Samsung’s 3nm GAA Process fails to produce a better result than the 4nm process

According to the newest source, Samsung is not only having trouble mass-producing on its 4nm process, but it is also having problems with its 3nm GAA node. At this pace,…

By Nivedita Bangari

April 21, 2022

2 min read

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According to the newest source, Samsung is not only having trouble mass-producing on its 4nm process, but it is also having problems with its 3nm GAA node. At this pace, it’s safe to anticipate that companies like Qualcomm and MediaTek will refuse to fulfil Samsung’s orders.

Samsung’s work with their 3nm GAA technology is detailed in a piece from Business Post that was seen by DigiTimes. Unfortunately, yield rates have just recently risen to between 10% and 20%. With a yield rate of roughly 35%, the Korean company has achieved better results with its 4nm process, which was utilised to finish Qualcomm’s Snapdragon 8 Gen 1 orders.

Even a 35% output rate is pitiful when compared to TSMC’s stated 70% yield rate, which explains why Qualcomm switched it’s Snapdragon 8 Gen 1 and Snapdragon 8 Gen 1 Plus orders to the Taiwanese company. Samsung’s second-generation 3nm process will be available to customers next year, but if yield rates do not improve, Qualcomm will be forced to continue with TSMC for its next-generation Snapdragon 8 Gen 2, even if it means paying a premium for exclusivity.

Samsung was planning to use its 3nm GAA to build its in-house Exynos Silicon’s

Samsung was previously reported to be developing a new Exynos family for future Galaxy smartphones, however, it is unclear whether they will use the 3nm GAA process.

There’s no news on whether TSMC will face the same issues as Samsung when switching to GAA transistor technology, but if history and current performance are any indications, the Taiwanese company has consistently produced higher-quality chips than its foundry rival. It’s not surprising that behemoths like Apple continue to place enormous orders with TSMC every year.

The Density 9000, TSMC’s first 4nm SoC, is now the fastest Android smartphone chipset on the market, demonstrating firsthand how a better manufacturing process can improve both speed and power efficiency.