Flex-OneNAND: Samsung Unveils Fusion Semiconductor

March 27, 2007

Samsung Electronics announced today at its annual Mobile Solution Forum in Taipei a new fusion semiconductor that enables consumer electronics (CE) designers to use both types of NAND flash memory - single level cell (SLC) and multi-level cell (MLC) NAND - in the same device for the first time.

The Flex-OneNAND fusion semiconductor is a single silicon chip with new Samsung software that permits CE designers to use a single-die solution for providing either SLC or MLC functionality or a combination of both. This enables much greater flexibility in memory utilization through the easy modification of a CE product even after the original design has been completed.

The faster read and write capability of SLC NAND flash makes it more effective in processing the “code” data used primarily in device boot-up and data downloading, while the greater cost efficiency of MLC NAND makes it more attractive in large-content storage functions.

Samsung’s Flex-OneNAND not only gives CE designers the flexibility to efficiently modify the memory component within a digital device late in the design cycle, but it also reduces the area needed for the memory on the print circuit board and improves performance by diminishing transmission noise.

With Flex-OneNAND, Samsung’s fusion semiconductor initiative has entered a third evolution, signifying the increasing importance and added value of semiconductors in the design of digital devices.

Samsung plans to begin producing the 4Gb Flex-OneNAND next month.

Source: Samsung