Earlier this year, there were reports of TSMC moving to a 5nm process for the 2020 Apple iPhone. The TSMC 5nm chip is now in risk-production that is optimized for both laptops and high-performance workstations.
Side shot of completed gate-all-around transistors on IBM’s 5nm GAAFET. Source: wccftech
The 5nm process will build on the current 5G and IoT applications as well as offer better efficiency. The new lithography allows for 1.8X logic density and a 15% performance gain over the 7nm process.
Apple to use TSMC 5nm Chips in the 2020 iPhone
Apple uses the A12 and the A12X chips based on the 7nm process in its mobile devices which allows for a smaller chip layering process. New leaks point to the 2020 iPhone incorporating the new 5nm design. Like every new generation, it’s expected to offer better performance, battery life, and improved thermals.
The TSMC 7nm process with EUV is expected to utilize 100% production capacity by next year. With all leading manufacturers moving towards miniaturizing their chips, it remains to be seen what Intel’s next move is going to be (after being stuck on the 14nm node for almost 4 years).
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