AMD to Adopt Samsung 4nm Process for Next-Gen I/O Chips

According to a recent report by TechPowerUp, AMD is testing the implementation of Samsung's 4nm process technology for manufacturing new I/O chips. The process in question is expected to be Samsung's 4LPP (SF4) technology.

In July 2024, during AMD's Tech Day event in San Francisco, the company updated its CPU roadmap, officially confirming the transition from the Zen 5 series to the upcoming Zen 6 architecture. The Zen 6 series will feature both Zen 6 and Zen 6c cores, which employ a big.LITTLE architecture. However, AMD did not specify a release date for the Zen 6 series or confirm the process node it would adopt at the time.

Recent reports indicated that the charge-coupled device (CCD) of the Zen 6 architecture would be manufactured using TSMC's N3E process, while the new I/O chip (IOD) would utilize TSMC's N4C process. However, TechPowerUp now reveals that AMD is exploring the use of Samsung's 4LPP process technology for the production of these I/O chips.

In terms of specifications, Samsung's 4LPP process offers transistor density comparable to TSMC's N5 process, with notable improvements over TSMC's N6 process. This suggests that by leveraging Samsung's advanced 4LPP technology, AMD can reduce the power consumption of its I/O chips while incorporating enhanced power management solutions. The main focus for these new I/O chips is to update the memory controller, supporting faster DDR5 speeds and new DIMM designs, such as CUDIMM memory modules.

While Samsung's wafer manufacturing processes have previously raised concerns about yield performance, earlier market reports suggest that, although Samsung's 4nm yield rate remains lower than TSMC's, it has significantly improved from an initial 25% to nearly 70%. This enhancement in yield rate indicates that Samsung is making substantial progress in refining its manufacturing capabilities, potentially influencing AMD's decision to integrate Samsung's 4nm process technology.

At present, this information has not been confirmed by AMD, and further developments are expected as the situation unfolds.