Elpida touts low-power 50nm SDRAM

The new device measures 40mm?, supports data rates up to 2.5Gbit/second and can run on power supplies as low as 1.2V. It will be in volume production before April.

The new chip arrives at a time when analysts expect a shakeout among DRAM suppliers amid falling prices. Elpida ranks third among DRAM makers but gained ground recently against number two Hynix.

Top DRAM supplier Samsung recently discussed a variety of new materials and circuit designs for memory chips it will make in its 56nm process.

Elpida targets the new DRAM at high-end desktop PCs, but it expects it will also find use in notebooks and servers as those designs transition to DDR3. The company will also apply the new process to its MobileRAM chips and other devices aimed at high-end digital consumer systems.

Elpida's 50nm process uses 193nm immersion lithography and copper interconnects

-EE Times