[E-Daily Reporter JAEMIN SONG ] Yangtze Memory Technology (YMTC), China’s largest NAND flash manufacturer, is accelerating its push into the global memory market by allocating more than 30% of its total workforce to research and development (R&D). By leveraging its proprietary stacking technology to expand its NAND market share to 20% while also pursuing entry into the DRAM market, competition with South Korean memory companies such as SamsungElectronics and SK hynix is expected to intensify further.

According to market research firm Counterpoint Research on the 22nd, YMTC—which is preparing for a listing on the STAR Market in Shanghai, China—has 4,796 R&D personnel, accounting for more than 30% of its total workforce. Cumulative R&D investment over the three-year period from 2023 to 2025 amounts to 14.2 billion yuan (approximately 2.8 trillion won). The company has also secured 5,611 registered invention patents.

This technological investment is leading to an expansion of its NAND market share. According to Counterpoint Research, YMTC’s share of global NAND shipments in the second quarter of this year stood at 16.5%. YMTC has set a long-term goal of increasing its market share to 20%. The company plans to expand its presence in the global market by enhancing its production capacity and technological competitiveness, despite U.S. export controls on semiconductors to China.

YMTC’s competitiveness is based on its proprietary stacking technology, “Xtacking.” This method involves fabricating the memory cell array and peripheral logic circuits on separate wafers and then combining them, allowing for the application of technologies optimized for each specific process. A key strength is its ability to achieve high-density memory by utilizing relatively mature processes, even amid restricted access to advanced lithography equipment.

SamsungElectronics is also reported to have licensed YMTC’s Xtacking-related patents in February of last year. Counterpoint Research assessed this as an example demonstrating YMTC’s technological competitiveness.

YMTC is also working to extend its X-stacking technology from NAND to DRAM. Since last October, the company has been developing and testing second-generation 16-gigabit (Gb) LPDDR5 DRAM at its second fab (Fab 2) at a monthly volume of approximately 5,000 wafers. The data transfer speed is approximately 7,500 megatransfers per second (MT/s), and the High-K Metal Gate (HKMG) process has not yet been applied.

As a follow-up product, the company is pursuing the development of 9,600 MT/s-class LPDDR5 using a 4F² cell structure based on vertical channel transistors (VCT). The plan is to mass-produce this product at Fab 3. This is interpreted as a strategy to expand its product portfolio by applying wafer bonding technology—acquired through its existing NAND business—to DRAM as well.

However, there are still significant challenges to overcome before the company can achieve actual market expansion. Since being added to the U.S. Department of Commerce’s Entity List in December 2022, YMTC has faced restrictions on securing advanced semiconductor equipment. The “MATCH Act”—a bill currently being pushed in the U.S. to strengthen semiconductor export controls—is also directly targeting YMTC, which could create additional burdens in securing lithography, etching, and deposition equipment.

In the DRAM business, the key challenges are obtaining quality certification for new products and ensuring mass production yield. YMTC plans to expand its total wafer production capacity, including DRAM, to approximately 500,000 wafers per month. However, since resolving equipment procurement issues stemming from U.S. export controls is essential for expanding production capacity and mass-producing next-generation DRAM, the actual mass production schedule and the pace of NAND market share expansion will need to be closely monitored.

Neil Shah, Vice President of Research at Counterpoint Research, stated, “In the long term, 3D DRAM will ultimately become the direction the industry must take,” adding, “YMTC, which has already proven its technical capabilities in stacked wafer bonding, is in an advantageous position for this transition.”