Samsung Electronics’ foundry business posted the highest sales in its history in the first quarter, thanks to strong demand and improvements in manufacturing performance. During a question-and-answer session at Samsung’s earnings call on April 28, the company said yields from its advanced foundry processes are leveling off. “Samsung Foundry’s 5nm process manufacturing throughput rates have reached maturity levels. In the case of the 4nm nodes, there was a small delay in the initial performance increase,” the company said. As for the development of Samsung’s 3nm GAA process, the company said that it is undergoing verification at each stage of development, which will help shorten the period of performance increase. “We have returned to the expected performance improvement curve as we have focused on early stabilization,” Samsung noted. Samsung stated that the company will “consolidate its technological leadership with the world’s first mass production of the 3-nanometer GAA process and continue to win new customers.” The company is on track to bring its first-generation GAA process (3GAE) into mass production later this year, and further develop its second-generation GAA process (3GAP) on schedule. Samsung said its device solutions (DS) division, which encompasses semiconductor and component units, generated record sales in the first quarter of 2022, while sales of its device experience (DX) division, made up of Samsung’s mobile phone and home appliance businesses were the highest since 2013.
