SK Hynix Develops World's First 10nm-Class 6th Generation DRAM... Mass Production to Start by Year-End

Reduce Power Consumption by 9% and Increase Productivity by 30%
Opportunity to Lead DRAM Market with DDR, HBM, CXL
Advantageous Position in Orders Based on Production Superiority
Samsung and Micron Chase... Full-Scale Competition Next Year

SK Hynix has succeeded in developing the world's first 10-nanometer (nm; 1 nanometer = one billionth of a meter) 6th generation (1c) DRAM semiconductor. The leading-edge DRAM process is applied to all DRAM solutions, starting with PC server central processing unit (CPU) double data rate (DDR), high bandwidth memory (HBM) used in artificial intelligence (AI) semiconductors, Compute Express Link (CXL), and more. In particular, it is expected to reduce power consumption and be utilized in AI data centers.

SK Hynix's 6th generation 10nm (1c) DRAM '1c DDR5', developed for the first time in the world.
[Photo by SK Hynix]

On the 29th, SK Hynix announced that it has succeeded in developing a 16Gb (gigabit) DDR5 DRAM applying 6th generation 1c technology. SK Hynix stated, "We will complete preparations for mass production within this year and start supplying products from next year to lead the growth of the memory semiconductor market." The semiconductor industry names each generation of 10-nanometer-class DRAM with alphabetic symbols: 1x (1st generation), 1y (2nd generation), 1z (3rd generation), 1a (4th generation), 1b (5th generation), and 1c is the 6th generation technology.

SK Hynix developed the 4th generation 10-nanometer 1a in 2021 and has been mass-producing products with 1b technology since the second quarter of last year. The company explained that the 6th generation DRAM was developed by expanding the 5th generation 1b DRAM platform.

The 6th generation DRAM secured cost competitiveness through optimization of the extreme ultraviolet (EUV) process, increasing productivity by more than 30% compared to the 5th generation. The operating speed is 8Gbps (8 gigabits per second), which is 11% faster than the 5th generation 1b. Power efficiency improved by more than 9%. SK Hynix explained, "Applying SK Hynix's 6th generation 1c DRAM to cloud service customer data centers can reduce power costs by up to 30% compared to before."

SK Hynix plans to complete preparations for mass production of the 6th generation 1c 10-nanometer product by the end of the year. Depending on detailed customer order negotiations, delivery could begin as early as the first quarter of next year.

As SK Hynix has introduced the world's first 6th generation DRAM, it is expected to secure a favorable position in future contract competitions. Representative examples include Intel CPU DDR5 and NVIDIA graphics processing unit (GPU) HBM. Samsung Electronics is reported to have set a goal to develop it in the third quarter of this year and mass-produce it by June next year.

SK Hynix expressed confidence that it can surpass Samsung and Micron in productivity of the 6th generation 1c products. SK Hynix stated that it was able to break through 6th generation technology by enhancing the design completeness of the 5th generation 1b technology. Since the 1c development succeeded by expanding the 1b DRAM platform, it means that errors occurring during the advancement process can be reduced.

The industry expects SK Hynix's 6th generation DRAM to have high competitiveness. There are already predictions that it will have an advantage in the number of chips produced per wafer, process efficiency, and yield (ratio of good products).

An industry official said, "Even though SK Hynix developed the 6th generation 1c DRAM process first, it will take some time until mass production. It will first be installed in computer server DDR5 and then sequentially applied to HBM, CXL, etc., according to detailed customer requests." He added, "The company that first develops 6th generation DRAM technology is highly likely to take overall leadership across major DRAM market products such as DDR, HBM, and CXL."

Kim Jong-hwan, Vice President in charge of DRAM development at SK Hynix, said, "We will provide differentiated value to customers by applying the 1c technology, which simultaneously satisfies the best performance and cost competitiveness, to next-generation HBM, LPDDR6, G (graphics) DDR7, and other cutting-edge DRAM main product lines. We will maintain DRAM market leadership and solidify our position as the most trusted AI memory solution company by customers."