Samsung Electronics Co., Ltd. today announced that it held a tool-in ceremony for its new semiconductor research and development complex (NRD-K) at its Giheung campus, marking a significant leap into the future. About 100 guests, including those from suppliers and customers, were in attendance to celebrate the milestone. As a state-of-the-art facility, NRD-K broke ground in 2022 and is set to become a key research base for Samsung's memory, system LSI and foundry semiconductor R&D. With its advanced infrastructure, research and product-level verification will be able to take place under one roof. Samsung plans to invest about KRW 20 trillion by 2030 for the complex in an area covering about 109,000 square meters (m²) within its Giheung campus. The complex will also include an R&D-dedicated line scheduled to begin operation in mid-2025.

"NRD-K will bolster our development speed, enabling the company to create a virtuous cycle to accelerate fundamental research on next generation technology and mass production. We will lay the foundation for a new leap forward in Giheung, where Samsung Electronics' 50-year history of semiconductors began, and create a new future for the next 100 years," said Young Hyun Jun, Vice Chairman and Head of the Device Solutions Division at Samsung Electronics.

Samsung is currently mass-producing its 9th generation V-NAND flash memory chips with 286 layers unveiled this April. According to the Korean Economic Daily, the company targets V-NAND memory chips with at least 400 stacked layers by 2026. In 2013, Samsung became the first company to introduce V-NAND chips with vertically stacked memory cells to maximize capacity. However, stacking beyond 300 levels proved to be a real challenge with the memory chips getting frequently damaged. To address this problem, Samsung is reportedly developing an improved 10th-generation V-NAND that is going to use the Bonding Vertical (BV) NAND technology. The idea is to manufacture the storage and peripheral circuits on separate layers before bonding them vertically. This is a major shift from the current Co-Packaged (CoP) technology. Samsung stated that the new method will increase the density of bits per unit area by 1.6 times (60%), thus leading to increased data speeds.

Samsung's roadmap is truly ambitious, with plans to launch the 11th generation of NAND in 2027 with an estimated 50% improvement in I/O rates, followed by 1,000-layer NAND chips by 2030. Its competitor, SK hynix, is also working on 400-layer NAND aiming to have the technology ready for mass production by the end of 2025, as we previously mentioned in August. Samsung, the current HBM market leader with a 36.9% market share have also plans for its DRAM sector intending to introduce the sixth-generation 10 nm DRAM, or 1c DRAM by the first half of 2025. Then we can expect to see Samsung's seventh-generation 1d nm (still on 10 nm) in 2026, and by 2027 the company hopes to release its first generation sub-10 nm DRAM, or 0a DRAM memory that will use a Vertical Channel Transistor (VCT) 3D structure similar to what NAND flash utilizes.

Samsung Electronics, the world leader in advanced memory technology, today announced it has begun mass-producing PM9E1, a PCIe 5.0 SSD with the industry's highest performance and largest capacity. Built on its in-house 5-nanometer (nm)-based controller and eighth-generation V-NAND (V8) technology, the PM9E1 will provide powerful performance and enhanced power efficiency, making it an optimal solution for on-device AI PCs. Key attributes in SSDs, including performance, storage capacity, power efficiency and security, have all been improved compared to its predecessor (PM9A1a).

"Our PM9E1 integrated with a 5 nm controller delivers industry-leading power efficiency and utmost performance validated by our key partners," said YongCheol Bae, Executive Vice President of Memory Product Planning at Samsung Electronics. "In the rapidly growing on-device AI era, Samsung's PM9E1 will offer a robust foundation for global customers to effectively plan their AI portfolios."

Samsung Electronics, the world leader in advanced memory technology, today announced the release of the 990 EVO Plus, adding to its lineup of leading SSD products. With PCIe 4.0 support and latest NAND technology, the 990 EVO Plus is an ideal solution for consumers seeking enhanced performance and power efficiency on their PCs. Optimized for gaming, business and creative endeavors.

"Our daily lives are increasingly demanding more data with the images we share on social media and high-quality video streaming," said Hangu Sohn, Vice President of Memory Brand Product Biz Team at Samsung Electronics. "The 990 EVO Plus is built for laptop and desktop PC users seeking faster processing speeds and expanded storage capacity."

Samsung Electronics Co., Ltd., the world leader in advanced memory technology, today announced it has successfully developed the industry's first PCIe 4.0 automotive SSD based on eighth-generation vertical NAND (V-NAND). With industry-leading speeds and enhanced reliability, the new auto SSD, AM9C1 is an optimal solution for on-device AI capabilities in automotive applications. With about 50% improved power efficiency compared to its predecessor, the AM991, the new 256 GB auto SSD will deliver sequential read and write speeds of up to 4400 MB/s and 400 MB/s, respectively.

"We are collaborating with global autonomous vehicle makers and providing high-performance, high-capacity automotive products," said Hyunduk Cho, Vice President and Head of Automotive Group at Samsung Electronics' Memory Business. "Samsung will continue to lead the Physical AI1 memory market that encompasses applications from autonomous driving to robotics technologies."

Samsung Electronics Co., Ltd., the world leader in advanced memory technology, today announced it has begun mass producing PM9E1, a PCle 5.0 SSD with the industry's highest performance and largest capacity. Built on its in-house 5-nanometer (nm)-based controller and eighth-generation V-NAND (V8) technology, the PM9E1 will provide powerful performance and enhanced power efficiency, making it an optimal solution for on-device AI PCs. Key attributes in SSDs, including performance, storage capacity, power efficiency and security, have all been improved compared to its predecessor (PM9A1a).

"Our PM9E1 integrated with a 5 nm controller delivers industry-leading power efficiency and utmost performance validated by our key partners," said YongCheol Bae, Executive Vice President of Memory Product Planning at Samsung Electronics. "In the rapidly growing on-device AI era, Samsung's PM9E1 will offer a robust foundation for global customers to effectively plan their AI portfolios."

Samsung Electronics, the world leader in advanced memory technology, today announced it has begun mass production of its one-terabit (Tb) quad-level cell (QLC) 9th-generation vertical NAND (V-NAND).

With the industry's first mass production of QLC 9th-generation V-NAND, following the industry's first triple-level cell (TLC) 9th-generation V-NAND production in April this year, Samsung is solidifying its leadership in the high-capacity, high-performance NAND flash market.

SK hynix is reportedly developing 400-layer NAND flash memory, with plans to begin mass production by late 2025. The company is collaborating with supply chain partners to develop the necessary process technologies and equipment for 400-layer and higher NAND chips. This information comes from a recent article by Korean media outlet etnews citing industry sources.

SK hynix intends to use hybrid bonding technology to achieve this, which is expected to bring new packaging materials and components suppliers into the supply chain. The development process involves exploring new bonding materials and various technologies for connecting different wafers, including polishing, etching, deposition, and wiring. SK hynix aims to have the technology and infrastructure ready by the end of next year.

Samsung Electronics, the world leader in advanced memory technology, today announced the release of its 1-terabyte (TB) high-capacity microSD cards PRO Plus and EVO Plus. By adopting Samsung's eighth-generation V-NAND (V8) technology, the PRO Plus and EVO Plus boast enhanced performance and high capacity, ideal for content creators and tech enthusiasts needing quick file transfers and storage for everyday use across their devices in everyday use.

"Creators and tech enthusiasts are increasingly using portable devices such as smartphones and handheld gaming devices to store data that demand high-performance and high-capacity," said Hangu Sohn, Vice President of Memory Brand Product Biz Team at Samsung Electronics. "The new high-capacity microSD cards, PRO Plus and EVO Plus, are response to the demand for storing large amounts of high-quality data in a reliable and secure way."

Samsung has introduced its latest BM1743 SSD, boasting an impressive 61.44 TB of storage capacity. The BM1743 utilizes Samsung's seventh-generation 3D NAND (V-NAND) technology, featuring 176 layers of memory cells. This represents a significant leap from its predecessor, the BM1733, which debuted in 2020 with 96-layer technology and a maximum capacity of 32 TB. Performance-wise, the BM1743 doesn't disappoint. It delivers up to 1.6 million random read IOPS and 110,000 random write IOPS, with sequential read and write speeds of 7.2 GB/s and 2.0 GB/s, respectively. These figures position the drive as a highly capable solution for read-intensive workloads. Samsung claims that the new SSD offers double the sequential read and write speeds of its fifth-generation technology, with random reads quadrupling in performance. This advancement suggests that quad-level cell (QLC) SSDs are now approaching the performance levels of their triple-level cell (TLC) counterparts while offering superior storage density.

The BM1743 is available in the traditional U.2 form factor, with an E3.S variant supporting PCIe Gen 5 also in the lineup, thanks to the custom Samsung controller. Samsung has enhanced the durability and data retention capabilities of the BM1743. The new drive boasts an improved endurance rating of 0.26 drive writes per day (DWPD) throughout its warranty period, a notable increase from the BM1733's 0.18 DWPD. Additionally, the BM1743 extends its power-off data retention to three months, tripling the one-month period of its predecessor. In a hint of things to come, Samsung has suggested that a 122.88 TB model may be on the horizon, potentially doubling the capacity of the BM1743. This new offering puts Samsung in direct competition with Solidigm's D5-P5336, which has dominated the high-capacity SSD market for the past year. High-density storage solutions are becoming more important as AI and HPC tasks require and produce massive amounts of data.

Samsung Electronics Co., Ltd., the world leader in advanced memory technology, today announced that it has begun mass production for its one-terabit (Tb) triple-level cell (TLC) 9th-generation vertical NAND (V-NAND), solidifying its leadership in the NAND flash market.

"We are excited to deliver the industry's first 9th-gen V-NAND, which will bring future applications leaps forward. In order to address the evolving needs for NAND flash solutions, Samsung has pushed the boundaries in cell architecture and operational scheme for our next-generation product," said SungHoi Hur, Head of Flash Product & Technology at Samsung Electronics. "Through our latest V-NAND, Samsung will continue to set the trend for the high-performance, high-density solid state drive (SSD) market that meets the needs for the coming AI generation."

Samsung is preparing to launch its 9th Generation V-NAND (3D NAND flash) memory next month, Korean publication Hankyung reports. The 9th Gen 3D NAND flash memory by Samsung is expected to offer 290 layers, a step-up from the 236-layer 8th Gen V-NAND that the company debuted in 2022. Samsung reportedly achieved the 290-layer vertical stacking density through improvements in its flash layer stacking techniques that relies on increasing the layer counts through more memory holes in the flash layer. The cost here is data density per wafer, but a net gain from the increase in layer counts.

The same source behind the 9th Gen V-NAND story also reports that the company is targeting a rather early 2025 launch for its successor—the 10th Gen V-NAND. This is expected to be a mammoth 430-layer 3D NAND flash, a jump of 140 layers over the 9th Gen (which itself jumped by 54 layers over its predecessor). This would put Samsung back on track along with its competitors, Kioxia, SK Hynix, Micron Technology, and YMTC, as they gun for the ambitious goal of 1000-layer 3D NAND flash by 2030.Many Thanks to TumbleGeorge for the tip.

Samsung Electronics, the world leader in advanced memory technology, today announced that it has started sampling its 256-gigabyte (GB) SD Express microSD card with sequential read speed of up to 800 megabytes per second (MB/s) and has commenced mass production of its 1-terabyte (TB) UHS-1 microSD card. With the introduction of its next-generation microSD card line-up, Samsung aims to provide differentiated memory solutions required for tomorrow's mobile computing and on-device AI applications.

"With our two new microSD cards, Samsung has provided effective solutions to address the growing demands of mobile computing and on-device AI," said Hangu Sohn, Vice President of the Memory Brand Product Biz Team at Samsung Electronics. "Despite their tiny size, these memory cards deliver powerful SSD-like performance and capacity to help users get more out of demanding modern and future applications."

Samsung Electronics Co., Ltd., a world leader in advanced memory technology, today held its annual Memory Tech Day, showcasing industry-first innovations and new memory products to accelerate technological advancements across future applications—including the cloud, edge devices and automotive vehicles.

Attended by about 600 customers, partners and industry experts, the event served as a platform for Samsung executives to expand on the company's vision for "Memory Reimagined," covering long-term plans to continue its memory technology leadership, outlook on market trends and sustainability goals. The company also presented new product innovations such as the HBM3E Shinebolt, LPDDR5X CAMM2 and Detachable AutoSSD.

Jung-Bae Lee, President and Head of Memory Business of Samsung Electronics, the world's largest NAND memory supplier, has noted in the blog post that Samsung plans to develop its 9th Generation V-NAND memory with over 300 layers, aiming for mass production in 2024. Samsung's V-NAND uses a double-stack structure and is expected to have more active layers than its competitors' 3D NAND memory, such as SK Hynix's forthcoming 321-layer memory. The increase in layers allows Samsung to enhance storage density and performance in its future 3D NAND devices, focusing on input/output (I/O) speed. While the specific performance details of Samsung's 9th Generation V-NAND remain undisclosed, the memory is expected to be used in next-generation PCIe SSDs with the PCIe 5.0 standard.

Jung-Bae Lee has noted: "New structural and material innovations will be critical in the upcoming era of sub-10-nanometer (nm) DRAM and 1,000-layer vertical V-NAND. As such, we are developing 3D stacked structures and new materials for DRAM while increasing layer count, decreasing height, and minimizing cell interference for V-NAND." The 9th installment of V-NAND, scheduled for 2024, is utilizing 11 nm-class DRAM. Additionally, the blog post reassures the commitment to CXL Memory Modules (CMM), which will enable the composable infrastructure of next-generation systems, especially with high-capacity SSDs powered by V-NAND.

Samsung Electronics Co., Ltd., a world leader in advanced memory technology, today announced the release of a new 4-terabyte (TB) offering in its SSD 990 PRO series. The 990 PRO series is a lineup of high-performance PCIe 4.0 SSDs powered by Samsung's eighth-generation V-NAND (V8) technology and enhanced proprietary controller. Offering blazing-fast speeds and ultimate power efficiency, the 990 PRO series is optimized for massive data volumes, such as 3D/4K graphics work, data analytics and high-quality games, making it the ideal SSD for today's PCs, laptops, game consoles and computing systems. With improved total bytes written (TBW) ratings of up to 2,400 TB, the 990 PRO series ensures increased SSD reliability and longevity, ideal for those with highly demanding workloads and large storage capacity needs.

"Today's gamers and creative professionals require high-capacity, high-performance SSDs and Samsung's new 4 TB SSD 990 PRO is the perfect storage solution to meet their needs," said Hangu Sohn, Corporate Vice President of the Memory Brand Product Biz Team at Samsung Electronics. "As the demand for high-resolution content and ultra-fast data-processing speeds continues to grow, high-performance NVMe storage has become a core requirement."

It appears that Samsung is getting ready to beat SK Hynix in the race to 300 plus layers of NAND Flash, at least according to reports coming out of South Korea. The Seoul Economic Daily claims in an exclusive that Samsung will have a 300 plus layer V-NAND—(V for Vertical or 3D NAND—chip ready for production in 2024 and could as such beat SK Hynix by as much as a year, depending on how soon Samsung can deliver. Currently Samsung's most cutting edge stacked NAND is a 236-layer product, which is four more layers than Micron and YMTC, but two less than SK Hynix.

What sticks out in the Seoul Economic Daily news piece is that unlike SK Hynix, which is going for a triple stack sandwich, Samsung will apparently stick with two stacks. This means that Samsung is aiming for over 150-layers of NAND per stack, which seems like a big risk to take when it comes to yields. The taller the stacks, the bigger the chance of a failed stack, but maybe Samsung has found a solution around this potential issue. As modern 3D NAND relies on Through Silicon Vias, it's easier to manufacture denser stacks than in the past when wire bonding was used, but even so, this seems like a big risk for Samsung to take. That said, considering the current low demand and news of further cutbacks in production, it might be a good time for Samsung to utilise its fabs to test out this new, more densely stacked NAND to see if the company can mass produce it without issues. Samsung's roadmap calls for a 1000 plus layer V-NAND product by 2030, but it seems like the road there is still long and complicated.

Samsung Electronics today announced production readiness of a high-performance PCIe 4.0 NVMe SSD, the PM9C1a. Integrated with a new controller based on Samsung's cutting-edge 5-nanometer (nm) process and the company's seventh-generation V-NAND technology, the PM9C1a will provide elevated computing and gaming performance in PCs and laptops.

"Our new PM9C1a SSD will deliver a robust combination of superior performance, greater power efficiency and increased security, which are the qualities that matter most to PC users," said Yong Ho Song, Executive Vice President of Memory Solution Product & Development at Samsung Electronics. "We are committed to creating storage that satisfies the diverse and changing market requirements as we continue to advance innovation in the PC SSD space."

Samsung Electronics Co., Ltd., the world leader in advanced memory technology, as promised at Flash Memory Summit 2022 and Samsung Memory Tech Day 2022, announced today that it has begun mass producing a 1-terabit (Tb) triple-level cell (TLC) eighth-generation Vertical NAND (V-NAND) with the industry's highest bit density. At 1 Tb, the new V-NAND also features the highest storage capacity to date, enabling larger storage space in next-generation enterprise server systems worldwide.

"As market demand for denser, greater-capacity storage pushes for higher V-NAND layer counts, Samsung has adopted its advanced 3D scaling technology to reduce surface area and height, while avoiding the cell-to-cell interference that normally occurs with scaling down," said SungHoi Hur, Executive Vice President of Flash Product & Technology at Samsung Electronics. "Our eighth-generation V-NAND will help meet rapidly growing market demand and better position us to deliver more differentiated products and solutions, which will be at the very foundation of future storage innovations."

Samsung Electronics Co., Ltd., a world leader in advanced semiconductor technology, today showcased a series of cutting-edge semiconductor solutions set to drive digital transformation through the decade, at Samsung Tech Day 2022. An annual conference since 2017, the event returned to in-person attendance at the Signia by Hilton San Jose hotel after three years.

This year's event, attended by more than 800 customers and partners, featured presentations from Samsung's Memory and System LSI business leaders—including Jung-bae Lee, President and Head of Memory Business; Yong-In Park, President and Head of System LSI Business; and Jaeheon Jeong, Executive Vice President and Head of Device Solutions (DS) Americas Office—on the company's latest advancements and its vision for the future.

Samsung Electronics Co., Ltd., the world leader in advanced memory technology, today announced the 990 PRO, the company's high-performance NVMe SSD based on PCIe 4.0. Delivering lightning-fast speeds and superior power efficiency, the new SSD is optimized for graphically demanding games and other intensive tasks including 3D rendering, 4K video editing and data analysis.

"With continuing innovations in gaming, 4K and 8K technology as well as AI-driven applications, consumers' need for high-performance storage is growing exponentially," said KyuYoung Lee, Vice President of the Memory Brand Product Biz Team at Samsung Electronics. "The 990 PRO provides an optimal balance of speed, power efficiency and reliability, making it an ideal choice for avid gamers and creative professionals seeking uninterrupted work and play."

Samsung has announced the implementation of the latest JEDEC standard specification with the adoption of UFS (Universal Flash Storage) standard 4.0. The new standard offers a number of improvements over the previous UFS 3.1 specification related to either performance or power savings. The new standard increases speeds of up to 23.2 Gbps per lane, double that of the previous UFS 3.1 standard. Additionally, UFS 4.0 unlocks sequential read speeds as high as 6.0 MB/s per mA - a 46% improvement over the previous spec, promising decreased battery drain even as workload time is reduced.

Samsung's UFS 4.0 implementation will leverage the company's 7th Gen V-NAND alongside a proprietary controller, which should ultimately enable speeds of up to 4,200 MB/s. Sequential write speeds are nothing to scoff at either, promising up to 2,800 MB/s. The improved performance doesn't translate to increased package sizes, however, as UFS 4.0 will be distributed in compact packages with a maximum dimension of 11 mm x 13 mm x 1 mm for more effective space utilization and design convenience - with capacities reaching the 1 TB per package. Mass production is expected in 3Q2022. Samsung expects its new UFS 4.0-based products to deliver new experiences with increased data throughput of 5G smartphones, future automotive applications, and even AR and VR.

Samsung Electronics Co., Ltd., the world leader in advanced memory technology, today announced that it has developed the PM1743 SSD for enterprise servers, integrating the PCIe (Peripheral Component Interconnect Express) 5.0 interface with Samsung's advanced sixth-generation V-NAND.

"For over a decade, Samsung has been delivering SATA, SAS and PCIe-based SSDs that have been recognized for outstanding performance and reliability by leading enterprise server customers including corporations, governments and financial institutions," said Yong Ho Song, Executive Vice President and Head of the Memory Controller Development Team at Samsung Electronics. "The introduction of our PCIe 5.0 SSD, along with PCIe 6.0-based product developments that are underway, will further solidify our technological leadership in the enterprise server market."

Samsung Electronics today reported financial results for the second quarter ended June 30, 2021. Total consolidated revenue was KRW 63.67 trillion, a 20% increase from the previous year and a record for the second quarter. Operating profit increased 34% from the previous quarter to KRW 12.57 trillion as market conditions improved in the memory market, operations normalized at the Austin foundry fab, and as effective global supply chain management (SCM) helped maintain solid profitability for the finished product businesses.

The Semiconductor business saw a significant improvement in earnings as memory shipments exceeded previous guidance and price increases were higher than expected, while the Company strengthened its cost competitiveness. For the Display Panel Business, a one-off gain and an increase in overall prices boosted profits.

Samsung is preparing to deploy their latest innovations in NAND density with the next-generation V-NAND (7th gen). Samsung says it is preparing products that leverage both V-NAND's higher density (at 176 layers per chip versus up to 136 layers on 6th gen) with the throughput of both PCIe 4.0 and PCIe 5.0. This would of course mean higher density drives available, as well as a reduction in the overall $/GB equation. Due to Samsung's vertical integration (meaning that they are one of the few companies that can design and produce all SSD components in-house), the company is also developing next-gen NAND controllers that can leverage throughputs of 2,000 MT/s transfer rates and thus "optimized for multitasking huge workloads".

Samsung expects to be able to scale V-NAND well past the 1,000 layer mark - a far-cry from the claims made by SK Hynix, who have only talked about a theoretical 600-layer NAND configuration. While the 176-layer, 7-gen V-NAND is only now entering mass production and the final stages of product development, Samsung has already taped out the initial batches of their 8th-gen V-NAND, which feature "more than 200 layers". It's likely that Samsung's 1,000-layer claim actually looks towards the future in a timeframe of decade(s?) and isn't actually something to look forward to in the approximate future.