TSMC 40nm yield issues resurface

[y eye]

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EE Times: TSMC posts best revenue, profit since Q308
"Saying the quarter brought solid growth in demand for chips across all major applications, leading foundry TSMC reported its best revenue and profit numbers in a year."

Elsewhere in the news: "TSMC 40nm yield issues resurface"

TSMC 40nm yield issues resurface, CEO promises fix by year-end:
Claire Sung, Taipei; Jessie Shen, DIGITIMES [Friday 30 October 2009]

"Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company (TSMC) has revealed it recently run into issues with its 40nm process technology impacting yields. Company chairman and CEO Morris Chang pledged the issue will be solved within the quarter.

TSMC said it has seen yield rates for its 40nm node drop to 40% due chamber matching issues. Main customers for TSMC's 40nm processes are GPU vendors AMD, which recently launched its new 40nm-based Radeon 5870 series, and Nvidia, who is scheduled to launch its 40nm-based GT300 series of chips in December, according to previous reports. TSMC's recent issues may impact the shipping schedules of the GPU vendors, market watchers commented.

During TSMC's July 2009 investors conference, Chang revealed that yield rates for 40nm processes had improved to 60%, up from as low as 20-30% in the second quarter of 2009.

In other news, TSMC has released its October 2009 investors report in which company CFO Lora Ho said, "Due to stronger demand for 40nm and 65nm technologies, TSMC 2009 capex has risen further and is expected to be around US$2.7 billion." Accordingly, TSMC's fourth-quarter capex may total around US$1.34 billion, up from US$971 million alloted in the third quarter and US$224 million in the second quarter.

TSMC revealed that 45/40nm accounted for 4% of the company's third-quarter revenues, compared to 1% in the first and second quarters. TSMC said it aims to push up the sales proportion to 10% by the end of 2009."
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[Apoptosis]

bad news for all GPU makers!