YMTC Achieves Memory Breakthrough In Spite Of US Sanctions

Chinese memory chip company Yangtze Memory Technologies Corporation (YMTC), has developed a range of innovations with its Xtacking4.0 (Gen5) process in spite of US sanctions, according to a research firm.

The process brings “notable advancements in process and design” aimed at enhancing storage density, speed and energy efficiency, found Canadian research firm TechInsights.

The firm analysed the process used in YMTC’s highest-density 3D NAND flash memory chip, which TechInsights said it found in the commercial ZhiTai TiPro9000 storage device.

Tech breakthrough

The chip uses a dual-deck structure, with 144 gates on the upper deck and 150 gates on the lower deck for a total of 294 gates and a hybrid-bonding technique joining the two together, TechInsights said.

The bonding process is now more refined than in previous iterations of Xtacking and is “the backbone of YMTC’s high-density, vertically connected 3D NAND chips”, TechInsights said.

The previous iteration of the process had a total of 180 gates.

The latest process increases storage density, with an industry-first capacity of more than 20 gigabits per square millimetre, TechInsights found.

The design contains around 270 memory layers, the firm estimated.

Other improvements were designed to increase read/write performance, streamline vertical connections, improve cell density and efficiency, and reduce footprint, TechInsights’ study found.

“These improvements reflect YMTC’s efforts to mitigate the challenges of US sanctions by advancing its technology, boosting yields, and preparing for further product diversification,” the company said.

Restrictions

China has been pushing to reduce its dependence on foreign imports of key technologies such as high-end chips and software, as the US has steadily ramped up trade restrictions on national security grounds.

On Monday, an inexpensively developed AI chatbot model from start-up DeepSeek rose to the top spot for free iPhone app downloads in the US, sending shockwaves through markets as investors questioned the billions US tech companies have been spending on AI development and infrastructure.

DeepSeek’s models were developed mostly by recent university graduates at the one-year-old start-up, using less-advanced AI chips that are more easily available in China in compliance with US trade rules.