[News Terms] 'GAA Technology' Gaining Attention Alongside Semiconductor Linewidth Competition

[Asia Economy Reporter Jo In-kyung] Taiwan's TSMC, the world's number one foundry (semiconductor contract manufacturing) market leader, and Samsung Electronics, ranked second, are entering full-scale competition over the mass production of advanced 3-nanometer (nm; 1 nm is one billionth of a meter) semiconductors. Samsung Electronics, which has about three times less market share than TSMC, has positioned its core competitive edge in chasing TSMC as the 'Gate-All-Around (GAA)' technology.

According to industry sources, until now, nanometer-scale semiconductor production has mainly applied the 3D structured FinFET process. The FinFET technology is based on the idea that the wider the current flow path, the higher the efficiency, so it increased the contact area by having the gate and channel contact on three sides?the top, left, and right?in a three-dimensional structure, which improved semiconductor performance compared to the traditional planar structure. However, as semiconductor sizes continued to shrink, a more advanced next-generation technology was needed, resulting in the GAA structure, where the gate surrounds the channel on four sides?the top, left, right, and bottom?allowing for more precise control of the semiconductor current.

Samsung Electronics applied GAA technology for the first time in the world in June last year and began mass production of initial volumes based on the 3-nanometer foundry process. The 3-nanometer process is the most advanced technology in semiconductor manufacturing, and Samsung was the only foundry company worldwide to offer a 3-nanometer foundry service applying the new GAA technology. TSMC only started mass production of 3-nanometer foundry chips at its Taiwan factory on December 29 last year, later than Samsung Electronics.

In particular, Samsung Electronics added its own unique technology. It applied the MBCFET GAA structure, which forms the channel in a thin and wide nanosheet shape, enabling higher performance and lower power semiconductor designs compared to the typical GAA structure that creates narrow and long channels. According to the company, GAA-based 3-nanometer semiconductors reduce power consumption by about 50%, improve performance by approximately 30%, and reduce required space by 45% compared to 7-nanometer semiconductors based on FinFET.

The GAA process itself is highly challenging, and securing yield (the ratio of qualified products) is not easy, but the industry believes Samsung Electronics has passed the transitional phase last year and currently achieved a stable level of yield. Samsung is expanding applications for the 3-nanometer process based on its advanced mass production know-how and plans to continue innovating GAA-based process technology, introducing 2-nanometer technology in 2025 and 1.4-nanometer technology in 2027.