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takyon [soylentnews.org] writes:

Imec and Cadence Tape Out Industry's First 3nm Test Chip [cadence.com]

The world-leading research and innovation hub in nanoelectronics and digital technologies, imec, and Cadence Design Systems, Inc. today announced that its extensive, long-standing collaboration has resulted in the industry's first 3nm test chip tapeout. The tapeout project, geared toward advancing 3nm chip design, was completed using extreme ultraviolet (EUV) and 193 immersion (193i) lithography-oriented design rules and the Cadence® Innovus™ Implementation System and Genus™ Synthesis Solution. Imec utilized a common industry 64-bit CPU for the test chip with a custom 3nm standard cell library and a TRIM metal flow, where the routing pitch was reduced to 21nm. Together, Cadence and imec have enabled the 3nm implementation flow to be fully validated in preparation for next-generation design innovation.

A tape-out [wikipedia.org] is the final step before the design is sent to be fabricated.

Meanwhile, Imec is looking towards nodes smaller than "3nm" [semiengineering.com]:

[The] industry is pinpointing and narrowing down the transistor options for the next major nodes after 3nm. Those two nodes, called 2.5nm and 1.5nm, are slated to appear in 2027 and 2030, respectively, according to the International Technology Roadmap for Semiconductors (ITRS) version 2.0. Another organization, Imec [semiengineering.com], is more aggressive with the timetable, saying that 2.5nm or thereabouts will arrive by 2024.

Also at EE Times [eetimes.com].

Related: TSMC Plans New Fab for 3nm [eetimes.com]
Samsung Plans a "4nm" Process [soylentnews.org]
IBM Demonstrates 5nm Chip With Horizontal Gate-All-Around Transistors [soylentnews.org]
GlobalFoundries to Spend $10-12 Billion on a 7nm Fab, Possibly $14-18 Billion for 5nm [soylentnews.org]
TSMC Holds Groundbreaking Ceremony for "5nm" Fab, Production to Begin in 2020 [soylentnews.org]

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