AMD, IBM announce semiconductor manufacturing technology breakthrough

Industry-first advancement can improve performance, conserve power in future single- and multi-core processors

Sunnyvale, Calif. and East Fishkill, NY, December 13, 2004 -- AMD and IBM today announced that they have perfected a new strained silicon transistor technology aimed at improving processor performance and power efficiency. The breakthrough process results in an approximate 24 percent transistor speed increase, at the same power levels, compared to similar transistors produced without the technology.

Faster, more power-efficient transistors are the building blocks of higher performance, lower power processors. As transistors get smaller, they operate faster, but also risk operating at higher power and heat levels due to electrical leakage or inefficient switching. AMD and IBM's jointly developed strained silicon helps overcome these challenges. In addition, this process makes AMD and IBM the first companies to introduce strained silicon that works with silicon-on-insulator (SOI) technology, which provides additional performance and power savings benefits.

"Innovative process technologies such as strained silicon enable AMD to deliver more value to our customers," said Dirk Meyer, executive vice president, Computation Products Group, AMD.  "Our shared progress in developing advanced silicon technologies allows AMD to deliver today's best performance per watt, and this strained silicon development will extend that leadership when we begin shipping the dual-core AMD Opteron™ processor in mid-2005."

AMD plans to ship 90nm AMD Athlon™ 64 products that use the new strained silicon technology beginning in the first quarter of 2005.  AMD also plans to gradually integrate it into all of its 90nm processor platforms, including its multi-core AMD64 processors. IBM expects to introduce the technology on multiple 90nm processor platforms, including its Power Architecture-based chips, in early 2005.

"Innovation has surpassed scaling as the primary driver of semiconductor technology performance improvements," said Lisa Su, vice president of technology development and alliances, IBM Systems & Technology Group.  "This achievement with AMD demonstrates that companies willing to share their expertise and skills can find new ways to overcome roadblocks and help lead the industry to the next-generation of technology advancements."

The new strained silicon process, called "dual stress liner," enhances the performance of both types of semiconductor transistors, called n-channel and p-channel transistors, by stretching silicon atoms in one transistor and compressing them in the other.  The dual stress liner technique works without the introduction of challenging, costly new production techniques, allowing for its rapid integration into volume manufacturing using standard tools and materials.

AMD and IBM researchers are first in the industry to simultaneously enhance the performance of both types of transistors in a semiconductor using conventional materials.

"This breakthrough in strained silicon engineering is a result of our joint development alliance and the efforts of our partnered teams at IBM's facility in New York and AMD's facility in Germany," said Nick Kepler, vice president of logic technology development, AMD.  "This is a better way to deliver the performance enhancements and power reduction that AMD Opteron™ and AMD Athlon™ 64 processor customers expect."

Details of the AMD-IBM dual stress liner innovation will be disclosed at the 2004 IEEE International Electron Devices Meeting in San Francisco, Calif. from December 13-15, 2004.  The dual stress liner with SOI technology was developed by engineers from IBM, AMD, Sony and Toshiba at IBM's Semiconductor Research and Development Center (SRDC) in East Fishkill, NY, as well as engineers from AMD at its Fab 30 facility in Dresden, Germany.

IBM and AMD have been collaborating on the development of next-generation semiconductor manufacturing technologies since January 2003. 

About IBM
IBM is a recognized innovator in the semiconductor industry, having been first with advances like more power-efficient copper wiring in place of aluminum and faster SOI and silicon germanium transistors. These and other innovations have contributed to IBM's standing as the number one U.S. patent holder for 11 consecutive years. More information about IBM semiconductors can be found at http://www.ibm.com/chips.

About AMD
AMD (NYSE:AMD) designs and produces innovative microprocessors, Flash memory devices and low-power processor solutions for the computer, communications and consumer electronics industries. AMD is dedicated to helping its customers deliver standards-based, customer-focused solutions for technology users, ranging from enterprises and governments to individual consumers. For more information, visit http://www.amd.com.