SK Hynix successfully developed 238 layers of NAND flash memory

SK Hynix announced the successful development of the world's first 238-layer NAND flash memory with the highest layer count. SK Hynix said it has sent samples of 238 layers of 512Gb TLC 4D NAND flash memory to customers and plans to officially put into mass production in the first half of 2023.

The 238-layer NAND flash memory successfully stacks higher layers while achieving the industry's smallest area, and is 34% more productive than 176-layer NAND flash. In addition, the data transfer speed of 238-layer NAND flash memory is 2.4Gbps, which is 50% higher than the previous generation, and the energy consumption of the chip when reading data is also reduced by 21%.

SK Hynix plans to supply 238 layers of NAND flash memory for cSSDs, and then gradually expand the scope of introduction to smartphones and high-capacity server SSDs. SK Hynix will also release a new 238-layer NAND flash memory product with a density of 1Tb next year, which is twice the density of existing products.