Apple might obtain access to 3nm chips well before other firms
Anandtech says that compared to the current top-of-the-line 5nm integrated circuits, 3nm chips will use 25%-30% less energy while delivering 10% to 15% higher performance at the same power levels. Transistor density will be up by 1.7x bringing that key number to approximately 227.8 million transistors per square mm. The TSMC foundry has the capacity to make 30,000 wafers per month for 3nm chips during 2021, rising to 105,000 by 2023-2024.
TSMC is expanding production of its wafers for 5nm chips with capacity rising to 105,000 each month during the first half of this year. That compares to the 90,000 wafers produced each month during the fourth quarter of last year. This will rise to 160,000 wafers produced each month starting in 2023-2024. The wafers for the generation-old 7nm chips are currently running off the line at a rate of 140,000 per month. This figure is expected to rise to 160,000 per month in two to three years.
The wafers for 3nm chips will be produced by TSMC later this year under “risk production.” This means that the wafers still might need some small changes before regular production begins. Apple is believed to have agreed to purchase all of the wafers that TSMC will churn out under risk production. While this will give Apple a head start in testing 3nm chipsets for the iPhone, it is very doubtful that the company would use these chips inside units of the iPhone 13 series destined for the hands of consumers. That is because in risk production, all of the risk will be on Apple, not TSMC. Chips from these wafers may not work right or might not work at all. Still, for Apple, spending money on wafers made during risk production is worth the, well, risk. It will give the tech giant access to faster and more energy-efficient chips before other firms.