Samsung's new 14nm EUV DDR5 DRAM in mass production

Using extreme ultraviolet (EUV) technology, Samsung Electronics has begun mass producing the world's smallest dynamic random-access memory (DRAM), measuring only 14 nanometers (nm).

Following the world's first EUV DRAM shipment in March 2020, Samsung has now increased the number of EUV layers for its Double Data Rate 5 (DDR5) solutions to five.

With DRAM scaling down to 10nm or smaller, EUV technology becomes increasingly important for higher performance and greater yields.

Samsung achieved the highest bit density while increasing wafer productivity by about 20% by applying five EUV layers to its 14nm DRAM. The 14nm process also contributes to a 20% reduction in power consumption when compared to previous generations of DRAM.

“We have led the DRAM market for nearly three decades by pioneering key patterning technology innovations,” said Jooyoung Lee, senior vice president and head of DRAM product and technology at Samsung Electronics.

Lee added, “Today, Samsung is setting another technology milestone with multi-layer EUV that has enabled extreme miniaturization at 14nm — a feat not possible with the conventional argon fluoride (ArF) process. Building on this advancement, we will continue to provide the most differentiated memory solutions by fully addressing the need for greater performance and capacity in the data-driven world of 5G, AI and the metaverse.”

Samsung's 14nm DRAM harnesses the latest DDR5 standard, allowing it to deliver unprecedented speeds of up to 7.2 gigabits per second (Gbps), more than double the speed of DDR4 at 3.2Gbps.

The firm also announced plans to expand its 14nm DDR5 product line to support data centers, supercomputers, and enterprise server applications. Furthermore, Samsung plans to increase its 14nm DRAM chip density to 24Gb to meet the rising demands of the global IT industry.

Earlier this year, Samsung unveiled an AI-integrated memory solution to enhance high-speed data processing in supercomputers and AI applications, an industry-first.