Samsung Electronics Announces Xilinx as First 28nm Customer

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Samsung Electronics Announces Xilinx as First Customer to Utilize its 28nm HKMG Process Technology for FPGA Architectures

SAN JOSE, Calif. --(Business Wire)-- Feb 22, 2010 Samsung Electronics Co., Ltd., a global leader in advanced semiconductor technology, announced today that it has been selected by Xilinx as its foundry partner for 28nm high-k metal gate (HKMG) process technology manufacturing optimized for a balance of performance and power efficiency. The advanced 28nm HKMG process technology of Samsung Electronics’ Foundry business (Samsung Foundry) enables Xilinx to implement a new generation of FPGAs that offer up to 50 percent lower power savings over devices built on the previous 45nm technology node. This announcement places the two companies at the cutting-edge of low-power logic technology, aimed at bringing Xilinx’s products manufactured by Samsung Foundry to the forefront of the FPGA market.

“We are pleased to extend our collaboration with Xilinx, which began at 45nm process technology last year with the successful Spartan-6 family, to our 28nm HKMG process technology for high-performance low-power devices,” said Jay Min, vice president, Samsung Electronics’ Foundry business. “This advanced process is being developed in Samsung’s S-Line which is equipped with advanced 28nm process tools and is the second generation of HKMG technology implemented in the fab.”

Compared to previous generation technologies, the HKMG technology enables continued performance improvements with transistor scaling while significantly reducing power consumption. Designed with a gate-first approach, Samsung Foundry’s cost-effective, breakthrough technology minimizes the use of restrictive design rules doubling the logic and SRAM density of 40nm processes.

“From the beginning, our strategy has been to work in concert with semiconductor manufacturing leaders such as Samsung Foundry to deliver the best value for our customers when moving to more advanced technology nodes,” said Victor Peng, senior vice president, Programmable Platform Development at Xilinx. “By optimizing our unified ASMBL™ architecture at the 28nm HKMG process technology, the collaborative effort with Samsung Foundry will play a critical role in enabling us to bring innovative, next-generation FPGA products to our target markets.”

Samsung Foundry provides advanced technology and manufacturing capacity to its foundry customers. Processes down to 45nm are in volume production and Samsung Foundry 28nm HKMG process is expected to be production-ready in the first half of 2011.

About Samsung Electronics’ Foundry Business

Samsung Electronics’ Foundry business is dedicated to support fabless and IDM semiconductor companies offering full service solutions encompassing design kits and proven IP to fully turnkey manufacturing to achieve market success with advanced IC designs. Currently in mass production at 45 nanometer (nm), Samsung Foundry is also preparing next generation 32/28nm and beyond process technologies by leveraging the deep expertise in advanced process technologies, design technologies, as well as a long, proven track record in high-volume manufacturing with its continued participation in the IBM Joint Development Alliance (JDA). For more information, please visit www.samsung.com/Foundry.

About Samsung Electronics Co., Ltd.

Samsung Electronics Co., Ltd. is a global leader in semiconductor, telecommunication, digital media and digital convergence technologies with 2008 consolidated sales of US$96 billion. Employing approximately 164,600 people in 179 offices across 61 countries, the company consists of seven independently operated business units: Visual Display, Mobile Communications, Telecommunication Systems, Digital Appliances, IT Solutions, Semiconductor and LCD. Recognized as one of the fastest growing global brands, Samsung Electronics is a leading producer of digital TVs, memory chips, mobile phones and TFT-LCDs. For more information, please visit www.samsung.com.