Intel Runs 14nm Test Chips in the Lab

Intel Corp. reaffirmed in the interview that it remains to be committed to its well-known Tick-Tock strategy and is on-track to introduce 14nm fabrication process sometimes in 2014. Moreover, the world's largest chipmaker already has test chips produced using 14nm fabrication process running in the lab.

In an interview with Nordic Hardware, Intel confirmed that it already has a set of technologies to build circuits at 14nm, and are running tests on these in the lab. While Intel did not reveal any particular details about the process technology which will only be used two years from now, it did imply that the 14nm fabrication process will feature a number of innovations in the transistor design, just like the 22nm that introduced tri-gate transistors.

"We need to keep going and you can trust me that in our labs we actually have the next generation after 22nm running, so we need to keep going.[...]I cannot really disclose more about that other than that in a laboratory-environment, absolutely we do have the path, our engineers do have the path to actually go and produce 14nm products," said Pat Bliemer, managing director of Intel Northern Europe.

 

Intel demonstrates confidence in its ability to continue rapidly innovating in the semiconductor space, which adds assurance to the company's ability to continue introduce new central processing units (CPUs) in a timely manner.

The main rival of Intel, Advanced Micro Devices, relies on success of process technologies designed by IBM and Globalfoundries and recent issues will put AMD into a massively uncompetitive position both in terms of short-term and mid-term future.

At first, AMD will remain with relatively outdated 32nm SOI fabrication process in early 2012 when Intel introduces 22nm manufacturing technology. By the year 2014 the gap between Intel and AMD will widen massively: AMD will use 20nm process technology, whereas Intel will start to use 14nm process at the time.