40nm SST Embedded Flash Process Available by UMC

United Microelectronics Corporation (UMC) announced the availability of the 40nm process platform that incorporates Silicon Storage Technology, Inc.‘s (SST) embedded SuperFlash non-volatile memory.

The 40nm SST process features a >20% reduction in eFlash cell size and 20-30% macro area over the company’s mass production 55nm SST technology. Toshiba Electronic Devices and Storage Corporation has started studying technical feasibility of the firm’s 40nm SST for their microcontroller (MCU) ICs.

“We expect that UMC’s 40nm SST will improve the performance of our MCU products,” said Toshiya Matsui, VP, mixed signal IC division, Toshiba Electronic Devices and Storage Corporation “Working with UMC will also allow us to maintain a robust BC plan (BCP) through stable manufacturing supply and flexible capacity support based on our production requirements.“

More than twenty customers and products are in various stages of 55nm SST eFlash production at the company, including those for SIM card, banking, automotive, IoT, MCU and other applications.

Wenchi Ting, associate VP, specialty technology division, UMC said: “Since qualifying SST’s embedded flash technology on our popular 55nm process in 2015, we have received tremendous interest from customers looking to further utilize the low power, high reliability, superior data retention and high endurance characteristics of this process platform for their automotive, industrial, consumer and IoT applications. We are leased to introduce this eNVM solution on our 40nm platform, and look forward to bringing the high speed and high reliability benefits of SST to Toshiba and our other foundry customers.“

The company’s SST process performs according to JEDEC standards, with 100k endurance and more than ten years of data retention at 85°C and an operating-temperature range of -40°C to 125°C. In addition to the 40nm SST process, the firm has over twenty customers in production using the foundry’s 55nm SST for a range of product applications.