After the chips engraved in 7nm and 5nm, Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company (TSMC) announced Thursday that it has started mass production of its 3 nanometer chips.
It’s a “significant step in advanced manufacturing,” said the semiconductor giant, which is also Apple’s main chip supplier.
Recall that last June, Samsung started producing chips using the 3nm advanced process node, its most advanced chip production technology to date. The South Korean tech giant said its 3nm process is aimed at a low-power, high-performance computing application.
Mega-deal with Apple
These new microchips have greater computing power, while being less energy-consuming.
TSMC estimates that 3nm technology will “create finished products with a market value of US$1.5 trillion within five years of volume production”, serving in many fields such as smartphones and cars.
“We aim to grow with our upstream and downstream supply chain and develop future talent, from design to manufacturing, packaging and testing, equipment and materials, to deliver the technology of most competitive advanced process and reliable capability for the world and to drive technological innovation in the future,” said Mark Liu, President of TSMC.
The Taiwanese founder won a mega-contract with Apple last September. TSMC will be responsible for equipping Apple’s “in-house” mobile processor, the A17 processor. This will eventually be mass-produced using TSMC’s N3E chip fabrication technology, which is expected to be available in the second half of 2023.