Intel Foundry unveiled a number of innovations designed to advance the semiconductor industry at the IEEE International Electron Devices Meeting (IEDM) 2024. to what is expected of her in the coming yearssomething very relevant at a time when the enormous growth of data centers and AI-based functions is coming together. These Intel developments continue to advance Moore’s Law and address today’s challenges through key improvements in interconnect scaling, advanced packaging, and transistor optimization.

Among the most notable advances are Intel Foundry has introduced a new Ruthenium process subtractive with air gaps, offering a more efficient solution to copper constraints in advanced nodes. Compatible with high-volume production, this technology enables capacity reduction of 25% in steps of less than 25 nanometers, eliminating the need for costly lithographic exclusion. With these improvements, Subtractive Ruthenium could become a key element in future Intel Foundry nodes.

In practice, this means that chips designed with this technology They will be able to control signals faster and more efficientlysomething essential for high-performance devices such as AI processors or data centers. Reducing capacity improves both speed and energy efficiency, which has a direct impact on system performance and consumption.

In advanced packaging, Intel Foundry introduced Selective Layer Transfer (SLT) technology, a heterogeneous integration system that enables ultra-fast assembly of chiplets with a thickness of less than one micron. This method allows the simultaneous transfer of more than 15,000 chiplets in minutes, compared to the hours or days required by current technologies. In addition to speeding up manufacturing, SLT improves flexibility in designing heterogeneous architectures, allowing the combination of different processes and memories.

This translates to csmaller and more powerful hips, able to integrate different functions in one package. For example, a single processor could combine high-performance cores, ultra-fast memory modules and specialized artificial intelligence technologies, all of which optimize space and manufacturing costs.

On the other hand, Intel Foundry has made significant advances in transistor scaling. RibbonFET technology achieved a gate length of 6 nanometers and a silicon thickness of only 1.7 nanometersachieving peak short channel effects. These achievements, along with advances in 2D Gate-All-Around (GAA) transistors that have achieved exceptional subthreshold slopes (<75 mV/d), reaffirm the company's commitment to developing highly energy-efficient, high-performance solutions.

In practice, this means that future electronic devices They will be able to work with more power in a smaller space and consume less energy. These advances are essential to enable the next generation of mobile devices, computing and data centers, especially in a context where energy efficiency is increasingly a priority.

Another of the presented milestones is the first GaN MOSHEMT transistor on a 300 mm GaN-on-TRSOI substrate. Designed to withstand higher voltages and temperatures than silicon-based devices, this device represents a major advance for power and radio frequency applications and expands the possibilities of integration into future technologies.

This technology will enable end users more robust and reliable equipment in industries such as telecommunications and automotive. For example, they could be integrated into more accurate radar systems or more efficient chargers for long-life electric cars.

Taken together, they represent the advances presented by Intel Foundry at IEDM 2024 a qualitative leap in the techniques and materials used for the production of integrated with semiconductors. These innovations enable us to optimize performance, energy efficiency and design flexibility, preparing the industry for increasingly demanding challenges in areas such as artificial intelligence and high-performance computing.

With this development, Intel Foundry is positioning itself as a key player the race for chips capable of integrating a billion transistors (1×10¹²) in a single devicewhich is a goal that seems still achievable thanks to these advanced technologies. Its commitment to practical and revolutionary solutions reaffirms its leadership in the semiconductor industry and its role in defining the future of global technology.

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