Samsung sets up new production line for 5nm chips

Samsung starts construction of a new chip production line in Pyeongtaek in South Korea. The factory focuses on 5nm chips and upcoming smaller chip generations that are mainly intended for 5g, high-performance computing and artificial intelligence.

Construction at the site, 70 kilometers south of the Korean capital, Seoul, started this month and mass production of 5nm chips is expected to begin in the second half of 2021. With this production, Samsung wants to respond to the increasing demand for economical chips that are made in a small process, in which the manufacturer emphasizes 5g, hpc and artificial intelligence.

The fab uses euv machines, the successors of machines that work on the basis of immersion lithography for chip production. New generations of euv machines should also be used for 3nm production and smaller. Samsung has been using euv for its 7nm chip production since early 2019 and at the beginning of this year added a euv production line for 7nm at its fab in hwaseong, korean. In total, Samsung has seven chip production lines: six using 12″ wafers and one making chips from 8″ wafers. In particular, Samsung competes with TSMC in chip production.

Samsung Foundry in Pyeongtaek