Samsung Electronics has expanded its portfolio of battlefield and power semiconductor solutions by unveiling customized solutions ranging from cutting-edge 2nm to 8-inch legacy processes, developing 5nm eMRAM, and expanding the BCD process.

Samsung Electronics held the 'Samsung Foundry Forum 2023' in Munich, Germany on the 19th and revealed its cutting-edge process roadmap and foundry strategies for each application, including automotive.

On this day, Samsung Electronics showcased various customized solutions ranging from the cutting-edge 2nm process to legacy processes utilizing 8-inch wafers, while SAFE (Samsung Advanced Foundry Ecosystem) partners shared the latest foundry technology trends and future development directions through their booth exhibitions.

Following the IAA event in early September, Samsung Electronics is expanding its cooperation with European customers and strengthening its position as a key partner in the battlefield at this forum.

Choi Si-young, President of Samsung Electronics Foundry Business Division, said, “We plan to develop a process optimized for the automotive semiconductor market in a timely manner and mass-produce autonomous driving-related artificial intelligence (AI) semiconductors, power semiconductors, and MCUs (Micro Controller Units) according to customer needs,” adding, “We will lead the era of electric and autonomous vehicles with Samsung Electronics’ own differentiated foundry solutions.”all.

Samsung Electronics is preparing to complete mass production of its cutting-edge 2nm battlefield solutions by 2026, while expanding its portfolio of next-generation embedded Magnetic Random Access Memory (eMRAM) and 8-inch BCD processes.

The BCD process implements Bipolar (analog signal control), CMOS (digital signal control), and DMOS (high voltage management) transistors on a single chip, and is mainly used in the production of power semiconductors.

At this forum, Samsung Electronics revealed its ambition to lead next-generation battlefield foundry technology, including announcing plans to develop 5nm eMRAM for the first time in the industry.

eMRAM is a next-generation core memory semiconductor for battlefields that can operate stably even at high temperatures based on fast read and write speeds.

Samsung Electronics was the first in the industry to mass-produce a product equipped with eMRAM based on a 28nm FD-SOI process in 2019, and is currently developing a 14nm eMRAM based on a FinFET process in compliance with AEC-Q100 Grade 1, with the goal of completion in 2024.

FD-SOI (Fully Depleted Silicon-on-Insulator) is a technology that forms a non-conductive insulating film (SiO2) on a silicon wafer and configures a transistor on top of it, which can significantly reduce the leakage current that occurs during transistor operation.

AEC-Q100 (Automotive Electronic Council) is a standard used worldwide that was established by the Automotive Parts Association to specify reliability evaluation procedures and criteria for automotive electronic components. Auto Grade is divided into 0 to 3 levels according to temperature criteria.

It also plans to expand its eMRAM portfolio to 8nm in 2026 and 5nm in 2027. For 8nm eMRAM, integration density is expected to increase by 30% and speed by 33% compared to the previous 14nm.

Samsung Electronics is also strengthening its 8-inch BCD process portfolio.

Samsung Electronics plans to expand its 130nm full-length BCD process, which is currently in mass production, to 90nm by 2025, and the 90nm full-length BCD process is expected to reduce chip area by about 20% compared to the 130nm process.

In addition, the company plans to increase the high voltage applied to the full-range solution from the existing 70 volts to 120 volts by utilizing DTI (Deep Trench Isolation) technology, and plans to provide a process design kit (PDK) that applies 120 volts to the 130-nanometer BCD process in 2025.

DTI (Deep Trench Isolation) is a technology that further improves the performance of power semiconductors by reducing the gap between transistors and improving the phenomenon of device characteristics deteriorating due to current leakage and overcurrent.

Samsung Electronics has established the MDI (Multi Die Integration) Alliance, a cutting-edge package consultative body, with 20 partners including SAFE partners, memory, package substrate, and test specialists.

In addition, we will lead the cutting-edge package council and develop differentiated 2.5D and 3D package solutions for each application, such as battlefields and high-performance computing (HPC).