Intel details how its 10nm manufacturing process is
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Intel has released two videos on its chip design and manufacturing process that give us a rare glimpse not only of the company's production process, but also of its troublesome 10nm process.
Intel details how its 10nm manufacturing process is, which has given it so many headaches
Intel's problems with the 10nm process are well documented. The company has suffered almost incalculable damage to its long-term work plans due to the delay in mass production of its most recent node, and has even recently been quoted as not expecting to achieve parity with its competitors (most likely in reference to third-party smelter TSMC) until it releases its 7nm process in late 2021.
The video covers the manufacturing process, and while it's worth it to see it all, Intel's deep dive into transistor technology begins at approximately 1:50 a.m. from the video. Here the company details its FinFET transistor technology and describes the impressive number of steps required to build a single transistor (more than 1, 000). However, these photolithography, engraving, deposition, and other steps apply to an entire wafer that has multiple dice each carrying billions of transistors. Intel details their contact on Active Door Technology (COAG) at 3:10 in the video.
The video also gives us a glimpse into the dizzying and complex network of interconnections present on the chip. These tiny wires connect the incredibly small transistors to each other, making communication easy, and they are stacked in a complex 3D cluster.
However, these little wires may be mere atoms thick, which can lead to fault-inducing electromigration. Smaller transistors require thinner wires, but that also leads to higher resistance that requires more current to drive a signal, complicating matters. To meet that challenge, Intel traded copper for cobalt.
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The company is looking for its new technologies that are not fully contingent on process leadership, such as EMIB and Foveros, and plans to adopt new chiplet- based architectures.
We'd love to see more detailed videos of the inner workings of other modern process nodes, in particular TSMC's 7nm node.
While we waited, Intel also released another chip-making video that is decidedly more basic and obviously geared toward less savvy users.
Intel officially announces its manufacturing process at 10nm
Intel is proud to announce its 10nm manufacturing process, which enables it to bind twice as many transistors as competing processes.
Tsmc talks about its manufacturing process at 5nm finfet
TSMC is already planning its process roadmap to 5nm, which it hopes to have ready at some point in 2020, all the improvements it will offer.
Intel delays its manufacturing process at 7nm until 2022
Intel announces a 2-year delay in its 7nm processors that will finally arrive in 2022, five years after the Cannonlakes at 10nm.
