Former Intel CEO speaks out in defence of 18A – counters low yield rumours
Pat Gelsinger sets the record straight on 18A, countering low yield rate rumours
Intel’s former CEO, Pat Gelsinger, has spoken out on Twitter (now X) to defend the company’s 18A lithography technology. Intel 18A will be the node behind Intel’s next-generation Panther Lake and Clearwater Forest CPUs, and recent reports have claimed the manufacturing yields for this node are terrible.
Yesterday, we refuted these “abysmal 10% yield” reports and clarified how the success of lithography nodes should be judged. Pat has since used the same arguments to counter the same misinformation on Twitter/X.
Simply put, yield percentage values are not a measurement of success, especially when that data isn’t given with chip size data. Manufacturers can make smaller chips to generate higher yields, and larger chips have low yields. This makes yield percentages a meaningless data point without knowing the size of the chip being built. Defect Density is a much better data point when defining the health or success of a lithography node.
thank you Pat for helping to set the record straight. I'm so very proud of the TD/18A team for the incredible work and progress they are making.
— Pat Gelsinger (@PGelsinger) December 7, 2024
Pat Gelsinger is “very proud” of 18A
Pat Gelsinger has stated that he is “very proud” of the “incredible work” of the Intel 18A team. Back in September, Intel commented on the defect density of its 18A lithography node. Intel stated that “18A defect density already at D0 <0.40” and that the “economics are right for us to make the transition [to 18A] now.”
Simply put, Intel 18A is not a failed node. Products based on 18A will be released in 2025, and Intel’s 18A defect rate is expected to improve before then. After all, Intel has a few quarters to improve 18A before mass production starts.
speaking about yield as a % isn't appropriate. large die will have lower yield, smaller die – high yield percentage. Anyone using % yield as a metric for semiconductor health without defining die size, doesn't understand semiconductor yield. yields are represented as defect…
— Pat Gelsinger (@PGelsinger) December 7, 2024
Hopefully, Intel will officially comment on the state of 18A to quash the rumours surrounding the node. Note that many believe that 18A is performing a lot worse than expected, citing it as a reason why Pat Gelsinger “retired” last week. Until Intel clarifies the situation, these rumours will continue circulating, damaging the company’s reputation.
You can join the discussion on Pat Gelsinger’s defence of Intel’s 18A lithography node on the OC3D Forums.
