Western Digital Begins Pilot Production of Next-Gen 3D NAND Storage

Western Digital has begun pilot production of its next-generation 3D NAND technology, BiCS3, at the Yokkaichi, Japan, joint venture facilities it opened with Toshiba earlier this month (see 1607150023). Initial output of the technology, which offers 64 layers of vertical storage capability, is expected later this year, with meaningful commercial volumes of BiCS3 due first half 2017, said Western Digital in a news release. BiCS3, developed with Toshiba, is based on 3-bits-per-cell technology with high aspect ratio semiconductor processing, said to deliver high capacity and performance cost effectively. BiCS3 initially will be deployed in 256-gigabit capacity and will scale up to half a terabit storage on a single chip, said Western Digital. Volume shipments of BiCS3 for the retail market are due in Q4, with OEM sampling to begin this quarter. Shipments of the company’s previous-generation 3D NAND technology, BiCS2, continue to be available to customers in retail and OEM, it said.