Tech (2) — TSMC’s 5G Layout Plan
TSMC, (also known as Taiwan semiconductor manufacturing company) the largest chip manufacturing company in the world has jumpstarted the 5G industry by their recent layout plan announcement. At present, TSMC has started building its new semiconductor fabrication plant in Tainan, Taiwan. This new plant will focus on producing cutting edge 5-nanometer(N5) chips. Based on a recent electricity report, we also learn that Apple Inc. will feature a 5G design in all future iPhone models to keep up with the 5G era of technology. TSMC factories will then produce important components designed by Apple Inc as well as some of the largest semiconductor companies in the world, including Nvidia Corp., Huawei Technologies Co., etc.
On the other hand, TSMC is also planning to build their own plants in Arizona, in the U.S, which will be worth around US $12 billion. According to the TSMC agenda, construction is set to begin in 2021, and the target date remains in the year 2024. Upon completion, the plant will be able to produce 20k wafers per month while still generating 16 hundred in job opportunities. This comes at a sensitive time in the global business world. TSMC’s layout will focus on importing highly skilled and trained labor from Taiwan to Arizona. This turn of events may even lead to supporting Trump in the months to come and increase his election prospects as he increases business opportunities through the U.S. Something that could prove a setback however, is Trump’s current dealings with China by sabotaging the trade deals with China and setting barriers to inhibit China’s access to the semiconductor industry he may inadvertently be jeopardizing his own efforts.
According to a recent electricity report, the N5 chip delivers 1.8x routed logic density in contrast to the 7-nanometer (N7) chip. Based on the performance, the N5 chip will have either 15% higher performance at iso-power or 30% lower power. Moreover, both mobile customers and the high-performance calculation(HPC) are the advantage of the N5 chip. HPC cells will offer an additional option for up to 25% performance improvement over the N7 chip.
Since 2018, TSMC started mass production on their flagship product, namely the N7 chip. Following this, TSMC announced their 6-nanometer process in the second quarter of 2019. At present, TSMC is constructing various N5 chip production plants and they expect to complete this construction at the end of 2020. Being the largest and most advanced chip-maker today, TSMC seems to have considered all aspects pertaining to their global supply chain ahead of this vital decision. Despite popular gossip relating to TSMC’s 3-nanometer production schedule, no official statement has been released. Perhaps this is a strategy they choose to follow to prevent rival companies such as Samsung from getting ahead of their proposed layout.
