Samsung Electronics is partnering with Arm in a foundry collaboration on 7/5-nanometer (nm) FinFET process technology, in order to achieve 3GHz+ computing performance.
Based on Samsung Foundry's 7LPP (7nm Low Power Plus) and 5LPE (5nm Low Power Early) process technologies, the Arm Artisan physical IP platform will enable 3GHz+ computing performance for Arm's Cortex-A76 processor.
At launch, Arm said Cortex-A76 chips would even challenge Intel's Core i7 on performance, meaning it could benefit not just smartphones but laptops too, such as 'always connected' Windows 10 on Arm devices from HP and Lenovo, which use Qualcomm's Snapdragon 835.
Samsung says that its 7LPP process technology will be ready for its initial production in the second half of 2018. The first extreme ultra violet (EUV) lithography process technology, and its key IPs, are in development and expected to be completed by the first half of 2019. Samsung promises that its 5LPE technology will allow greater area scaling and ultra-low power benefits.
The Arm Artisan physical IP platform for Samsung's 7LPP and 5LPE includes HD logic architecture, a suite of memory compilers, and 1.8V and 3.3V GPIO libraries. In addition, for Samsung's 7LPP and 5LPE process technologies, Arm will provide Artisan POP IP solutions on its latest processor cores featuring Arm DynamIQ technology.
Details of the recent updates to Samsung's Foundry roadmap, from 7nm EUV development to 3GAAE (3nm Gate-All-Around Early) technology, and top-notch design enablement solutions were presented at Samsung Foundry Forum 2018 Korea on July 5, 2018, in Seoul.