Infineon Technologies AG (Korea CEO Seung-Soo Lee) has adopted TSMC's RRAM (Resistive RAM) non-volatile memory (NVM) technology into its automotive MCUs, paving the way for the next step in embedded memory towards 28 nm and beyond.

Infineon announced on the 6th that it will apply TSMC's RRAM (Resistive RAM) non-volatile memory (NVM) technology to Infineon's next-generation AURIX™ microcontrollers (MCUs).

Embedded flash microcontrollers have been a key building block of automotive electronic control units (ECUs) since the first advent of engine management systems.

As a key component for realizing clean, safe, and smart automobiles, it is used in propulsion systems, vehicle dynamics control, driver assistance, and body applications, and it enables innovation in electrification, new E/E architecture, and autonomous driving.

Most MCU products on the market today are based on embedded flash memory technology.

RRAM enables the next step in embedded memory, moving toward 28nm and beyond.

Infineon's AURIX TC4x microcontrollers combine extended performance with advanced features such as virtualization, security and networking to enable next-generation software-defined automation.It enables cars and new E/E architectures.

TSMC and Infineon have successfully laid the foundation for introducing RRAM to automotive applications.

RRAM is fault tolerant and can be written at the bit level without erasing. Its endurance and data retention performance are comparable to flash technology.

“TSMC and Infineon have enjoyed a long and successful collaboration dating back to the first-generation AURIX TC2x products, and have collaborated on RRAM NVM technology for nearly a decade across a wide range of applications,” said Dr. Kevin Zhang, VP of Business Development at TSMC. “The transition of the TC4x to RRAM opens up new possibilities by enabling MCU size reduction using smaller nodes.”

“The AURIX TC3x is the most preferred automotive microcontroller for a wide range of applications,” said Thomas Boehm, Senior Vice President, Automotive Microcontrollers at Infineon. “Based on TSMC’s RRAM technology, the AURIX TC4x will further expand this success with improved ASIL-D performance, artificial intelligence capabilities and the latest networking interfaces such as 10Base T1S Ethernet and CAN-XL. RRAM technology helps to scale performance, reduce power consumption and save costs.”

Infineon is already sampling its AURIX TC4x products based on TSMC’s 28nm eFlash technology to key customers. Samples based on 28nm RRAM technology are planned for the end of 2023. Further information is available at infineon.com/aurixTC4x.