Intel and Micron Technology today announced the delivery of 3-bit-per-cell NAND flash memory on 25-nanometer lithography technology. The new flash memory chips represent the industry’s highest-capacity and smallest NAND device to date, the companies said.
A single slide from a presentation leaked yesterday also showed Intel increasing the capacity of its solid-state drives (SSD) to 600GB through the use of memory chips with twice the capacity of current devices.
The slide shows a refresh of Intel’s line of consumer-class SSDs, including the popular X25-M drive. The X25-M currently comes in 80GB and 160GB capacities. By utilizing the 25nm technology, the new models will have 160GB, 300GB and 600GB.
According to the slide, Intel also expects to double the capacity of its X25-V entry-level drive, which is targeted at the netbook and tablet market. The current X25-V offers 40GB capacity. That will be replaced with an 80GB model.
An Intel spokeswoman said the company does not comment on products that have not officially been announced.
The companies have sent initial product samples to select customers. Intel and Micron expect to be in full production by the end of the year.
The 3-bit-per-cell NAND flash chips are targeted for flash cards, USB drives and MP3 players. The companies’ SSDs continue to use 2-bit-per-cell and 1-bit-per-cell NAND flash.
Last August, Intel and Micron’s joint venture company, IM Flash Technologies (IMFT), announced its first 3-bit-per-cell NAND flash memory technology using its 34nm lithography process. The advancement represented an 11% reduction in NAND flash size. However, because of reliability issues
