Samsung Electronics has ordered new advanced chip-making machinery with the goal of increasing production yields of high-bandwidth memory (HBM) chips in a bid to win a deal from AI processor maker Nvidia. Reuters report.
The South Korean chipmaker plans to introduce mass reflow molding underfill (MR-MUF) technology, first used by rival SK Hynix, to boost the yield of HBM chips, the news agency said, citing multiple sources. It was reported as. Mass production using the new method will not begin until next year at the earliest, as trials are carried out.
Samsung denied switching technology, insisting that the current non-conductive film (NCF) method was the “optimal solution” and would be used to manufacture the new HBM chips.
However, sources said, Reuters Samsung plans to use both technologies for future high-end chips, noting that the latest HBM chips using NCF have a yield of 10-20% compared to SK Hynix's 60-70%. There is.
Samsung is reportedly considering sourcing MUF materials from various suppliers, including Japan-based Nagase.
The vendor said it will begin offering samples of its latest HBM chip, the HBM3E, to customers at the end of February, with mass production expected in the first half of this year.
TrendForce said late last year that its findings showed Nvidia plans to diversify its HBM suppliers for “more robust and efficient supply chain management.”
In an earnings conference call at the end of January, SK Hynix Chief Financial Officer Kim Woo-hyun highlighted the remarkable turnaround in revenue in the final quarter of 2023, which he attributed to the company's “technological leadership in the AI memory field.” It was evaluated that
