Toshiba readies 40nm node, but is Sony?

Toshiba has shipped its 65nm logic process for some time. "It has shifted into 'pilot line' production for its 40nm, high-performance logic process," said Masakazu Kakumu, corporate VP and VP, system LSI division, Toshiba Semiconductor Co.

Kakumu hinted that the 40nm, high-performance process is ready with a low-power version that will be launched in mid-2009. The first client for the high-performance process is Sony, but is it tardy with its design? Sony is expected to deliver a 45nm version of its graphics engine for the PlayStation 3 game console to Toshiba. The chip is being developed on a foundry basis by Toshiba.

"We are waiting for the graphics engine from Sony,'' he said during an interview at the 5th ISMI Symposium on Manufacturing Effectiveness, which is sponsored by Sematech. He did not elaborate the details.

Toshiba has two main 300mm logic fabs, which process the 65nm and 40nm chips. The fabs are situated in Nagasaki and Oita in Japan.

Last year, Sony sold and shifted to Toshiba its 300mm wafer line fabrication facilities installed in Fab 2 of Sony Semiconductor Kyushu Corp.'s Nagasaki Technology Center.

Manufacturing will begin with 65nm process, and the partnership will promote migration to 45nm process mass production, in collaboration with Toshiba's system LSI manufacturing operation in Oita.

- Mark LaPedus
EE Times