Advertisement

NEC, Samsung stacking flash in hopes of a one-terabit chip

It's a common adage that over time, consumer electronics get faster, cheaper, smaller (size) and bigger (capacity). In continuing with this tradition, NEC, Samsung and others are poised to introduce the next generation of flash memory by placing eight memory chips (each only 50 micrometers thick) and one controller chip in a vertical stack, with "3D connections" between all of 'em -- creating a tiny-sized but powerful piece of storage. Samsung says that this could lead to a one-terabit flash chip within the coming years, but don't count on fitting an entire season of "Lost" on your cellphone just yet -- company scientists say that these new chips are "in their early stages" and can only hold 32 bits for the time being.

[Via Sci Fi Tech, thanks Mike]

Read - NEC press release
Read - Technology Review