Aug 26 2014
Cypress Semiconductor Corp., a leading provider of embedded nonvolatile memory solutions, and Shanghai Huali Microelectronics Corporation (HLMC), one of the most advanced pure play wafer foundries in China, today announced the companies have developed functioning silicon cells using Cypress's SONOS (Silicon Oxide Nitride Oxide Silicon) embedded Flash memory intellectual property (IP) at the 55-nanometer process technology node.
The silicon cells are designed for smartcards and Internet of Things (IoT) applications. Cypress SONOS delivers low wafer and die costs with unmatched scalability for future development. The technology and design IP will be available for high-volume manufacturing by HLMC customers in the second half of 2015.
HLMC licensed Cypress's 55-nanometer SONOS embedded nonvolatile memory (NVM) process in January 2014. The technology provides significant advantages over other embedded NVM offerings. SONOS only requires three mask layers to insert it into a standard CMOS process compared with the nine to twelve additional masks generally needed for other embedded Flash technologies. This mask reduction results in lower manufacturing costs. SONOS does not alter standard device characteristics or models when it is added to baseline CMOS process, preserving existing design IP. SONOS delivers intrinsically high yields and best-in-class reliability, 10 years of data retention, 100,000 program/erase endurance cycles, and robust resistance to soft errors. Cypress has demonstrated the ability to scale SONOS to 40-nm and 28-nm nodes, expediting future IP development.
"We are pleased to achieve this milestone with Cypress's 55-nm SONOS, as it marks a significant step in bringing the benefits of the technology to our customers," said Jack Qi Shu, Vice President at HLMC. "SONOS is a cost-effective process that delivers proven high yields. Its reliability and efficiency are key for high-volume Internet of Things applications and smartcards."
"Achieving working 55-nm SONOS silicon cells with HLMC is a testament to the technology's scalability and ease-of-design and to HLMC's manufacturing expertise," said Sam Geha, Vice President of the Technology and Intellectual Property Business Unit at Cypress. "The low cost, high performance and reliability of SONOS are ideal for the rapidly growing smartcard and Internet of Things markets, as well as for bank cards, wearable electronics and other logic-dominated products. Cypress will continue to work with leaders such as HLMC to make SONOS the industry's embedded nonvolatile memory platform of choice."