AMD plans to push the boundaries of its upcoming Zen 3 processors by adopting the new 5nm process from TSMC.
Rumors, circulating in the tech community, claim that AMD plans to use the 5nm process for its Zen 3 chips. This rumor hinges on an unconfirmed report that AMD and Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company (TSMC) are forging a new alliance.
AMD is probably working to shift the manufacturing process of the upcoming Zen 3 from 7nm to 5nm. This could spell a potential boon for the company, as the 5nm process will have more transistors, therefore, more power.
The fate of Zen 3 chips
Currently, AMD uses the 7nm process for its top-tier processors. These Zen 2 processors are some of the most powerful chips currently available in the market. With the upcoming release of its successor, AMD is working to squeeze more clock speed into its hardware.
Speculations about the next line of Ryzen processors have been circulating for quite some time now. With the astonishing success of Ryzen 3000, the company might be working to push the boundary further. For AMD, that boundary is the 5nm process.
AMD: Zen 3 = 7nm+
Internet: Zen 3 = 5nm+https://t.co/vhm53yZZVi— witeken (@witeken) May 29, 2020
Early speculations claim that AMD is considering to use TSMC’s 7n EUV for its new line of processors. However, recent rumors claim that AMD is ditching that plan and instead opt to use the 5nm or 5nm+ process.
TSMC confirms that the company will mass produce processors using the 5nm process this year. Tech companies like Apple, Huawei, and Intel are lining up to take advantage of this. TSMC and South Korean tech giant Samsung are the only ones that confirm the mass production of 5nm processors.
AMD’s plan for the future
Many tech analysts believe that the AMD Zen 3 lineup will be just as revolutionary as the original Zen processors. The processor promises improvements in clock speeds, instructions per cycle, and power efficiency. With TSMC’s 5nm process, the upcoming Zen processors might just be able to achieve that.
Despite this lofty goal, many believe that it is still too early for AMD to shift to 5nm. The 7nm process is still in its infancy, yet it is already breaking both technical and market records. Many believe that AMD should let the current lineup grow first before expanding into a newer process.
Whatever AMD’s plans for its Zen 3 lineup are, it should worry Intel. The desktop processor market is slowly tipping to AMD’s side, and Intel has yet to provide an answer.
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