TSMC Reaches Three Year Deal to Supply Chips to Apple?

The Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company (TSMC) and its IC design service partner Global UniChip have reached a three year foundry deal with Apple, reports DigiTimes. The deal is said to cover the next A-series chips built using the 20nm, 16nm, and 10nm process nodes.

TSMC will start to manufacture Apple's A8 chips in small volume in July 2013, and substantially ramp up its 20nm production capacity after December, the sources revealed. The foundry will complete installing a batch of new 20nm fab equipment, which is capable of processing 50,000 wafers, in the first quarter of 2014, the sources said.

A portion of the upcoming production capacity, estimated at 20,000 wafers, can later be upgraded to process wafers used to build 16nm chips, the sources continued. TSMC is scheduled to volume produce the Apple A9 and A9X processors starting the end of third-quarter 2014, the sources said.


According to the site, the A8 processor will be used in a new iPhone scheduled for release in early 2014 and the A9/A9X will be used in future iPhone and iPad devices.

The company's phase-4, -5, and -6 facilities of Fav 14, its 12-inch fab in southern Taiwan, will be dedicated to producing Apple processors, says the report.

Read More