SK Hynix has recently completed developing an enterprise SATA Solid State Drive (eSSD) that is capable of supporting up to 4TByte of drive space with its 72-layer 512Gb 3D NAND flash chips to gain further edge in the high value-added eSSD market, the company announced on Sunday.

A single 4TB SSD could contain 200 UHD (Ultra-HD) movies.

SK Hynix is the world’s second largest DRAM producer behind Samsung Electronics, but had faced technology hurdles in eSSD in the NAND flash sector.

The company said it combined the 72-Layer 512Gb 3D NAND flash with its in-house firmware and controller to provide the maximum storage density, taking its NAND flash solution capability to another level.

SSDs backed by non-volatile flash memory is in hot demand as flexible and greater-capacity replacement for computer hard disc drives amid growing corporate demand for big data.

Unlike flash leaders Samsung Electronics and Toshiba that stack their 3D NAND with 62 layers, SK Hynix produces fourth-generation chips at 74 layers. Second to Samsung in DRAM but lagging in NAND, SK Hynix has recently been ramping up flash and SSD capacity.

A controller is a system semiconductor that is a core of SSD and the industry had paid attention to how high the company could jump in the level of controller technology.

SK Hynix already amassed the technology and resources for SSD by acquiring a global controller developer many years ago and through a technology transfer contract with SK Telecom last year. SK Hynix also joined the winning consortium for Toshiba’s memory chip unit, which would be helpful in the expansion of the company’s presence in the eSSD market.

According to IHS Markit, global SSD market revenue was estimated to reach $25.1 billion in 2017 and is expected to grow by 5.6 percent CAGR, hitting $31.2 billion in 2021. Of these, revenue of the enterprise SSD will lead the market growth by rising from $13.4 billion to $17.6 billion at a CAGR of 7 percent during the same period.

By Lee Jae-cheol and Minu Kim

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