[Alpha Biz=(Chicago) Reporter Paul Lee] SK Hynix has started mass-producing 238-layer NAND flash memory. NAND singularity is a measure of technological competitiveness, and SK Hynix's 238-layer is the highest singularity in the NAND flash industry around the world.

SK Hynix announced on August 8 that it developed cSSD (Client SSD) solution products for smartphones and PCs based on 238-layer NAND developed in August last year and began mass production last month. It is expected that the 238-layer NAND flash will secure global top-class competitiveness in terms of cost, performance and quality and serve as a driving force in improving the company's management performance in the second half of the year.

The singularity is a key factor that determines NAND performance. In the past, semiconductor cells were integrated in plane (2D), but when they reached their limits, they were stacked vertically (3D) to dramatically increase their storage capacity. SK Hynix's 238-dan is the highest in the industry, ahead of Samsung Electronics' 236-dan or Micron's 232-dan in the U.S.

SK Hynix has been continuously increasing the water level by mass-producing 36-layer NAND for the first time in 2016. It surpassed 128 dan in 2019 and succeeded in mass-producing 238 dan this time, following 176 dan, the highest in the industry at the time in 2021.

From the 96th stage, the semiconductor circuit was placed at the bottom of the cell circuit and 'PUC', a technology that maximizes production efficiency, was applied. It uses its own name '4D NAND Flash' to emphasize differentiation that increases performance and productivity.

The 238-layer data transfer speed is 2.4 gigabits per second (Gb), 50% faster than the previous generation, 176 gigabits. Reading and writing performance has also improved by about 20%. SK Hynix emphasized that smartphones and PCs equipped with the product can provide improved performance.

 

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