SK Hynix develops 3rd-generation 10nm DRAM

SK Hynix has succeeded in developing a 16-Gigabit (Gb) DDR4 DRAM on the third-generation 10 nanometer (nm) production process. The South Korean memory chip provider plans to start supplying the newly developed chip from next year, when the global chip market is expected to recover, after getting ready for its mass production within the year.

The new chip from SK Hynix has 27% higher yield than the second-generation 1y-nm DRAM chips and allows a very competitive production cost as it does not require extreme ultraviolet (EUV) lithography. The 10nm-class DRAM chips are classified into first-generation (1x), second-generation (1y), and third-generation (1z) depending on complexity of their fabrication process. The higher the generation is, the smaller the size of a single chip, increasing the number of chips per wafer. As for DDR, it is categorized into DDR3 and DDR4, depending on their processing speed.

“The third-generation 10nm 16 Gb DRAM has the highest density for a single chip,” said SK Hynix. “We’ve maximized the capacitance of its new product by applying a new substance, which was not used in its previous-generation manufacturing processes.”

“The third-generation 10nm DDR4 DRAM is the product that fully satisfies the needs of our customers with industry’s best capacity, speed, and power efficiency,” said Lee Jeong-hoon, head of SK Hynix’s DRAM Development 1z Task Force. “SK Hynix will start mass production of its new product in full swing in 2020 to meet market demand.”


Dong-Il Seo dong@donga.com