No one is blocking the front, not Coronavirus. According to a plan set by the Taiwan company TSMC, it will be this year that its new 5nm lithographic process will go, directly and horizontally to the current 7nm and that will also represent a jump in performance or utility.
However, they will not stop there and they are just looking face to face at atomic silicon, which limits where they are, and they are obviously planning a fight not too far away.
TSMC 1 nm, true, myth or something unavoidable?
The Taiwanese are so clear on the sidewalk with their lithographic processes that they are really scary. The steps that will continue to be launched with its 5 nm volume this year will be:
- TSMC 3nm by 2022.
- 2 nm TSMC by 2024.
From there everything is read, because the difference between atoms sets the paradigm of curiosity in the vast array of wafers and chips. Procedure for 1nm undoubtedly the physical limit of semiconductors of silicon, it is the ratio of the transistor to the actual size of the atom and at the same time the mark of man as an intelligent animal in this field.
Unsurprisingly, TSMC confirms that by mid-2020 it is approaching this 1 nm lithographic process, step by step day by day, but surprisingly, they do not see it as impossible, when just two years ago it was a lot more reasonable than achievable in practice.
After the announcement, what is the next step, what is the future of the industry?
If reaching nm as a spherical mass and the atomic boundary itself is a difficult thing to do today, the TSMC R&D leader assures that they will continue to push for greater momentum. How can you make a silicon transistor smaller than an atom?
Converting synthetic materials into focus on others on a smaller scale. Philip Wong has specifically mentioned hydrogen atoms, nanoblades, carbon nanotubes and other materials to take to the 0.1 nm scale, that is, "imaginary" (we already know how the process of etencencia works is lithographic ) you can create a transistor between eight and 10 times the size of an atom.
This will be followed by things like PRAM (phase shift memory) and other 3D stacking technology. So, we are at the beginning of a new era where the concept of the processor and transistor will be completely explained (we have already talked about in some very broad articles) and that will take people to computer power levels. that today we can't even dream, just as in 1960 they couldn't even imagine the sense of power and power we have today.
Without a doubt, the best thing is that we will witness this progress that will redefine the world, giving life to new devices today that can be seen as science fiction. Welcome to the future, when the transistor will soon be 500 times smaller than a virus like COVID-19.
