Samsung launches new V-NAND

Samsung Electronics has begun mass production of the first third-generation three-dimensional 256-gigabit Vertical NAND (V-NAND) flash memory for use in solid state drives (SSDs).

The third-generation V-NAND flash memory comes a year after the world’s top memory chip producer released the second-generation 128-Gb V-NAND flash. The new memory has double the density of the 128-Gb V-NAND.

Since NAND flash memory does not require power to retain data, it is used in devices in which larger files are frequently uploaded and replaced - such as smartphones, digital cameras, USB drives and SSDs. DRAM, by contrast, needs power to maintain its content.

“We can now provide the most advanced memory solutions with even higher efficiency, based on improved performance, power utilization and manufacturing productivity, thereby accelerating growth of the high-performance and the high-density SSD markets,” said Jun Young-hyun, president of the memory business at Samsung Electronics.

The latest chip will help Samsung expand premium-level business in the enterprise and data center market segments, as well as in the consumer market and vowed to continue strengthening its strategic focus on SSDs.

Samsung is the only producer in the world to produce V-NAND flash that stacks the cells vertically in a microscopic skyscraper, thus breaking free of the scaling limit for existing NAND flash technology.

The new flash is based on 48 layers of 3-bit MLC arrays, whereas its preceding model had 32 layers. The space sparing technology is similar to choosing to build an apartment rather than to build multiple single-story houses on a large plot of land.

The new chip uses more than 30 percent less power compared to its predecessor, while storing the same amount of data.

V-NAND technology has contributed to resolving two major weak points of SSDs - low capacity and a high price, compared to hard-disk drives.

Samsung has been scrambling to make SSDs popular storage devices with the latest V-NAND flash chips and experts say it won’t take long before SSDs with hundreds of gigabytes or multi-terabyte storage capability become industry standard.

The tech bellwether last month rolled out a 2-terabit V-NAND-based SSD across 50 countries worldwide for the first time - a year after it came up with the world’s first V-NAND-based SSD.

BY SEO JI-EUN [seo.jieun@joongang.co.kr]