Samsung Electronics has decided to speed up the preparation of facilities to launch mass production of chips using the 2nm process technology, industry sources report. The company began installing equipment on the line of the S3 semiconductor plant in Hwaseong, South Korea. By the first quarter of next year, this line, the company expects, will be able to process 7,000 wafers using the 2nm process technology per month.
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By the second quarter of next year, Samsung also expects to build a production line for the 1.4 nm process technology at the S5 plant at the second plant in Pyeongtaek (Pyeongtaek Plant 2) – it will be able to process 2000-3000 wafers per month. By the end of next year, the company will convert all remaining 3nm production lines at the S3 fab to 2nm technology.
Earlier it became known that Samsung postponed the launch date of production at a semiconductor plant in the American Texas – it was originally supposed to open at the end of 2024, but the company decided to postpone the start to 2026. Samsung also repurposed the semiconductor line on Pyeongtaek Fab 4 – due to decreased demand, it will now produce DRAM memory; production was reduced at Pyeongtaek Fab 3, where there is a 4 nm line.
All these changes are related to the company’s plan to start producing chips using 2 nm technology next year and begin mass production of 1.4 nm chips by 2027. The Korean manufacturer intends to catch up with its competitor TSMC: Samsung currently has 11.5% of the global semiconductor contract manufacturing market, while the leader TSMC has 62.3%. The implementation of this plan is a big bet for Samsung, experts say: given the delay in the production of 3nm chips and a number of other difficulties in the semiconductor segment, the deployment of 2nm technology can either save or destroy the Samsung Foundry division.