3D Transisters in Next-Generation 22nm Chips - Intel

geethq

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  • Sep 17, 2006
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    planar_vs_tri-gate-5170578.jpg

    demonstration of a three-dimensional transistors
    (see the video clip)

    Intel has advanced its chip manufacturing technology with three-dimensional transistors that could make PCs,
    smart phones and tablets faster and more power-efficient.
    The company said Wednesday that it will implement three-dimensional transistors
    when making chips using its latest 22-nanometer manufacturing technology.
    The new chip technology, called tri-gate transistors, replaces flat, two-dimensional
    streams of transistors with a 3D structure, said Mark Bohr, an Intel senior fellow.
    A flat, two-dimensional planar gate is replaced with a thin, three-dimensional fin that
    rises up vertically from the silicon substrate.

    60240004.jpg

    Silicon Wafer

    The technology will allow Intel to create transistors that are faster, smaller and more power-efficient, Bohr said.
    The benefits of the new technology will range across the product lines from the
    fastest server to the most power-efficient smart phone chips made by Intel.

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    Wafers with Micro Chips

    "We have to continually innovate new material and structures," Bohr said during a press conference held in San Francisco, which was webcast.
    "With 22-nanometer, this is the new structure."



    The tri-gate transistors will be up to 37 percent faster than Intel's current chips made using the existing 32-nm process.
    The 3D transistors also consume less than half the power of 2D transistors on 32-nm chips. The chips will also be cheaper, Bohr said.

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    Chip manufacturing process

    The new design could help the company catch up with chip makers using ARM processor designs, Perlmutter said.
    ARM processors, which are used in most tablets and smartphones today, are considered more power-efficient than Intel's x86 processors.

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    Manufacturing Process

    Intel researched the tri-gate transistor for 10 years, and Bohr claimed the company will be the first to put this technology into manufacturing.
    Other companies have explored 3D transistors,
    but have plans to send it to manufacturing with the 14-nm process technology.

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    Manufacturing Process

    Intel advances its manufacturing process every two years, which helps make chips smaller and drives raw system performance while using less power.
    The first chips to use the 22-nm process will be Core chips for desktops and PCs built on a microarchitecture code-named Ivy Bridge.
    The Ivy Bridge chips will have new features, including hardware support for the latest DirectX 11 graphics technology.
    Intel has also said it would release 22-nm processors for tablets in 2013.

    SiliconWafer.jpg

    Silicon Wafer with Chips


    Intel in October last year announced it would invest between US$6 billion and $8 billion to manufacture new chips for PCs, smartphones,
    consumer electronics and embedded devices. Some of those funds will be spent on upgrading factories to make chips using the new 22-nm process.
    In addition, Intel in February this year also announced it would invest $5 billion to build a new chip manufacturing facility in Arizona, which is expected to be completed by 2013.


    source