Micron announces new 176-Layer NAND technology: 33% faster SSDs

Micron announces new 176-Layer NAND technology, thanks to this technology we will see 33% faster SSDs. Micron, a leading supplier to SSD manufacturers, has announced its latest fifth-generation 3D NAND memory technology. This brings the number of layers up to 176 and promises to bring better SSDs to the market soon. They say they will improve their speed and capacity, while potentially reducing their manufacturing cost.

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The layers of a NAND memory are essentially the layers of information that can be placed in the smallest possible space. The more layers, the more density and therefore more capacity or speed among other things. In the end, it’s a matter of miniaturization.

While Micron is not the only manufacturer with 176-layer NAND technology, it is the first to mass-produce. They explain that to achieve the design of this new NAND memory they have stacked two 88-layer stacks together. The result is a much higher density for the larger units, and it’s something they’ve been doing for the last few generations.

According to Micron, their new technology is positioned directly ahead of their competitors with a significant density of 176-layers. They explain that their competitors are currently using 128-layer NAND technology, so they provide approximately 40% more density.

Micron says the new 179-layer 3D NAND technology will allow them to produce faster SSDs

Micron says the new 179-layer 3D NAND technology achieves a 35% reduction in read/write latency compared to its 96-layer NAND. On the other hand, compared to the 128-layer NAND, the reduction is 25% in reading and writing latency.

The new 176-layer technology is almost as thick as one-fifth of a sheet of paper, according to Micron. And in fact, it maintains the thickness that they had in the second generation, which was 64 layers. This, in other words, means that it could give SSDs with more storage capacity. This last point about the price is something that is influenced by many external factors, such as the demand for NAND memory at any given time.

Micron said its 176-layer NAND memory should start coming soon to some SSDs from manufacturers like Crucial. However, they did not want to give an exact date, storage capacity or price. What they do promise is better quality than their previous generation with 128 layers.