Besides making smartphones of all kinds, Samsung is also a major DRAM manufacturer. This fact was just highlighted once again with the Korean company announcing that the mass production of the first DDR3 memory made using 20 nm technology has started. Until this moment DDR3 memory was made on 25 nm tech process.
To make it possible for DDR3 memory to operate properly Samsung was forced to use a new manufacturing technology. As we all know memory consists of cells with each cell having a capacitor and a transistor. The problem with this arrangement is that it scales harder than say NAND Flash memory so Samsung was forced to use modified double patterning and atomic layer deposition.
The final result is memory with improved density that now reaches 4 gigabits. In addition the new memory consumes 25 per cent less energy than memory built on 25 nm tech process. The thinner process will also allow Samsung to increase production by 30 per cent when compared to memory on 25 nm and more than twice when compared to 30 nm memory.
Source: Samsung