▲(From left) The Samsung developers who built the integrated circuits in the company’s 8K TVs – Sangdeok Kim, Hansoo Seong, Junghyun Lim, and Yongjoo Song

JOHANNESBURG, South Africa – 9 November 2021 – With the continued evolution of high-definition televisions, the worlds displayed on our TV screens are becoming more realistic than ever. 8K TVs, which represent the new standard of premium television, maximize immersion by providing such vivid high definition that it is like users are beholding the scenes before their very eyes.

This incredibly sharp resolution was made possible by the enhancement of the semiconductors within the TVs. Capable of enabling the functions that allow sharper resolution, these solutions are the DTV SoC (Digital TV System on Chip), T-CON (Timing Controller), and DDI (Display Driver IC). Samsung Newsroom sat down with the developers of S6HD820 (which opened the door for 8nm¹ DTV SoC), S6TST21 (the industry’s first 8K 120Hz T-CON) and S6CT9BC (a DDI with a maximum speed of 8Gbps) to hear the story of the unseen innovation behind these solutions.

From DTV SoC to DDI – Sending Video Signals to Displays

Unlike in the past when televisions were only used for watching shows, the role of the TV has gradually expanded over time. These days, our TVs are becoming a platform that also allows us to play games, work out as well as do a broad range of other activities. As people come to expect a more diverse range of features from their TVs, a higher standard of premium features is also being brought to televisions.

TVs are output devices for content, making a high standard of picture quality crucial for user satisfaction. Digital signals generally undergo three stages before being displayed. First, the DTV SoC receives compressed data from broadcasts or the internet, extracts the data to convert it into video and sends the video and audio to the screen and speakers. The T-CON then receives the processed video data and sends it back to the DDI with careful timing to ensure smooth operation. Last, the digital signal sent to the DDI is converted to an analogue format and the video is displayed on the TV screen.

Simplifying DTV SoC with ‘One Chip’ and Enhancing NPU Function

The DTV SoC, which receives video data from a cable or set-top box, is also referred to as ‘the brain of the TV.’ Hansoo Seong, who is part of the DTV SoC development team, explains that, “The DTV SoC extracts the audio and video signals separately from the compressed input stream. It then provides the function that adjusts the audio and video data according to each scene being displayed.”

As picture quality has evolved from the 4K to the 8K standard, the role of the DTV SOC has become more important. Samsung’s developers were committed to finding a solution that would support 8K resolution while also reducing power usage at the same time. An NPU (Neural Processing Unit) was applied to the DTV SoC so that AI technology could be applied to the overall improvement of both picture quality and audio processing. This technology led to a much more precise display output. On top of this, the DTV SoC has been integrated with an upscaling IC² to improve power efficiency.

The biggest hurdle in creating the 8nm¹ DTV SoC, known as S6HD820, was the complex engineering required to integrate two ICs into one chip and the subsequent issue of overheating. “The better the NPU performance, the more the AI learning is reinforced, which leads to better TV performance. But this also makes semiconductors that much more complex to engineer and results in more severe overheating,” said Hansoo Seong. “We worked hard to find the right balance to prevent excessive overheating, and eventually succeeded in optimizing the solution.”

The Evolution of T-CON: From Two 60Hz Chips to a Single 120Hz Chip

The T-CON takes the video data from the DTV SoC and converts it according to the demands of the DDI. “The bigger the panel size and the higher the resolution, the more important the role of the T-CON becomes,” said Junghyun Lim, who participated in developing Samsung’s latest 8K T-CON. “The data transmission speed of the T-CON is also important when it comes to quickly transmitting high-resolution video data to the DDI.”

With the improvement from 4K to 8K, screen resolution increases by four times. Thus, the amount of data that needs to be sent also quadruples, which means the T-CON’s speed needs to be enhanced as well. The development team solved the overheating problem that accompanies rapidly rising speeds by applying a new node process and simplifying the chips. In addition, the two 8K 60Hz chips have been integrated to become one S6TST21.

Previous systems required four semiconductors in 8K TVs, including the DTV SoC, the upscaling IC² for 8K, and two T-CONs. The new system has reduced the total amount of semiconductors required to two by combining the DTV SOC and the upscaling IC² into one solution, and merging the two T-CONs into one. These changes have made it much easier to design the required boards.

DDI Integration Increases Speeds and Reduces Chip Count

The DDI is responsible for the final step before the video is displayed. This is where the digital data received from the T-CON is converted into the analogue signal that will be used as input for the display. Yongjoo Song, who participated in development of the DDI, said, “The DDI needs to deliver high analogue voltage to the panel quickly and precisely to allow the video data from the T-CON to be displayed accurately.”

To facilitate the increase in voltage, a new driver IC became necessary that could simultaneously handle higher voltages and prevent overheating. “Increasing the speed of the driver buffer was the most difficult challenge,” said Yongjoo Song. “After changing the circuit structure and layout in a range of ways to reduce the driver IC’s input/output latency, we were able to develop a new driver IC that could operate at faster speeds.”

The development of a DDI that operates at high speeds resulted in the number of DDIs being reduced by almost half and the number of relevant chips being reduced by dozens. This makes TV panels easier to construct.

The Secret to Tech Leadership: Development of Samsung’s Own Interface and Organic Semiconductor

From 4K to 8K TVs, the secret to Samsung’s technological leadership is its know-how and the high level of consumer trust it has accumulated over time. In addition, Samsung is constantly analysing market and technology trends to apply them to products, and Samsung’s own interface has played a huge role in these efforts. “The Samsung interface not only delivers speed but also utilizes the company’s semiconductor driver technologies,” said Sangdeok Kim. “By utilizing its own interface, Samsung was able to make the 8K TV DDI based on the industry’s fastest interface.”

Another one of Samsung’s unique advantages is that it is developing the DTV SoC, T-CON and DDI in tandem with one another. This offers a big advantage, as it allows better integration and compatibility among the three components that must work together.

The developers from Samsung’s S.LSI Business make no secret of their excitement regarding 8K TV technology and the future of semiconductors. “When I first started working in this area, I was making semiconductors for FHD-resolution TVs. I remember feeling very proud when the products entered mass production,” related Yongjoo Song. “Already, TV resolutions have surpassed 4K to reach the 8K standard, and TV screens continue to get bigger and bigger. With larger high-resolution TVs being introduced to the market, semiconductors must be equipped to perform more complex functions, which adds to the challenges in developing them. But overcoming those challenges will remain the ever-present goal for developers like us.”

¹ nm: nanometer

² Upscaling IC: A semiconductor that converts low-resolution videos into high resolution (converts 2K and 4K videos into 8K)

]]> https://news.samsung.com/za/samsung-leadership-in-advanced-foundry-technology-showcased-with-latest-silicon-innovations-and-ecosystem-platform?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=direct Fri, 17 May 2019 22:31:37 +0000 http://bit.ly/2HxsDQS

JOHANNESBURG, South Africa, 15 May 2019 – Samsung, a world leader in advanced semiconductor technology, today announced its ongoing commitment to foundry innovation and service at the Samsung Foundry Forum 2019 USA, providing the silicon community with wide-ranging updates on technology advances that support the most demanding applications of today and tomorrow.

The event, held today in Santa Clara, California, features top Samsung executives and industry experts reviewing progress on semiconductor technologies and foundry platform solutions that enable developments in artificial intelligence (AI), machine learning, 5G networking, automotive, the Internet of Things (IoT), advanced data centres and many other domains.

“We stand at the verge of the Fourth Industrial Revolution, a new era of high-performance computing and connectivity that will advance the daily lives of everyone on the planet,” said Cambridge Mokanyane, Chief Marketing Officer at Samsung South Africa.

“Samsung fully understands that achieving powerful and reliable silicon solutions requires not only the most advanced manufacturing and packaging processes as well as design solutions but also collaborative foundry-customer relationships grounded on trust and shared vision. This year’s Foundry Forum is filled with compelling evidence of our commitment to progress in all those areas and we’re honoured to host and converse with our industry’s best and brightest,” Mokanyane added.

Highlights from the U.S. Foundry Forum include:

The new 3nm GAE PDK version 0.1 is ready

Samsung’s 3nm Gate-All-Around (GAA) process, 3GAE, development is on track. The company noted today that its Process Design Kit (PDK) version 0.1 for 3GAE has been released in April to help customers get an early start on the design work and enable improved design competitiveness along with reduced turnaround time (TAT).

Compared to 7nm technology, Samsung’s 3GAE process is designed to provide up to a 45 percent reduction in chip area with 50 percent lower power consumption or 35 percent higher performance. The GAA-based process node is expected to be widely adopted in next-generation applications, such as mobile, network, automotive, Artificial Intelligence (AI) and IoT.

Conventional GAA based on nanowire requires a larger number of stacks due to its small effective channel width. On the other hand, Samsung’s patented version of GAA, MBCFET (Multi-Bridge-Channel FET), uses a nanosheet architecture, enabling greater current per stack.
While FinFET structures must modulate the number of fins in a discrete way, MBCFET provides greater design flexibility by controlling the nanosheet width. In addition, MBCFET’s compatibility with FinFET processes means the two can share the same manufacturing technology and equipment, which accelerates process development and production ramp-up.

Samsung recently taped out the 3GAE test vehicle design and will focus on improving its performance and power efficiency going forward.

The launching of a new SAFE TM-Cloud program

As part of its ongoing efforts to support and enhance customers’ entire design workflow, Samsung launched the Samsung Advanced Foundry Ecosystem Cloud (SAFE-Cloud) program. It will provide customers with a more flexible design environment through collaboration with major public cloud service providers, such as Amazon Web Services (AWS) and Microsoft Azure, as well as leading Electronic Design Automation (EDA) companies, including Cadence and Synopsys.

To date, most foundry customers have built and managed design infrastructure on their own servers. The SAFE-Cloud program reduces this burden and supports easier, faster and more efficient design efforts by providing an excellent turnkey design environment with extensive process information (PDK, design methodologies), EDA tools, design assets (IP, library) and design services.

Customers can be assured of as much server and storage space as they need, as well as a safe environment optimized for chip design, due to Samsung’s verification of SAFE-Cloud’s security, applicability and expandability.

Utilising the SAFE-Cloud platform, Samsung was able to accelerate the development of its 7nm and 5nm cell libraries in collaboration with Synopsys. In addition, Samsung, Gaonchips – a fabless design company in Korea – and Cadence have successfully completed design verification based on the platform.

“Making up-front investments in high-performance computing (HPC) servers and systems can be a challenge for a company like us,” said Kyu Dong Jung, CEO of Gaonchips. “SAFETM-Cloud offers us a very flexible design environment without requiring investment in additional infrastructure, as well as reduced design TAT. I expect this program to provide more tangible business and technical benefits to us and the entire fabless industry.”

Process technology roadmap and advanced packaging updates

Samsung’s roadmap includes four FinFET-based processes from 7nm down to 4nm that leverage extreme ultraviolet (EUV) technology as well as 3nm GAA, or MBCFET. In the second half of this year, Samsung is scheduled to start the mass production of 6nm process devices and complete the development of 4nm process.

The product design of Samsung’s 5nm FinFET process, which was developed in April, is expected to be completed in the second half of this year and go under mass production in the first half of 2020. Extensions of the company’s FD-SOI (FDS) process and eMRAM together with an expanded set of state-of-the-art package solutions were also unveiled at this year’s Foundry Forum. Development of the successor to the 28FDS process, 18FDS, and eMRAM with 1Gb capacity will be finished this year.