One billion chipsets and more to come
Qualcomm and foundry partner TSMC have announced the shipment of Qualcomm’s 1 billionth Mobile Station Modem chipset produced by TSMC. This milestone covers a wide span of semiconductor technologies over the past decade from 0.25 micron through 45 nm specifically focusing on low power enablement for mobile applications at TSMC’s fabs. The two companies also announced that they are now working closely on 28 nm process technology.
“Reaching the 1 billion shipments mark is a remarkable milestone for both of our companies,” said TSMC President and Chief Executive Officer Rick Tsai. “It reflects not only the close working relationship and shared objectives of TSMC and Qualcomm, but also the inherent business advantages of the fabless manufacturing business model.”
Smaller form factor and lower power consumption are critical to Qualcomm's Snapdragon chipsets in delivering next-generation mobile devices such as smartphones and smartbooks. 28nm technology enables semiconductors to fulfill the needs with more advanced functionality. The two companies are leveraging their long relationship as Qualcomm works on migrating directly from the 45nm to the 28nm node.
“TSMC prides itself on its ability to deliver cutting edge technology platforms, including the related design ecosystems. Our 28nm platform supports the high performance, low power products that deliver next-generation experiences,” said Jason Chen, Vice President of Worldwide Sales and Marketing. “We are pleased to be working with Qualcomm, a market leader in wireless technology, on bringing these new experiences to reality.”
“Qualcomm’s close collaboration with TSMC has always been a key part of our ability to deliver significant advantages to our customers through the industry leading integration, power efficiency and cost efficiency of our products – enabling them to do more with less,” said Jim Clifford, Senior Vice President and General Manager of Qualcomm CDMA Technologies. “Qualcomm’s integrated fabless manufacturing model is allowing us to help bring the best mobile experience possible to wireless users worldwide.”
Qualcomm and TSMC worked closely on 65nm and 45nm technologies. They are continuing their relationship into low power low leakage 28nm designs for high volume manufacturing. 28nm technology delivers up to twice the density of previous manufacturing nodes, allowing semiconductors that power mobile devices to do far more with less power. Qualcomm and TSMC are working on both High-K Metal Gate (HKMG) 28HP and Silicon Oxynitride (SiON) 28LPT technologies. Qualcomm expects to tape out its first commercial 28nm products in mid-2010.
