IBM Corp. has rolled out its initial ASIC offering based on 45nm technology. The product line is the world’s first ASIC that combines embedded DRAM and silicon-on-insulator (SOI) technologies, according to the company.

IBM’s rivals took potshots at the announcement, claiming that the technologies will increase the overall cost for ASICs. On the other hand though, the announcement could also increase performance levels and breathe new life into the lowly ASIC.

Slow market decline

IBM’s 45nm ASIC technology is separate from another process effort by Big Blue. Advanced Micro Devices Inc., IBM, Chartered Semiconductor Manufacturing Pte Ltd, Freescale Semiconductor Inc., Infineon Technologies AG and Samsung Electronics Co. Ltd are co-developing a process technology as part of the so-called Common Platform alliance.

Fujitsu, NEC, Toshiba and several fabless players have also recently added new performance features to the ASIC, but the real question is whether the market is nearly extinct.

Regarding IBM’s announcement, Gartner analyst Bryan Lewis said that the ASIC line is also a "big deal," mainly because of the introduction of SOI and embedded DRAM in the technology.

It is unlikely that IBM’s product can jumpstart the overall ASIC market, however. The mainstream ASIC sector consists of products based on 130nm and 90nm technologies. The 65nm ASIC market remains small, but the 45nm era "is a long ways off," Lewis said.

Meanwhile, IBM is optimistic about the ASIC market, despite doomsday pronouncements about it from others. Overall business is still growing for the company, which is the world’s second ASIC supplier, behind Texas Instruments Inc. "I don’t see a slowdown," said Tom Reeves, VP of semiconductor and technology services within IBM’s Global Engineering Solutions unit.

In fact, IBM’s 45nm ASIC offering is expected to drive the "next buildout of the Internet," Reeves said. "We think that this is a game changer."

IBM’s product, dubbed the Cu-45 High Performance Custom Chip, can improve processor memory performance by up to 30 percent in about one-third the space with one-fifth the standby power of conventional SRAM.

Applications include the communications, storage and mobile markets. Based on a 45nm, dual-logic oxide technology, IBM’s ASIC line features 9-10 levels of metal layers, ultralow-k dielectrics, 3.8-9.9ps gate delays and 200 million wireable gates.

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