile, or you may also post a comment without being logged in.
Related Coverage
Related Whitepapers
Latest Stories
Community Comments
Tags: micron technology, nand
ARN Directory | Distributors relevant to this article
Alloys , Aquion , ASI Solutions , Australasian PC Distributors (APCD) , Brightpoint Australia , Compucon Computers , Dicker Data , ICT Distribution , Impact Systems Technology , Leader Computers , Multimedia Technology , Synnex Australia , Topstar Computer International , XiT Distribution , Xpress I.T. , Dynamic Supplies
rhs_login_lockGet exclusive access to ARN's news, research and invitation only events.
ARN Distributor Directory
Find distributors by name | vendor | location
Channel Deals
/deals/aca-pacific/415_bonus-500-gift-card-with-every-sgi-is5000-sp-s
ACA Pacific

Bonus $500 Gift Card with Every SGI IS5000-SP Storage Subsystem. Ends June 30th, 2012.

More details »
ARN Vendor Directory
Find vendors by name | category

iAsset is a channel management ecosystem that automates all major aspects of the entire sales,marketing and service process, including data tracking, integrated learning, knowledge management and product lifecycle management.