It is reported that TSMC’s 3nm yield rate has reached 80%

TSMC has confirmed that it will mass-produce the 3nm process in September, but the A16 processor used in Apple's iPhone 14 series will not catch up this year. It will still use TSMC's 5nm or improved 4nm process. The first 3nm may be the M2 Pro, but the output will not be too much.

The first-generation N3 process is mainly aimed at early customers who have strong investment capabilities and pursue new processes, such as Apple and AMD, but the application range is narrow and only suitable for manufacturing specific products.

TSMC's 3nm process will go to the second version of the N3E process next year, which is the 3nm Enhanced version. On the basis of N3, it improves performance, reduces power consumption, and expands the scope of applications. Compared with N5, the power consumption is reduced by 34% under the same performance and density. 18% performance improvement at the same power consumption and density, or a 60% increase in transistor density.

Although the density may be like the first-generation N3, the N3E process will be the main force used by major manufacturers for mass production, including Apple's new-generation processors, such as the iPhone 15's 17 processor, the next-generation M3 processor, and AMD. Future Zen5 and more.

The N3E process is expected to be mass-produced in the second half of 2023, and there will be trial production this year. A leaked internal PPT shows that TSMC's N3E process is progressing very well, and the yield rate is gratifying.

Among them, the yield rate of 256Mb SRAM chips produced by N3E process can reach 80%, the yield rate of mobile and HPC chips is also 80%, and the yield rate of ring oscillator can even reach 92%.

Of course, these are relatively simple chips, and it is normal to have a high yield rate. The actual processor contains very complex circuit units, and the yield rate will continue to be polished. However, TSMC's 3nm process is not as aggressive as Samsung's, and it is generally stable.