Crypto news

IBM Corporation has made a breakthrough in the semiconductor industry by announcing a chip manufacturing technology with a transistor architecture of 0.7 nm, equivalent to 7 angstroms. This step marks another stage in the miniaturization of computing components, where traditional planar transistors are giving way to multilayer structures called "nanostack."

How does nanostack work?

Unlike classic planar solutions, transistors in the new technology are not placed in a single plane but in several layers. This allows for a dramatic increase in the density of element arrangement on the chip without significantly increasing its physical size. According to IBM estimates, this approach will enable the placement of nearly 100 billion transistors on a chip the size of a fingernail — several times more than current 3-nm and 2-nm solutions.

Performance and energy efficiency

Comparing with its own 2-nm technology from 2021, IBM claims a performance increase of up to 50% or an improvement in energy efficiency of up to 70% while maintaining the same computing power. This means that future processors based on 0.7 nm will be able to perform the most complex AI and HPC tasks with lower heat generation and energy consumption.

Commercialization timeline

Despite the impressive figures, commercial production of such chips will begin no earlier than five years from now. This is a typical time lag for the introduction of advanced lithographic processes: from laboratory demonstration to mass production, debugging of equipment, materials, and deposition technology is required.

My expert conclusion: IBM once again proves that Moore's Law remains relevant, albeit in a modified form. However, the key question is whether the company will be able to transfer this technology to partners (e.g., Samsung or Intel Foundry) for scaling, or whether it will remain a demonstration sample. For the crypto industry, this means a potential leap in the performance of ASIC miners and blockchain nodes in 5–7 years.