SK hynix to mass produce world’s first fifth-generation HBMs

[Graphics by Song Ji-yoon and Chang Iou-chung]

SK hynix Inc. will become the world‘s first chipmaker to mass-produce fifth-generation high-bandwidth memory (HBM), taking the lead in the race to supply HBM to Nvidia Corp. ahead of Micron Technology Inc.

The South Korean chipmaker said on Tuesday that it will start mass production of HBM3E by the end of March 2024, seven months after the development of HBM3E in August 2023. HBM is a memory chip that vertically connects multiple DRAMs to increase data processing speed and is considered a core semiconductor for artificial intelligence (AI).

“With HBM3, we will become the first to provide our customers with a HBM3E with the highest DRAM performance,” the chipmaker said, emphasizing its commitment to the global AI chip race. SK Hynix’s chips are expected to be used in Nvidia‘s next-generation graphics processing units (GPUs) such as the H200 and B100.

SK hynix’s HBM3E achieved the world’s best performance in speed and heat control, according to the company, with a processing capacity of up to 1.18 terabytes per second. This is equivalent to processing 230 full high-definition movies in just one second.

The new HBM chips have increased heat dissipation performance by 10 percent compared to previous products thanks to the advanced mass reflow molded underfill (MR-MUF) process, whereby a liquid encapsulant is injected into the chip to protect its circuits. ”It is a more efficient process than laying film-type materials and is also effective in heat dissipation,“ a SK hynix official said, adding that the technology can reduce chip pressure and improve flexing control to “ensure the stable mass production of HBM chips.”

Competition with Micron is intensifying as Nvidia also begins its full-scale mass production of HBM chips. Micron announced mass production of HBM3E at the end of February 2024, although industry insiders believe that Micron‘s HBM3E has yet to complete Nvidia’s performance verification process. ”SK Hynix reportedly started mass production of HBM3E in January,“ an industry insider said.

Meanwhile, SK hynix is also in fierce competition in layering technology with Samsung Electronics Co. Samsung Electronics unveiled its 12-layer HBM3E, a first in the industry, at the end of February 2024, with a plan to mass-produce itsHBM3E in the first half of the year by securing a production capacity of more than 2.5 times and has supplied its HBM to Advanced Micro Devices Inc., Nvidia‘s competitor.

In response, SK hynix unveiled 16-layer HBM3E technology at the International Solid-State Circuits Conference (ISSCC) as a challenge to Samsung Electronics’ 12-layer product. SK hynix aims to develop 16-layer HBM4 within 2024 and begin mass production by 2026.

According to market research firm TrendForce, SK hynix maintained its leading position in the HBM market in 2023 with a market share of 49 percent, followed by Samsung Electronics with a market share of 46 percent. Micron also demonstrated its presence in the HBM market, in which it has a 5 percent share.

HBM’s presence in DRAM sales is also expected to increase steadily, with TrendForce forecasting the share of HBM sales to rise to 20.1 percent in 2024 from 8.4 percent the year before. According to the market tracker, chipmakers will increase HBM production, with Samsung Electronics expected to increase production by 125,000 wafers per month, SK Hynix by 125,000 wafers per month and Micron by 20,000 wafers per month.