China-based Yangtze Reminiscence Applied sciences (YMTC) has introduced the most recent iteration of its Xtacking NAND expertise (now in its third technology), ushering in a brand new period of pace, density, and improved energy effectivity. In accordance with the corporate, its newest NAND chips (X3-9070) enhance efficiency by 50% over earlier designs (primarily based on its 128-layer Xtacking 2.0 tech), whereas doubling density to 1TB per chip. Paired with a 25% discount in energy consumption regardless of the improved pace, plainly Apple would possibly discover much more causes to undertake the corporate’s tech.
“The arrival of YMTC’s self-developed Silicon Stack 3.0 structure is a vital breakthrough within the 3D NAND monitor,” stated Gregory Wong, founder and chief analyst of Ahead Insights. “It has been confirmed that the hybrid bonding of storage arrays and peripheral logic circuits is crucial to drive the event and innovation of 3D NAND expertise.”
YMTC’s Xtacking 3.0 tech brings a few claimed 50% efficiency enchancment over the earlier technology, reaching 2,400 MT/s over the earlier gen’s most of 1,600 MT/s. The corporate pins each the efficiency and energy effectivity enhancements on its adoption of a 6-plane NAND design, as a substitute of the extra conventional 4-plane of the earlier technology. The doubling in density is nothing to scoff at both, and is a required growth in a world with ever-increasing information storage wants.
Curiously, YMTC would not but appear to have deployed its 196-layer NAND design with the announcement of the X3-9070 NAND chips. The corporate’s next-generation NAND tech was slated to enter manufacturing someday within the second half of this yr, however any references to it in quantity manufacturing are nonetheless absent. It could be that the corporate encountered difficulties within the transition, or maybe it is only a case of it adopting a tick-tock like manufacturing and analysis course of — first determining the brand new 6-plane design, enhancing yields, with a later introduction of their new layer density.
Regardless of its technological developments, YMTC remains to be trailing Micron and different NAND producers all over the world. Micron has introduced quantity manufacturing of its 232-layer NAND tech for later this yr, with some spectacular density and efficiency traits, whereas SK Hynix is sizzling off our personal presses with its 238-layer designs. YMTC’s battle continues to be an uphill one, however it’s spectacular what the corporate has achieved whereas fielding solely two 300mm wafer fabs for its precise manufacturing runs. The corporate must scale additional in an effort to seize any sizable market share, however it appears its R&D investments have been paying off – regardless of persevering with US stress — the most recent of which particularly addresses NAND applied sciences.
China particularly possesses one of many largest addressable markets throughout the globe, and firms worldwide take a look at it — and the potential earnings — with a sure twinkle of their eyes. The rising stress on China’s expertise imports imposed by the US has led the nation’s management — and its firms — to give attention to growing home expertise that is ready to not solely serve its market, however the varied billion-dollar tech markets. NAND is however a slice of it — however a major one, valued at $66.52 billion in 2021 (anticipated to achieve $94.24 billion in worth by 2027).
