Intel Sets the release-date of 32-nm Chip for PCs and Laptops in Q4 2009

Intel announced yesterday that It had completed the development phase of the manufacturing process of its next-generation32 nanometers (a billionth of a meter) chip for laptops and computers and it was going to release it in late 2009 (Q4).

The new denser 32chip will surely be cheaper to manufacture and thus cheaper to purchase in the market. The 32nm- chip incorporates second-generation high-k + metal gate technology, so its transistors switch 22% faster than the current transistors used in 45-nm chip. Therefore, the new chip will deliver faster performance as well as less power consumption than the current 45-nm chips.


The press release states:

The company is on track for production readiness of this future generation using even more energy-efficient, denser and higher performing transistors in the fourth quarter of 2009.

The Intel 32nm paper and presentation describe a logic technology that incorporates second-generation high-k + metal gate technology, 193nm immersion lithography for critical patterning layers and enhanced transistor strain techniques. These features enhance the performance and energy efficiency of Intel processors. Intel’s manufacturing process has the highest transistor performance and the highest transistor density of any reported 32nm technology in the industry.


Intel is providing a multitude of technical details around the 32nm process technology at the International Electron Devices Meeting (IEDM) next week in San Francisco.

Also, Other Intel IEDM papers will describe a low power system on chip version of Intel’s 45nm process, transistors based on compound semiconductors, substrate engineering to improve performance of 45nm transistors, integrating chemical mechanical polish for the 45nm node and beyond; and, integrating an array of silicon photonics modulators. Intel will also participate in a short course on 22nm CMOS Technology.

It is nice to remind that in earlier report Intel revealed that In second half of 2010, the next-generation (32-nm chip) of Atom CPU codenamed “Medfield” would be released.