Young Hyun Jun, Vice Chairman and Head of Device Solutions (DS) Division, was named CEO and will also become the Head of Memory Business and Samsung Advanced Institute of Technology. Jinman Han was promoted to President and will become the Head of Foundry Business, while Seok Woo Nam will become Chief Technology Officer of Foundry Business, a newly-created position.

JH Han, Vice Chairman, CEO and Head of Device eXperience (DX) Division, will also lead a newly-created committee that will focus on strengthening product quality across the company.

Jinman Han was previously Executive Vice President and President of Device Solutions America, leading the Company’s semiconductor business in the U.S. Previously, he worked in design teams for DRAM and Flash memory and has also led SSD development and strategic marketing.

Seok Woo Nam, previously President and Head of FAB Engineering & Operations, is an expert in semiconductor process development and manufacturing with extensive experience in memory process technology and foundry manufacturing technology.

Hansung Ko, CEO of Samsung Bioepis, has vast experience in developing new business areas such as biotechnology and is expected to lead efforts in finding new growth opportunities.

Other changes in today’s announcement include:

• Yong Kwan Kim, named President of Management Strategy at DS Division; previously Executive Vice President of Business Support TF

• Wonjin Lee, named President and Head of Global Marketing Office; previously executive advisor for Samsung Electronics

• President Hark Kyu Park will move to the Business Support TF; previously Chief Financial Officer

Vice Chairman Jun, who has extensive experience in the semiconductor and battery businesses, joined Samsung Electronics in 2000 and worked in DRAM and Flash memory development as well as in strategic marketing. Jun became Head of the Memory Business in 2014 and CEO of Samsung SDI in 2017, before leading the Future Business Division in 2024.

President Kyehyun Kyung, who has been leading the DS Division, will become the Head of the Future Business Division as well as the Head of Samsung Advanced Institute of Technology (SAIT). He is expected to focus on finding new growth opportunities based on his experience leading the semiconductor business.

Samsung Electronics, the world leader in advanced memory technology, today unveiled the industry’s first removable memory cards based on the JEDEC Universal Flash Storage (UFS) 1.0 Card Extension Standard*, for use in high-resolution mobile shooting devices such as DSLRs, 3D VR cameras, action cams and drones. Coming in a wide range of storage capacities including 256, 128, 64 and 32 gigabyte (GB), Samsung’s UFS cards are expected to bring a significant performance boost to the external memory storage market, allowing much more satisfying multimedia experiences.

“Our new 256GB UFS card will provide an ideal user experience for digitally-minded consumers and lead the industry in establishing the most competitive memory card solution,” said Jung-bae Lee, senior vice president, Memory Product Planning & Application Engineering, Samsung Electronics “By launching our new high-capacity, high-performance UFS card line-up, we are changing the growth paradigm of the memory card market to prioritize performance and user convenience above all.”

Samsung’s new 256GB UFS removable memory card ─ simply referred to as the UFS card will provide greatly improved user experiences, especially in high-resolution 3D gaming and high-resolution movie playback. It provides more than five times faster sequential read performance compared to that of a typical microSD card, reading sequentially at 530 megabytes per second (MB/s) which is similar to the sequential read speed of the most widely used SATA SSDs. With this UFS card, consumers have the ability to read a 5GB, Full-HD movie in approximately 10 seconds, compared to a typical UHS-1 microSD card, which would take over 50 seconds with 95MB/s of sequential reading speed. Also, at a random read rate of 40,000 IOPS, the 256GB card delivers more than 20 times higher random read performance compared to a typical microSD, which offers approximately 1,800 IOPS.

When it comes to writing, the new 256GB UFS card processes 35,000 random IOPS, which is 350 times higher than the 100 IOPs of a typical microSD card, and attains a 170MB/s sequential write speed, almost doubling the top-end microSD card speed. With these substantial performance improvements, the new 256GB UFS card significantly reduces multimedia data downloading time, photo thumbnail loading time and buffer clearing time in burst shooting mode, which, collectively, can be particularly beneficial to DSLR camera users. To shoot 24 large/extra fine JPEG photographs (1,120 megabyte (MB)-equivalent) continuously with a high-end DSLR camera, the 256GB UFS card takes less than seven seconds, compared to a UHS-1 microSD card which typically takes about 32 seconds, at 35MB/s.

To achieve the highest performance and most power-efficient data transport, the UFS card supports multiple commands with command queuing features and enables simultaneous reading and writing through the use of separately dedicated paths, doubling throughput.

As the leading memory storage provider, Samsung has been aggressive in preparing UFS solutions for the marketplace, while contributing to JEDEC standardization of the Universal Flash Storage 2.0 specification in September 2013 and the Universal Flash Storage (UFS) 1.0 Card Extension standard in March 2016. Following its introduction of the industry-first 128GB embedded UFS chip in January 2015, the company successfully launched a 256GB embedded UFS memory for high-end mobile devices in February of this year. As of earlier this month, Samsung also completed the Universal Flash Storage Association** (UFSA)’s certification program that evaluates electrical and functional specifications for compatibility of a UFS card, and Samsung’s new UFS card products were approved as UFSA-certified UFS cards with the right to use the official UFS logo for the first time in the industry.

*Samsung has taken a leading role in standardization of JEDEC Universal Flash Storage (UFS) 1.0 Card Standard, and filed seven design patent applications to USPTO (US Patent and Trade Office) which the company disclosed to all JEDEC members under the RAND (reasonable and non-discriminatory licensing) condition that allows manufacturers to develop UFS card products without royalty. Royalty payment usually encompasses a significant portion of other types of removable card manufacturing. For more information, please visit http://www.jedec.org/news/pressreleases/jedec-publishes-universal-flash-storage-ufs-removable-card-standard/

**UFSA announced the release of a Universal Flash Storage (UFS) Compliance Test Matrix (CTM) in April, 2016. For more information, please visit https://ufsa.org/

The industry’s solution to the dilemma was to adopt three dimensional concepts to semiconductor structures at several different stages of the engineering process, hence ‘3D semiconductor technologies.’

Here are some of the key ‘3D technologies’ that Samsung has introduced to the semiconductor industry, and how they tackled important technical challenges in meeting the market requirements.

14-nanometer FinFET

While conventional 2D transistors started to show several problems, including current leakage (a.k.a. short channel effect) that comes with finer technologies, the 14-nanometer (nm) FinFET technology raises a ‘fin’ that wraps over the conducting channel. This allows better control of the current in finer circuit designs. The new structure significantly decreases data leakage while demonstrating greater power advantages.

Samsung made this cutting-edge technology available at the end of 2014 which has enhanced hardware design and performance in today’s premium mobile devices.

Vertical NAND (V-NAND)

Advanced NAND flash technology at smaller design nodes started to experience issues with performance and durability, including data crosstalk.

In 2013, Samsung reached a breakthrough by mass producing V-NAND memory, which vertically stacks the cells with 3D Charge Trap Flash structures, which drastically increases density with less energy consumption and enhanced endurance. Samsung is currently mass producing its third-generation V-NAND lineup.

TSV (Through Silicon Via)

Instead of the traditional method of connecting the stacked dies externally with gold wire, we are now able to pierce hundreds of fine holes through the dies and then vertically connect them through the holes, allowing faster data processing with less power consumed. This technology is called 3D Through Silicon Via, or TSV.

Early this year, Samsung started mass producing the industry’s fastest DRAM package (4GB) based on the High Bandwidth Memory 2 (HBM2) interface. The state-of-the-art technology allows next-generation High Performance Computing systems and graphics cards brought to life.

Samsung Electronics, the world leader in advanced memory technology, announced today that it has begun mass producing the industry’s first 10-nanometer (nm) class* , 8-gigabit (Gb) DDR4 (double-data-rate-4) DRAM chips and the modules derived from them. DDR4 is quickly becoming the most widely produced memory for personal computers and IT networks in the world, and Samsung’s latest advancement will help to accelerate the industry-wide shift to advanced DDR4 products.

Samsung opened the door to “10nm-class DRAM” for the first time in the industry after overcoming technical challenges in DRAM scaling. These challenges were mastered using currently available ArF (argon fluoride) immersion lithography, free from the use of EUV (extreme ultra violet) equipment.

Samsung’s roll-out of the 10nm-class (1x) DRAM marks yet another milestone for the company after it first mass produced 20-nanometer (nm)** 4Gb DDR3 DRAM in 2014.

“Samsung’s 10nm-class DRAM will enable the highest level of investment efficiency in IT systems, thereby becoming a new growth engine for the global memory industry,” said Young-Hyun Jun, President of Memory Business, Samsung Electronics. “In the near future, we will also launch next-generation, 10nm-class mobile DRAM products with high densities to help mobile manufacturers develop even more innovative products that add to the convenience of mobile device users.”

Samsung’s leading-edge 10nm-class 8Gb DDR4 DRAM significantly improves the wafer productivity of 20nm 8Gb DDR4 DRAM by more than 30 percent.

The new DRAM supports a data transfer rate of 3,200 megabits per second (Mbps), which is more than 30 percent faster than the 2,400Mbps rate of 20nm DDR4 DRAM. Also, new modules produced from the 10nm-class DRAM chips consume 10 to 20 percent less power, compared to their 20nm-process-based equivalents, which will improve the design efficiency of next-generation, high-performance computing (HPC) systems and other large enterprise networks, as well as being used for the PC and mainstream server markets.

The industry-first 10nm-class DRAM is the result of Samsung’s advanced memory design and manufacturing technology integration. To achieve an extremely high level of DRAM scalability, Samsung has taken its technological innovation one step further than what was used for 20nm DRAM. Key technology developments include improvements in proprietary cell design technology, QPT (quadruple patterning technology***) lithography, and ultra-thin dielectric layer**** deposition.

Unlike NAND flash memory, in which a single cell consists of only a transistor, each DRAM cell requires a capacitor and a transistor that are linked together, usually with the capacitor being placed on top of the area where the transistor rests. In the case of the new 10nm-class DRAM, another level of difficulty is added because they have to stack very narrow cylinder-shaped capacitors that store large electric charges, on top of a few dozen nanometer-wide transistors, creating more than eight billion cells.

Samsung successfully created the new 10nm-class cell structure by utilizing a proprietary circuit design technology and quadruple patterning lithography. Through quadruple patterning, which enables use of existing photolithography equipment, Samsung also built the core technological foundation for the development of the next-generation 10nm-class DRAM (1y).

In addition, the use of a refined dielectric layer deposition technology enabled further performance improvements in the new 10nm-class DRAM. Samsung engineers applied ultra-thin dielectric layers with unprecedented uniformity to a thickness of a mere single-digit angstrom (one 10 billionth of a meter) on cell capacitors, resulting in sufficient capacitance for higher cell performance.

Based on its advancements with the new 10nm-class DDR4 DRAM, Samsung expects to also introduce a 10nm-class mobile DRAM solution with high density and speed later this year, which will further solidify its leadership in the ultra-HD smartphone market.

While introducing a wide array of 10nm-class DDR4 modules with capacities ranging from 4GB for notebook PCs to 128GB for enterprise servers, Samsung will be extending its 20nm DRAM line-up with its new 10nm-class DRAM portfolio throughout the year.

*10nm-class denotes a process technology node somewhere between 10 and 19 nanometers, while 20nm-class means a process technology node somewhere between 20 and 29 nanometers.

**Samsung’s achievements in 2014 were about DDR3 and DDR4 products that used 20-nanometer process technology, which should be distinguished from 20nm-class process technology. The company’s first 20nm-class DRAM product actually came out three years earlier. In 2011, Samsung initiated production of 20nm-class 2Gb DDR3, and the year after, started producing a full line-up of DRAM product family that included 20nm-class 4Gb DDR3 and 4Gb LPDDR2 based packages and modules.

***Quadruple patterning is a multiple patterning technology that is used in high-end integrated circuit (IC) manufacturing, especially in the photolithography process. There are many different ways of deploying a multiple patterning technology, but the common goal is to extend the patterning resolution and enhance the feature density beyond that of conventional lithography.

****Dielectric materials are characterized by very low electrical conductivity in which an electric field can be sustained with minimal leakage. In semiconductor manufacturing, dielectric materials are used in many different steps. A major application of dielectric materials in Samsung’s 10nm-class DRAM manufacturing is to insulate capacitors and prevent electric leakage, which will result in a significant increase in capacitance and higher cell performance.

Current technology trends, including the ever-growing mobile traffic, high-quality content, data analyses and IoT platforms all add to the workload of today’s data centers and servers. As such, faster and more reliable memory solutions with heavy-duty capacities are a necessity.

Chip stacking for larger capacities does have clear benefits. However, with conventional packaging techniques that use wire bonding, chip stacks are prone to lag in speed—speed that is especially essential for enterprise servers that handle massive amounts of data. In turn, dies can only be stacked so high, further limiting the chip package capacity.

Through silicon via (TSV) is an advanced chip packaging technology that vertically connects DRAM chip dies using electrodes that penetrate the microns-thick dies through microscopic holes.
The technology marks a breakthrough from traditional wire bonding as it allows for all of the dies in a chip package to maintain their optimum performance which makes higher die stacks possible. A smaller footprint of the physical chip package is an additional bonus.

Samsung announced its TSV DDR4 DRAM in 128GB RDIMM modules for the first time in the industry, which will bring new heights to memory solutions for servers and data centers.

The three most important benefits of this new technology include:

1. Largest Capacity: Samsung’s 128GB TSV DDR4 module doubles the largest capacity of previous DRAM for enterprise servers while continuing to meet the requirements for high speed and reliability.
2. Faster Speeds: By combining TSV technology with 8Gb DRAM die, Samsung’s new TSV DDR4 RDIMM is able to pack in 128GB, meeting the needs of today’s enterprise servers with speeds of up to 2,667 megabits per second (Mbps) and 3,200Mbps. This suggests the possibility of accelerated adoption of TSV in the market, with opportunities for expanded applications in high bandwidth memory (HBM) and consumer products in the future.
3. Better Efficiency: The design of the 128GB TSV DDR4 module is also incredibly innovative. Traditional wire-bond dies are packaged together with a data buffer chip, which regulate the input/output information passing through each DRAM. Samsung’s new 128GB TSV DDR4 module embeds data buffer functions within the master chip in each chip package, producing better performance in a more energy-efficient product. Being manufactured with Samsung’s state-of-the-art 20-nanometer process technology adds to improved performance and energy efficiency, as well. As a result, the 128GB TSV DDR4 reduces the power consumption by half when compared to the previous highest capacity DRAM modules (64GB LRDIMM).

Read more:

Samsung Starts Mass Producing Industry’s First 128-Gigabyte DDR4 Modules for Enterprise Servers

Samsung Electronics announced that it is mass producing the industry’s first “through silicon via” (TSV) double data rate-4 (DDR4) memory in 128-gigabyte (GB) modules, for enterprise servers and data centers.

Following Samsung’s introduction of the world-first 3D TSV DDR4 DRAM (64GB) in 2014, the company’s new TSV registered dual inline memory module (RDIMM) marks another breakthrough that opens the door for ultra-high capacity memory at the enterprise level. Samsung’s new TSV DRAM module boasts the largest capacity and the highest energy efficiency of any DRAM modules today, while operating at high speed and demonstrating excellent reliability.

“We are pleased that volume production of our high speed, low-power 128GB TSV DRAM module will enable our global IT customers and partners to launch a new generation of enterprise solutions with dramatically improved efficiency and scalability for their investment,” said Joo Sun Choi, executive vice president, Memory Sales and Marketing, Samsung Electronics. “We will continue to expand our technical cooperation with global leaders in servers, consumer electronics and emerging markets, where consumers can benefit from innovative technology that enhances their productivity and the overall user experience.”

The 128GB TSV DDR4 RDIMM is comprised of a total of 144 DDR4 chips, arranged into 36 4GB DRAM packages, each containing four 20-nanometer (nm)-based 8-gigabit (Gb) chips assembled with cutting-edge TSV packaging technology.

Conventional chip packages interconnect die stacks using wire bonding, whereas in TSV packages, the chip dies are ground down to a few dozen micrometers, pierced with hundreds of fine holes and vertically connected by electrodes passing through the holes, allowing for a significant boost in signal transmission. In addition to capitalizing on the industry’s highest capacity and TSV’s advanced circuitry, Samsung’s 128GB TSV DDR4 module has a special design through which the master chip of each 4GB package embeds the data buffer function to optimize module performance and power consumption.

As a result, Samsung’s advanced 128GB TSV DDR4 RDIMM provides a low-power solution for next-generation servers with speeds at up to 2,400 megabits per second (Mbps), achieving nearly twice the performance, while cutting power usage by 50 percent, compared to using the previous highest capacity DRAM modules ─ 64GB LRDIMMs, whose four-chip package stacks are hampered by power and speed limitations caused by their use of conventional wire bonding.

Samsung is responding to growing demand for ultra-high capacity DRAM by accelerating production of TSV technology in the market and quickly ramping up 20nm 8Gb DRAM chips to improve manufacturing productivity. In solidifying its technology leadership and expanding the market for premium memory solutions, the company plans to provide a complete lineup of its new high-performance TSV DRAM modules within the next several weeks including 128GB load reduced DIMMs (LRDIMMs).

In addition, Samsung will continue to maintain its technology leadership by introducing TSV DRAM with higher performance. These will include modules with data transfer speeds of up to 2,667Mbps and 3,200Mbps that help to meet intensifying enterprise server needs, while expanding TSV applications into high bandwidth memory (HBM) and consumer products.

To learn more about TSV, read more here.