TSMC: 5nm yields are even better than 7nm

Taiwanese foundry TSMC dropped a ton of information at its Technology Symposium. AnandTech has a nice summary over here. Below we'll cover some of the highlights.

TSMC 5nm is doing even better than 7nm

TSMC is the world leader in semiconductor manufacturing and the foundry is not slowing down. Perhaps somewhat surprisingly, TSMC revealed not only that its 5nm ramp is going extremely well, but that 5nm yields are now better than the 7nm family nodes ever have. According to TSMC, the extensive usage of EUV layers have made it easier for the foundry to achieve high yields on N5. TSMC expects that compared to this year's output, 5nm capacity will double by 2023.

TSMC’s N5 ramp is going extremely well, and as reported back at last year’s Technology Symposium, has reached better yields than the 7nm family process technology nodes ever have. The company here largely points out to simplified manufacturing steps thanks to more extensive usage of EUV layers compared to its 7nm DUV and EUV nodes. In an industry where the competition is struggling to ramp up yields on the latest leading-edge nodes, this is truly an astonishing feat by TSMC which should further cement the foundry’s current dominance.

N4 is a small optical shrink of N5

TSMC announced N4 will be a minor enhancement of N5. It's an optical shrink that should deliver 6 percent density improvement. The design rules are compatible with N5 and the process is expected to enter risk production in Q3 2021. Yields of N4 are expected to be the same as where N5 is currently at.